Income-Driven Repayment Plans: What Borrowers Need to Know

Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans are open again, and servicers will resume processing applications by May 10.

Borrowers who submitted an IDR application will be placed in a processing forbearance for up to 60 days.

The Education Department initially suspended IDR applications after a court action in lawsuits against SAVE, a new IDR plan.

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) filed a lawsuit against the Education Department, alleging federal law was broken by blocking access to IDR plans and PSLF.

SAVE is no longer on the updated IDR application, and borrowers must do their own research about which plan works best.

Income-Based Repayment (IBR) is considered the safest IDR plan due to its congressional backing.

Borrowers can switch from one IDR plan to IBR, and they'll retain any forgiveness credit earned under their previous plan.

IDR recertification deadlines have been extended for some borrowers, and the Education Department will process applications as soon as they're available.

The Education Department doesn't know when exactly IDR applications will be processed, but servicers will start processing them by May 10.

Borrowers should be cautious of student loan scammers and keep meticulous records of their student loan information.