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Federal government adjusts student loan forgiveness program amid state lawsuits

Student Loan Forgiveness Explainer
Posted at 12:18 PM, Oct 03, 2022
and last updated 2022-10-03 14:18:17-04

There are new changes to who is eligible for federal student loan forgiveness. It comes as six states filed lawsuits to try and block the plan altogether.

The change impacts borrowers who used Perkins loans and Federal Family Education loans.

They're part of a program that ended back in 2010 and are managed by private banks, but they still qualify for forgiveness if they were consolidated into a direct loan by Sept. 30. The Education Department said this will affect around 770,000 people.

President Joe Biden said that federal student loan borrowers who meet income requirements would have up to $10,000 of their student loans forgiven. That amount increases to $20,000 for those who received Pell Grants in college.

But those who made payments who are eligible for forgiveness continued making payments during the pandemic-era moratorium on student loan bills can request a refund.

They can request a refund of the payments that they made that weren't required, and that's been the case since the very beginning of the pandemic,” said student loan expert Mark Kantrowitz.