The Complete List of Student Loan Forgiveness Programs

Got student loan debt? There is room for hope for many in the form of student loan forgiveness programs in 2020.

Student loans are a massive economic burden for millennials that graduate from college every day. According to one study by Pew Research Center, 1 in 4 American adults have student loan debt.

Those who have bachelor’s degrees owe a median of $25,000 dollars. Many college graduates and parents are worried about paying off student loan debt, especially if other payments are taken into consideration.

However, there is room for hope for many in the form of student loan forgiveness programs.

Student Loan Forgiveness Programs 2025

These are specialized programs that are offered by government agencies to help reduce the burden of student loan debt college graduates face each year. The eligibility requirements for student loan forgiveness vary depending on the program.

Another benefit to forgiveness programs is that most programs will suspend the deadline for you to pay your loan while they review your application.

In this article, we will show you how to apply for student loans, whether someone qualifies for student loans, and what to watch out for when applying.

1. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

Best for: Government and nonprofit workers
Forgiveness after: 120 qualifying monthly payments (10 years)
Eligible loans: Direct Loans
Status: Active

PSLF remains the gold standard for long-term loan forgiveness. If you work full-time for a qualifying employer (government or 501(c)(3) nonprofit), make 120 on-time payments under an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan, and certify your employment annually, the remaining balance on your federal Direct Loans can be forgiven — tax-free.

Pro Tip: Use the Federal Student Aid PSLF Help Tool to check if your employer qualifies.

2. Teacher Loan Forgiveness

Best for: Teachers working in low-income schools
Forgiveness amount: Up to $17,500
Forgiveness after: 5 consecutive years of service
Eligible loans: Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized and Stafford Loans
Status: Active

If you teach full-time in a low-income school or educational service agency for five consecutive academic years, you may qualify for up to $17,500 in forgiveness, depending on your subject area.

Bonus: You can potentially stack this with PSLF — just not for the same time period.

3. Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Forgiveness

Best for: Borrowers with high debt-to-income ratios
Forgiveness after: 20 or 25 years of repayment
Eligible loans: Most federal loans
Status: Active (with updates in 2024–2025)

There are four IDR plans:

• REPAYE / SAVE Plan (new default)

• PAYE

• IBR

• ICR

Under these plans, your monthly payment is capped at a percentage of your discretionary income. After 20–25 years of qualifying payments, the remaining balance is forgiven.

⚠️ Tax Alert: IDR forgiveness may be taxable depending on the year and your state. Federal tax forgiveness is in place through 2025.

4. SAVE Plan (formerly REPAYE)

Best for: Lower-income borrowers, including community college grads
Forgiveness after: 10–25 years, depending on balance
Status: New in 2024

The Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan is now the default IDR plan. It reduces payments significantly and forgives smaller balances after 10 years (for balances under $12,000).

As of 2025, SAVE offers the most affordable monthly payments and should be considered by most new borrowers.

5. Borrower Defense to Repayment

Best for: Students misled by their schools
Forgiveness amount: Up to full balance
Status: Active but under tighter scrutiny

If your school lied about job placement rates, accreditation, or misled you in another material way, you may be eligible for forgiveness. Applications are being reviewed slowly, but the program still exists.

️‍♂️ Use this only if you have strong documentation of wrongdoing.

6. Closed School Discharge

Best for: Students whose school shut down while they were enrolled or soon after
Forgiveness amount: Up to full balance
Status: Active

If your college closed while you were enrolled or within 180 days of withdrawal and you didn’t transfer credits elsewhere, your federal student loans may be discharged.

7. Perkins Loan Cancellation (If you still have one)

Although the Perkins Loan Program ended in 2017, if you still have Perkins Loans, some public service roles — teachers, nurses, firefighters — may qualify for partial cancellation.

8. State-Based Forgiveness Programs

Many states offer their own student loan forgiveness or repayment assistance programs for:

• Nurses

• Doctors

• Public defenders

• STEM grads

Check your state's department of education or loan repayment programs for updated options.

How to Apply & Eligibility

Student Loan forgiveness programs are often accessed at the federal level. You can contact a loan servicer that can help you with eligibility and billing for student loan forgiveness programs.

From here, you can talk to your loan servicer on what options you have when applying for forgiveness programs. Certain programs will only offer forgiveness for certain types of loans, for example, teacher loan forgiveness programs only offer student loan forgiveness if your loans are either direct loans or federal family education loans (FFEL).

Some, but not all, types of forgiveness programs will offer you loan forgiveness for Perkins Loans so please read the program description carefully.

What Types of Student Loan Forgiveness Programs are Out There?

There are a variety of student loan programs offered by both federal and state governments. Most of these programs are based on occupation such as work for government, teaching, or military for example.

Others include forgiveness programs based on income such as the Federal Income-Based Repayment program or the Pay as You Earn Program.

These loan forgiveness programs are especially helpful when you have bills that total up to more than 10% of your discretionary income.

Other student loan programs are sponsored by state governments such as the Maryland SmartBuy Home Buyer Assistance & Forgiveness Program or the Janet L. Hoffman Loan Assistance Repayment Program.

Student Loans Forgiveness Programs Summary

Although student loan forgiveness programs are a godsend for many, you should be wary of scams and other deceptive schemes.

Students paying off their loans can get desperate and search for anything to help pay off their debt which can make them vulnerable to scams offering student loan forgiveness.

Other important caveats include specific prerequisites for loan programs or higher than average interest rates if you go with income-based forgiveness programs. Overall, student loan forgiveness is a great resource for any college graduate in need. If you need more help with paying off your student loans you can check our latest article.