Update: Following an initial beta version test, the Biden Administration has announced the official release of the loan forgiveness program this week.
Students with student loans can be eligible for debt forgiveness after they learned that the Biden Administration quietly unveiled a prototype version of the loan forgiveness program last week.
On the evening of Friday night, it was announced that the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid website started accepting applications for President Biden’s student loan repayment program in an initial test. This program aims to erase up to $20k of federal debt for those with a salary less than $125,000.
“We’re taking applications to refine our processes before our formal launch of the form. So if you fill out your application, it will be reviewed and processed so that it won’t be necessary,” the FSA website is now stating. Ad.
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Completing an application in the beta can make you eligible for loan forgiveness and help the department iron out any kinks within the application. The applicants who meet the beta version will be sent confirmation emails confirming their application has been accepted. However, the application will not be considered until the program’s official launch.
The Education Department plans to release an application complete that is similar to the beta version before the end of this month. But the first date the department is expected to begin granting student loans is October—23 in the court filing recently filed with officials from the Biden Administration.
Legal battles regarding large-scale credit forgiveness currently mire Biden’s administration. The most notable is that Republican attorneys general from six states have challenged the legality of the forgiveness offered by Biden in the courts. This lawsuit could further drag out the timeframe for loans forgiven or even end the entire program.
Legal challenges aren’t preventing the administration from taking requests.
What should you expect when you apply to forgive student loans?
The Beta Version of this application to grant loan forgiveness can be completed in two minutes. In addition, the application is accessible in English as well as Spanish.
The form asks only for names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, email address, and telephone number. It is not necessary to attach any other documents.
In the final section of the application form, it is required to affirm that you have met the requirements of the program for income, which include earning less than $125,000 in the individual filing category or $250,000 or less jointly filing in either the years 2020 and 2021. The figures you provide depend on your adjusted gross earnings, also known as AGI. Your information must be correct, or you’ll be prosecuted for perjury.
When you’ve completed the application After completing the application, once you’ve completed the process, the Education Department will send you an acknowledgment email that includes additional details. If the department cannot confirm your income by itself, they may call you for evidence of your source of income.
The loan forgiveness process doesn’t operate on an initial-come first-served basis; therefore, there’s no need to submit the form immediately. However, it can be a process that takes about six to seven weeks to process. This is why the administration suggests that applicants submit their applications by the middle of November to make sure that repayments are cancelebeforeen. Then, they begin to pay in January 2023.
After it is approved, it will be open through Dec. 31, 2023.