The Biden administration made another move on Wednesday to ease the burden of student loans on borrowers across the country by announcing another $9 billion in forgiveness.
This round of forgiveness is being made through “fixes” to its debt relief programs, allowing upwards of 125,000 borrowers a little more breathing room, the administration shared in a press release.
So far, the Biden Administration has forgiven $127 billion in student debt for approximately 3.6 million borrowers despite having his massive debt forgiveness plan struck down by the Supreme Court.
Of the 125,000 receiving forgiveness, the release said that 53,000 would receive relief under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which wipes out student loan balances of those who have worked in public service for 10 years and made the necessary 120 payments.
Nearly 51,000 borrowers will see relief come via the income-driven repayment plan, applying to those who have worked for 20 or more years but never received debt forgiveness.
Lastly, around 22,000 borrowers who have a “total or permanent” disability will also receive relief under the move from the president.
“Today’s announcement builds on everything our administration has already done to protect students from unaffordable debt, make repayment more affordable, and ensure that investments in higher education pay off,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement Wednesday.
The move comes from Biden as student loan repayments began again on Oct. 1, marking the first time in more than three years that borrowers had to pay their balances.
For those who are interested in seeing if they qualify for any debt relief or forgiveness, check out the Department of Education’s FAQ website here.
Those looking for more information on the restart of student loan payments can find what they need to know here.