Lifechanging Loan Forgiveness, Part 2

<p><strong>PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM: HERE’S WHAT’S CHANGED <br></strong><br></p><p>On October 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education announced major changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.</p><p><strong>The new changes might help you if: </strong></p><ul><li>You have federal student loans <strong>AND </strong>you work full-time for a school district, or institution of higher education <strong>AND </strong>you have Direct Loans <strong>OR </strong>You consolidate into the Direct Loan Program by <strong>Oct. 31, 2022 </strong> </li></ul><p><strong>What public service workers need to do before October 31, 2022: </strong></p><ol> <li>Go to studentaid.gov/pslf, login with your Federal Student Aid ID (or create one if you do not have one) and make sure your contact information is up to date so the U.S. Department of Education can communicate directly with you. </li> <li>If you have a <strong>Direct Loan, have made 120 payments, and have applied for PSLF</strong>, you should receive automatic forgiveness soon. </li> <li>If you have a <strong>Direct Loan, have made 120 payments, and have NOT applied for PSLF</strong>, you need to apply for PSLF right away. </li> <li>If you have a <strong>FFEL or Perkins loan</strong>, you need to <strong>consolidate into a Direct Loan, then apply for PSLF</strong>. <strong>Previous Rules Temporary Changes </strong> </li> </ol><ul> <li>PREVIOUS RULE: Borrowers who have Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) or Perkins loans were ineligible for forgiveness<ul><li>TEMPORARY CHANGE: FFEL and Perkins loans payments are now eligible and count towards the required 120 payments </li></ul> </li> <li>PREVIOUS RULE: Payments in non-income driven repayment plans did not count towards the required 120 payments <ul><li>TEMPORARY CHANGE: Previous payments outside of income-driven repayment now count towards the required 120 payments </li></ul> </li> <li>PREVIOUS RULE: Previous late payments were not credited toward the required 120 payments <ul><li>TEMPO