Loan Repayment
Loan Forgiveness
Forgiveness and cancellation programs can allow borrowers to reduce or eliminate their student loan debts. Below are descriptions of several forgivenesss programs, each with different eligibility requirements.
The Biden Administration’s Student Debt Relief Plan
On August 24, 2022, President Biden announced that the U.S. Department of Education will forgive $10,000 in federal student loan debt for existing borrowers with incomes below $125K (or $250K for married couples) who received loans by 6/30/22, and $20,000 to those who also received Pell Grant assistance as an undergraduate. Program details are available at One-time Federal Student Loan Debt Relief. However, litigation was brought against the proposed plan, which put debt relief on hold pending a review and decision from the Supreme Court of the United States. On June 30, 2023, the Supreme Court issued its ruling regarding this one-time Debt Relief Plan, finding that the Biden Administration and the Department of Education do not have the legal authority to forgive or waive this debt. The Debt Relief Plan will not move forward at this time.
Federal Student Aid has published answers to frequently-asked questions about the status of the debt-relief program and about payments resuming.
Teacher Loan Forgiveness for Stafford Loans
- Borrowers of Direct and FFEL Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans (Stafford Loans) may be eligible for loan forgiveness based on teaching service. Eligibility requirements for Teacher Loan Forgiveness are available at the Department of Education website. Download the Teacher Loan Forgiveness form.
- If you think you will qualify for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness, you can apply for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance (a temporary cessation of payments while performing your required service). Download the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance form.
- You may also be able to obtain Teacher Loan Forgiveness forms through your loan servicer.
Loan Cancellation for Perkins Loans
- The Perkins Loan program offers cancellation benefits for teachers, firefighters, law enforcement officers, librarians, military members, nurses, medical technicians, public defenders, speech pathologists, Peace Corps volunteers, and others. Eligibility requirements and details are available on the U.S. Department of Education’s Perkins Cancellation site.
- For federal Perkins loan deferment or cancellation, contact the school where you borrowed your loan; or the school's Perkins servicing agency. If you borrowed a Perkins loan at Stanford, forms are available from University Accounting Service.
Dorothy Durfee Avery and GSE Forgivable Loan Program
- The Dorothy Durfee Avery Forgivable Loan Program and the GSE (Graduate School of Education) Forgivable Loan Program are only available for students in the Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP) through the Graduate School of Education.
- University Accounting Service (UAS) manages repayment for this loan program. Contact UAS for information and to obtain required forms.
TEACH Grant
- Federal TEACH Grant recipients are required to complete four years of teaching service. If the teaching service requirement is not met, the grant is converted into a federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan and must be repaid.
- For details about requirements and to download forms, go to the Department of Education TEACH Grant Home.
Public Service
- Borrowers who are employed full-time by certain public service employers may qualify for loan forgiveness after 120 monthly payments (10 years)
- Borrowers must be enrolled in a qualifying repayment plan.
- Only Direct Loans are eligible for this loan forgiveness
- Find more information about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program from the U.S. Department of Education.
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