The Oct. 31 deadline is fast approaching for public sector employees to apply for student loan relief through the U.S. Department of Education's Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program.
Many OPEIU members work for "public service employers," which includes many nonprofits, and are thus eligible to take advantage of temporary changes that make it easier to qualify for loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
More specifically, under the temporary waiver:
- Borrowers who have Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL), Perkins loans or other federal student loans can consolidate their loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan and receive PSLF credit for periods of repayment prior to consolidation. Periods of repayment on parent PLUS loans are not eligible under the limited PSLF waiver. Before consolidating, borrowers should check to see if they work for a qualifying employer using the PSLF Help Tool.
- Past periods of repayment will now count regardless of whether a borrower made a payment, or made that payment on time, for the full amount due, or on a qualifying repayment plan.
Be sure to check your eligibility for the PSLF waiver before the changes expire on Oct. 31, 2022.
Unfortunately, union staff are not eligible for this program. Be sure to visit the OPEIU Membership Benefits page to learn about the OPEIU Student Debt Reduction Program and the educational scholarships available for OPEIU members and their families.
A link to an OPEIU webinar can be found here and links to resources can be found below.
https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement/one-time-cancellation
https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers
https://studentaid.gov/pslf/employer-search
https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers#your-servicer
https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/pslf-limited-waiver
https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/servicers
https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/pslf-reconsideration
https://studentaid.gov/help-center/contact