UPDATE: Biden’s student debt cancellation applications are paused due to lawsuits. We will send updates as soon as we have them.
In mid November, Republican appointed judges issued orders blocking President Biden’s student debt cancellation. As a result, the cancellation application is now unavailable—but the Biden Administration has already appealed and is standing strong. If you have already applied, the Department of Education will hold your application.
To learn more about Rise’s student debt relief campaign and find out if you’re eligible, read more below or text “RELIEF” to (407) 802-4282.
Click here to view Rise’s latest polling research with Avalanche Insights, Murmuration and Voto Latino on young voters, student loan relief, abortion rights and the 2022 midterm elections.
How We Got Here
In 2020, Rise endorsed President Biden because of his campaign promises to make public colleges free and cancel student loan debt. While President Biden’s student loan plan is just the first step in fulfilling these promises, it’s an important one that can help 43 million Americans. Over the last 2 years, Rise has fought hard to fulfill the promise of student debt relief. That journey began not only with our endorsement of President Biden, but also our work to mobilize over 1.2 million young voters in the 2020 election cycle.
Once President Biden took office, Rise kept the pressure on to cancel student loan debt. Rise worked hand in hand with partners including We the 45 Million, Young Invincibles, the NAACP, and the Student Borrower Protection Center, Strike Debt and many more to win student debt relief. We conducted polling with Data for Progress showing how student loan relief would lead to higher youth voter turnout in battleground states. Rise participated in countless meetings with White House staff in the Domestic Policy Council, National Economic Council, Office of Public Engagement, and the U.S. Department of Education including with U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona. In those meetings, our students and young organizers emphasized the need to “go big” and offer as much relief as possible to student loan borrowers. Rise also held events on campus and rallies in Washington, D.C. Rise also used creative billboards near President Biden’s home in Delaware and in Washington, DC to urge action on student loan debt relief.
Ultimately, this campaign paid off when President Biden announced up to $20,000 of student loan debt relief for 27 million Pell Grant recipients and $10,000 of relief for all, approximately 43 million borrowers, earning up to $125,000. As a result of this plan:
- 8 million student loan borrowers will have their debt automatically cancelled
- 43 million student loan borrowers will be eligible for student debt cancellation
- ED will cap payments at 5% of income for undergraduate student loans under the new Income Driven Repayment plans (the U.S. Department of Education will release more information soon)
How Do I Benefit?
You are eligible for relief if you have federal student loans and earned $125,000 or less in 2020 or 2021! If you are married or are the head of a household with joint-income, you must earn less than $250,000 to benefit from the plan.
In October, the U.S. Department of Education will launch a new application where you can apply for relief. You can prepare now by logging into StudentAid.Gov and making sure your contact information is up to date. If you are not sure whether you received a Pell Grant, you can also use the Student Aid website to find out more. To receive an update when the application for student relief goes live, please text “RELIEF” to 407-802-4282 and our team will notify you as soon as possible.
Loans Eligible for Relief
Below are the types of loans that are eligible for relief. For more FAQ about these loans, visit ForgiveMyStudentDebt.Org/FAQ.
- William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program loans
- Subsidized loans
- Unsubsidized loans
- Parent PLUS loans
- Graduate PLUS loans
- Federal Perkins Loan Program loans held by ED
- Defaulted loans (includes ED-held or commercially serviced Subsidized Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, parent PLUS, and graduate PLUS; and Perkins loans held by ED)
In short, if your loans benefited from the pause on payments since March 2020, they are likely covered by this announcement.
