Student Loan Forgiveness in 2026: What Still Works
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See what PSLF could forgive on your balance
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RAP charges 1% to 10% of income, minus $50 a month per dependent. See your number and what's left after 30 years.
Estimate my paymentFour federal forgiveness routes are open in September 2026: Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), income-driven discharge, Teacher Loan Forgiveness and disability discharge. PSLF alone has forgiven $96.4 billion for 1,291,700 borrowers through August 2026, according to Federal Student Aid.
What changed is the fine print. The SAVE plan is gone, a new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) opened July 1, 2026, and income-driven discharges can be taxed again. Here is what each route requires now.
PSLF has forgiven $96.4 billion for 1.29 million borrowers
PSLF forgives the rest of your Direct Loans after 120 qualifying monthly payments made while you work full time for a qualifying employer. The payments do not need to be consecutive.
To qualify, you need all four:
- The right employer. U.S. federal, state, local or tribal government (including the military), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, or another nonprofit whose main work is a qualifying public service. For-profit contractors, labor unions and partisan political groups do not count.
- Full-time work. An average of at least 30 hours a week.
- Direct Loans. FFEL and Perkins loans count only after you consolidate them into a Direct Consolidation Loan.
- A qualifying plan. RAP, IBR, PAYE, ICR or the 10-year Standard plan. Tiered Standard payments do not count.
The waiver has closed, so new approvals now come through regular PSLF. As of August 2026, 345,900 borrowers with certified public service employment had 97 to 119 qualifying payments, close to the finish line.
Certify your employment every year and each time you change employers, using the PSLF Help Tool. It confirms your count while your records are fresh.
Income-driven plans discharge the rest after 20 to 30 years
Every income-driven plan ends with a discharge of any balance left after the required number of qualifying payments. The length depends on the plan.
| Plan | Monthly payment | Discharge after | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| RAP | 1% to 10% of AGI ÷ 12, minus $50 per dependent | 30 years | Open to all eligible Direct Loans |
| IBR (first borrowed July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2026) | 10% of discretionary income | 20 years | Open for pre-July 2026 loans |
| IBR (borrowed before July 1, 2014) | 15% of discretionary income | 25 years | Open for pre-July 2026 loans |
| PAYE | 10% of discretionary income | 20 years | Ends no later than July 1, 2028 |
| ICR | 20% of discretionary income | 25 years | Ends no later than July 1, 2028 |
| SAVE | Not available | Not available | Blocked by court order, March 10, 2026 |
The Department resumed IBR discharges in September 2025 and has since resumed PAYE and ICR discharges. You get 21 days to opt out when your loan is identified for discharge.
Switching plans can move your finish line. Months on PAYE count toward RAP, but the clock becomes 30 years. Payments made on RAP do not count toward discharge if you later return to IBR, PAYE or ICR, though they do still count for PSLF.
Income-driven discharges can be taxed again from 2026
The American Rescue Plan Act kept student loan discharges out of federal income for discharges from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2025. That exclusion has ended for most income-driven discharges.
There is one exception. If you met your income-driven repayment milestone before January 1, 2026, the discharge is not federally taxed even if it is processed later. States can still tax a discharge.
| Discharge | Federal income tax |
|---|---|
| PSLF | Not taxable |
| Total and permanent disability (on or after Jan. 1, 2018) | Not taxable |
| Income-driven discharge, milestone met before Jan. 1, 2026 | Not taxable |
| Income-driven discharge, milestone met on or after Jan. 1, 2026 (IBR, PAYE, ICR, RAP) | May be taxable |
If you expect an income-driven discharge in the next few years, set money aside for the tax bill and talk to a tax professional before the discharge lands.
Teacher Loan Forgiveness pays up to $17,500 after five years
Teacher Loan Forgiveness is separate from PSLF and has a fixed cap. You must teach full time for five complete and consecutive academic years at a school or educational service agency listed in the Teacher Cancellation Low Income Directory. At least one of those years must be after 1997-98.
| Highly qualified, full-time teacher of | Maximum forgiven |
|---|---|
| Math or science at the secondary level | $17,500 |
| Special education (elementary or secondary) | $17,500 |
| Any other subject, elementary or secondary | $5,000 |
It covers Direct and Federal Stafford Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, not PLUS or Perkins loans. The same five years cannot count toward both programs, so a teacher who takes Teacher Loan Forgiveness then needs 120 more qualifying payments for PSLF. Decide before you apply: the Department cannot reverse it.
SAVE is over, and its forbearance is ending
On March 10, 2026, a federal court order blocked the SAVE plan and most of the 2023 rule that created it. Borrowers whose loans sit in the SAVE forbearance must choose a new plan; if they do not, their servicer will move them to one.
That forbearance is not on PSLF’s list of qualifying deferments and forbearances. Borrowers who already have 120 months of certified qualifying employment can use PSLF Buyback to pay for those months. Our SAVE plan status guide walks through the choice.
Parent PLUS borrowers have one narrow route
Parent PLUS loans cannot use RAP. On their own they can use only fixed plans, and any parent PLUS or consolidation loan first disbursed on or after July 1, 2026 is limited to Tiered Standard, which does not count for PSLF.
The only income-driven route runs through consolidation. The Direct Consolidation Loan must have been disbursed before July 1, 2026. You must then make at least one payment on ICR before ICR ends, no later than July 1, 2028, to move into IBR. Taking out any new Direct Loan closes this route and moves you to Tiered Standard.
What to do before the end of 2026
-
Check your payment counts on StudentAid.gov
Log in and review your PSLF and income-driven counts under My Loans. Raise any gap with your servicer now, not at year 120.
-
Certify your employment if you work in public service
Submit a PSLF form through the PSLF Help Tool every year and whenever you change employers.
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Leave the SAVE forbearance
Pick RAP, IBR or another plan you qualify for. Months in the SAVE forbearance do not count toward forgiveness.
-
Turn on autopay by December 31, 2026
Since July 1, 2026, autopay cuts the rate by 1 percentage point on Direct Loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2012, through June 30, 2028. Borrowers not yet enrolled have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern on December 31, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is PSLF still available in 2026?
Yes. PSLF still forgives the remaining Direct Loan balance after 120 qualifying payments while you work full time for a qualifying employer. RAP payments count; Tiered Standard payments do not.
Is student loan forgiveness taxable in 2026?
PSLF and disability discharges are not federally taxed. Income-driven discharges can be, unless you met your repayment milestone before January 1, 2026. States set their own rules.
Do months in the SAVE forbearance count toward PSLF?
No. The SAVE forbearance is not on PSLF’s list of deferments and forbearances that count. If you already have 120 months of certified qualifying employment, PSLF Buyback lets you pay for those months so they count.
Your next step
Put your own balance and income through the numbers. The loan repayment calculator shows your monthly payment and total cost under RAP, Tiered Standard and IBR, and what PSLF on RAP could forgive after 120 payments.
Find the repayment plan that fits your loans
Loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2026 can use RAP or Tiered Standard. The calculator shows both next to the plans older loans keep.
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See your monthly payment under the new RAP plan
Your income and dependents set your RAP payment. Pick where you are and see it now.
Sources
Every figure in this guide comes from one of these pages. How we check sources
- Federal Student Aid: Public Service Loan Forgiveness
- Federal Student Aid: PSLF Data (combined report, cumulative through August 2026)
- Federal Student Aid: PSLF Buyback
- Federal Student Aid: PSLF Frequently Asked Questions
- Federal Student Aid: Income-Driven Repayment Plans
- Federal Student Aid: Income-Driven Repayment Plan Questions
- Federal Student Aid: IDR Plan Court Actions (updated Sept. 29, 2026)
- Federal Student Aid: One Big Beautiful Bill Act updates by borrower type
- Federal Student Aid: OBBBA Important Definitions (RAP and Tiered Standard)
- Federal Student Aid: Teacher Loan Forgiveness
- Federal Student Aid: Total and Permanent Disability Discharge and Taxes
- U.S. Department of Education: Final Rule on Public Service Loan Forgiveness (Oct. 30, 2025)
Related Resources
SAVE Plan Status in 2026: What Borrowers Do Now
A March 10, 2026 court order ended SAVE. Borrowers in its forbearance must pick RAP, IBR, PAYE or ICR. See 2026 payment math for each plan.
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Federal loans first: 2026-27 undergrad loans carry a fixed 6.52% rate, no credit check and income-based repayment. Here's when a private loan makes sense.
How to Pay for College in 2026-27: Every Source, in Order
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