Student Loan Forgiveness Facts and Statistics in 2025
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The U.S. has discharged student loan debt for approximately 5.9 million borrowers.- The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program accounts for the largest share of debt forgiveness with $79.4 billion discharged.
- Former President Joe Biden forgave $188.8 billion in federal student loan debt while in office — more than any president in U.S. history.
- Biden’s plan to discharge up to $20,000 in debt for millions of borrowers failed in June 2023 due to a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling.
- His administration also made it easier for borrowers to qualify for debt relief through income-driven repayment (IDR) plans and borrower defense applications.
- Federal student loan forgiveness is expected to slow under President Donald Trump, especially amid federal layoffs.
The federal student debt balance has risen roughly $1.64 trillion, with the typical borrower owing $20,000-$25,000 in loans. It’s no wonder that many want student loan debt canceled.
This report covers the latest updates on student loan forgiveness, shares data from current student loan forgiveness programs, and summarizes how many student loans have been forgiven in the U.S.
How Much Student Loan Debt Was Forgiven?
The federal government has forgiven more than $195 billion in federal student loan debt through various programs.
Much of this debt forgiveness occurred within the last decade. Former President Joe Biden said his administration forgave $188.8 billion in debt for 5.5 million borrowers during his presidency. That included forgiveness through federal programs and ad-hoc debt discharge for students who attended certain for-profit institutions like Corinthian Colleges and ITT Tech.
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness: Offers complete forgiveness of all federal student loan debt after 120 qualifying payments (usually 10 years) while working in a public service industry. This includes — but is not limited to — work within a government agency, at a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, healthcare facility, or public school.
- Teacher Loan Forgiveness: Borrowers are eligible for up to $17,500 in loan forgiveness if they teach at a low-income school or educational service agency for five complete and consecutive years. This program only applies to those with at least a bachelor’s degree.
- Income-Driven Repayment Forgiveness: IDR plans calculate monthly loan payments based on a borrower’s income. Historically, the plans have promised total debt forgiveness after 20-25 years of repayment, depending on the specific IDR plan you are enrolled in.
- Borrower Defense: Borrowers can apply for student loan forgiveness if they can prove their college or university misled or defrauded them in some way. You can apply through Federal Student Aid, but it could take up to three years for the agency to issue a decision.
- Closed School Discharge: A college or university closing while a student is enrolled can qualify the borrower for a loan discharge. If you were enrolled in a school while it closed or withdrew within 180 days of the closure, the federal government will erase the loans you took out to attend that program.
- Total and Permanent Disability Discharge: If you are permanently disabled, you can apply to have your federal student loans discharged. You can provide documentation from one of three sources to prove your disability: the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Social Security Administration, or an authorized medical professional.
- Death Discharge: A borrower’s family is not responsible for paying off their outstanding student loan debt if the borrower dies. A family or other representative will need to present a death certificate to the loan servicer for approval.
| Loan Forgiveness Program | Number of Borrowers | Total Balance Forgiven |
|---|---|---|
| PSLF | 1,077,400 | $79.4 billion |
| Teacher Loan Forgiveness | 469,900 | $4.0 billion |
| IDR Forgiveness | 1,454,000 | $57.1 billion |
| Borrower Defense | 974,820 | $17.2 billion |
| Closed School Discharge | 148,300 | $1.8 billion |
| TPD Discharge | 633,000 | $18.7 billion |
| Other* | 1,167,500 | $17.2 billion |
| TOTAL | 5,924,920 | $195.4 billion |
Currently, the short- and long-term futures of some of these programs are uncertain.
Trump officials temporarily removed the online application for IDR plans in February 2025, claiming it did so to comply with court orders. Just a few weeks later, Trump signed an executive order calling on the Department of Education (ED) to exclude borrowers working at nonprofits “whose activities have a substantial illegal purpose” from qualifying for forgiveness under PSLF. By the end of March, the IDR application was live again; however, loan servicers were not actively processing applications..
Staff cuts at the Federal Student Aid department may also create delays — or a standstill — in processing borrower defense and closed school discharge applications. Additionally, it remains unclear how a plan to transfer the federal student loan portfolio to the Small Business Administration could impact borrowers and debt forgiveness programs.
How Much PSLF Gets Denied?
Congress created PSLF to incentivize college graduates to enter public service, but until recently, the government rarely delivered on that promise.
Before Biden took office, 7,000 borrowers had been approved for PSLF loan forgiveness — fewer than 3% of total applicants. By the time he left office, over 1 million borrowers received forgiveness, in large part thanks to a limited waiver meant to correct past mistakes in the PSLF application and approval process.
The PSLF approval rate may shrink again during the Trump presidency.
Student Loan Debt Forgiveness Timeline
The history of student loan debt forgiveness dates back over 60 years.
Congress and past presidents have introduced new forgiveness programs since the 1950s. More formal discharge programs came along in the 1990s and early 2000s.
☐ Origination of Forgiveness Programs: 1958
The earliest version of student loan debt forgiveness was the passage of the National Defense Education Act in 1958.
This act launched the federal government’s involvement in student loans. It also allowed for a 15% reduction in loan repayment for every year a graduate spent teaching at a school, creating the first partial forgiveness program.
☐ Expanded Repayment Options: 1993
The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act in 1993 established the first income-contingent repayment plan.
This repayment plan promised to erase all remaining federal student loan debt after 25 years of making payments. Subsequent repayment plans would either share this 25-year timeline or offer a 20-year alternative.
☐ Establishing Forgiveness for Public Servants: 2007
Former President George W. Bush signed the College Cost Reduction and Access Act into law in 2007. This law, among other things, established the PSLF program.
Under PSLF, people working in public service industries can qualify for complete debt forgiveness after 120 qualifying payments. Typically, borrowers enroll in an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan while pursuing PSLF.
Qualifying employers for PSLF include:
- U.S.-based government organizations — federal, state, local, or tribal organizations
- 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organizations
- Not-for-profit organizations that are not tax-exempt but devote a majority of employees to working in areas like healthcare, education, law enforcement, and emergency management
- AmeriCorps or Peace Corps
☐ Obama Era Forgiveness and Policies: 2009-2016
Former President Barack Obama’s main contribution to student loan forgiveness was the expansion of IDR plans.
Obama established the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) plan in 2011 through an executive order. This plan capped monthly payments at 10% of a borrower’s discretionary income. He later expanded the PAYE plan in 2014 through another executive order.
Still, relatively few loans were forgiven during Obama’s presidency.
☐ The First Trump Administration: 2017-2020
The first Trump administration’s most drastic student loan forgiveness action is defined by inaction.
Under the Trump administration, former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos stopped adjudicating borrower defense claims. When former students filed applications for debt relief because they felt their institution misled or defrauded them, the department did not review the application. Therefore, ED did not approve any claims and granted no loan forgiveness under the program.
Harvard’s Project on Predatory Student Lending filed a federal lawsuit against ED in June 2019. This later led to a $6 billion settlement.
☐ COVID-19 Pandemic Forbearance: 2020-2023
The COVID-19 pandemic brought economic chaos, and Congress passed a measure in March 2020 that brought interest on federal student loans to 0%. This meant borrowers wouldn’t be penalized for non-payment.
Presidential administrations repeatedly extended the student loan payment pause over the ensuing three years.
Finally, a debt ceiling deal in 2023 ended the pause. Interest began accruing on loans once again on Sept. 1, 2023. However, a grace period promised that missed or late payments would not impact a borrower’s credit score until January 2025.
☐ Biden’s Student Loan Reform and Forgiveness Agenda: 2021-2024
President Biden forgave more student loan debt during his time in office than any other U.S. president.
However, his most notable debt forgiveness plan failed to manifest. In August 2022, Biden proposed a plan that would have canceled up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers making less than $125,000 per year or couples with a joint income below $250,000. It would have granted an additional $10,000 in forgiveness for borrowers who received at least one Pell Grant while enrolled in college.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled this action unconstitutional in a 6-3 decision on June 30, 2023.
Biden’s plan would have canceled some student loan debt for an estimated 43 million borrowers and erased all remaining debt for almost 20 million borrowers.
The ED attempted to create a Plan B debt relief plan before Biden left office, but Biden abandoned the proposal in early 2025.
Explore a detailed breakdown of Biden’s track record on student debt forgiveness.
☐ Trump Takes Office Again: 2025
President Trump took steps to restrict student loan forgiveness upon re-entering the White House.
Among his first acts was to remove the online applications to enroll in any IDR plans. The administration said a court injunction prevents the department from implementing any IDR plans, which offer debt forgiveness after 20-25 years of repayment. The court’s decision, however, seemingly only applied to Biden’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan.
Trump soon after directed the ED to exclude nonprofit organizations “whose activities have a substantial illegal purpose” as qualified employers under PSLF.
In March, Trump signed an executive order to dismantle the ED. Some experts expect a slowdown in debt forgiveness through other programs due to this move as well as staff reductions at Federal Student Aid.
Impact of Student Loan Forgiveness
Approximately 42.7 million people in the U.S. hold federal student loan debt amounting to over $1.6 trillion.
Many of those borrowers struggle to repay their debt, especially those who never completed their degree program. A January 2024 analysis of loan repayment — approximately five months after the payment pause ended — found that 29% of borrowers were already past due on their loans, and another 17% were either in forbearance or deferment.
Additionally, a 2021 BestColleges survey found that borrowers postponed or didn’t do the following because of their student loans:
- Buy or repair their car (19% of respondents)
- Return to school (19%)
- Buy a house or secure a mortgage (27%)
Will Student Loans Ever Be Forgiven?
Student loan debt will continue to be forgiven piecemeal through existing programs, but blanket loan forgiveness is likely off the table for the time being.
President Trump has routinely called widespread debt forgiveness unfair to borrowers who have already paid off their loans or never went to college. Additionally, in an era of mass layoffs and governmental restructuring by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), extending loan forgiveness likely won’t be a defining higher education priority in 2025.
Still, existing programs like PSLF and borrower defense to repayment should — in theory — continue to offer steady student loan forgiveness.
This is not a given, however. Some borrower advocates say that significant staffing cuts at the Department of Education will clog the pipeline for processing many debt forgiveness applications, leading to fewer debt relief approvals and mounting debt for many.