College students with debt may still get some relief, according to a statement released by the U.S. Secretary of Education on Wednesday.
In August, President Joe Biden and Secretary Miguel Cardona announced a plan to provide a one-time, pandemic-connected debt relief to over 40 million Americans with federal student loans.
Since making the application available, more than 26 million borrowers have applied to be considered for debt relief. The Department of Education has currently approved 16 million of those applications. There is however a temporary stall to the program after lawsuits were filed.
Secretary Cardona stated, “The Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court to lift the lower court’s injunction against the program and suggested that if the Court does not do so, it could take up this case.”
The statement said as borrowers wait for relief, the pause on paying student loans has been extended. Cardona said, “As we continue to fight to provide debt relief for tens of millions of Americans, President Biden and I believe that it is unfair to ask tens of millions of borrowers to resume payments on their student debt when they would be eligible for relief– if not for these lawsuits. Therefore, we have extended the pause on student loan payments and collections.”
The student loan payment pause is extended until 60 days after the Department is permitted to implement the debt relief program, or the litigation is resolved. If the program has not been implemented and the litigation has not been resolved by June 30, 2023, payments will resume 60 days after that. Borrowers well be notified before payments restart.
Visit StudentAid.gov to explore more affordable repayment options, other debt forgiveness programs, and more.