The announcement of the Federal Student Debt Relief Plan has raised a lot of questions.
Basic information and link to a credible site:
- The final extension of student loan repayment. Payments will begin January 1, 2023. For students currently enrolled this means interest will begin accruing on Federal Unsubsidized loans.
- Eligibility depends on several factors. Individuals may be eligible for up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness. The key date to remember is if you or someone you know borrowed Federal student loans before June 30, 2022 then a portion of those loans may qualify for loan forgiveness. Anything borrowed after June 30, 2022 does not qualify.
- For those in repayment, a new income driven repayment plan will be created.
*For details, common questions, and a link to sign up for future announcements (like when the application is expected to open sometime in October) please visit, https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement/
Just like with the COVID Relief Plan it has become an opportunity for scammers trying to take advantage of student loan borrowers.
List of Do’s and Don’ts as you prepare to sign up for student debt relief:
- DON’T pay anyone who contacts you with promises of debt relief or loan forgiveness. You will not need to pay anyone to obtain debt relief.
- DON’T reveal your FSA ID or account information or password to anyone who contacts you. The Department of Education and your federal student loan servicer will never call or email you asking for this information.
- DON’T ever give personal or financial information to an unfamiliar caller. When in doubt, hang up and call your student loan servicer directly. You can find your federal student loan servicer’s contact information at Studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers.
- DON’T refinance your federal student loans unless you know the risks. If you refinance federal student loans eligible for debt relief into a private loan, you will lose out on important benefits like one-time debt relief and flexible payment plans for federal loans.
- DO create an FSA ID at StudentAid.gov. You will not need it for the debt relief application but having an FSA ID can allow you to easily access accurate information on your loan and make sure FSA can contact you directly, helping you equip yourself against scammers trying to contact you. Log in to your current account on StudentAid.gov and keep your contact info up to date. If you need help logging in follow these tips on accessing your account.
- DO make sure your loan servicer has your most current contact information. If you don’t know who your servicer is, you can log into StudentAid.gov and see your servicer(s) in your account.
- DO share these messages with your networks and encourage others to sign up at www.ed.gov/subscriptions to be notified when the Student Loan Debt Relief application becomes available.
- DO report scammers to the Federal Trade Commission by visiting reportfraud.ftc.gov.