Millions of student loan borrowers enrolled in income-driven repayment (IDR) plans have reason to celebrate. The U.S. Department of Education has resumed processing loan forgiveness for plans such as Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) and Pay As You Earn (PAYE), which had been paused since March. This progress follows the resolution of a lawsuit between the Department and the American Federation of Teachers.
What Does This Mean for Borrowers?
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Forgiveness processing is active for IDR plans including ICR, PAYE, and Income-Based Repayment (IBR).
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Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) processing continues for eligible borrowers.
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The PSLF buyback program remains ongoing.
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Even though the American Rescue Plan tax exemption expires at the end of 2025, borrowers who qualify for forgiveness under IDR in 2025—but whose forgiveness is processed in 2026—will not be taxed on the forgiven amount.
What Should Borrowers Do Now?
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Log into your Federal Student Aid (FSA) account to verify your contact information and loan details.
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The official IDR payment count tracker is temporarily unavailable. In the meantime, borrowers can access a raw version of their payment counts by logging into FSA and then opening this link in a new browser tab:
https://studentaid.gov/app/api/nslds/payment-counter/summary
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Reconcile your records with your loan servicer to ensure consistency.
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Review all communications from your loan servicer and keep copies of any discharge notices.
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Monitor your forgiveness progress regularly.
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If you're PSLF-eligible, submit updated employment verification if you haven’t done so recently.
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Stay informed by checking updates from the Department of Education and your loan servicer.
Tips for Borrowers in the SAVE Forbearance
The SAVE Repayment plan has not resumed as the pending court action is not yet resolved
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Interest has started to accrue as of August 1, 2025
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Months in forbearance are not counting forgiveness (PSLF or IDR)
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Borrowers who wish to resume repayment can opt to enter another income driven plan to resume repayment and continue to make progress toward forgiveness (IBR, PAYEor ICR per above)
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Borrowers who wish to accelerate their repayment may also consider a standard or graduated repayment plan.
