President Donald Trump has made it clear that he’s not a fan of most student loan forgiveness programs. But could his administration force borrowers to repay student loans that have already been forgiven?
If you’ve had your loans discharged, the risk of the new administration clawing back forgiven loans is “extremely low to nonexistent,” according to Elaine Rubin, a student loan policy expert and director of communications for Edvisors.
“If you qualified for forgiveness based on the rules at the time that you received forgiveness, you shouldn’t see any sort of reversals,” she said.
But Trump has criticized the broad student debt relief efforts, calling it “a total catastrophe” during a September presidential debate. Trump also promised to get rid of the Department of Education, which manages federal student loan programs. So what if you’re still banking on a student loan forgiveness program?
Let’s break down where the student loan forgiveness program stands and what the president can and can’t do.
Read more: Here’s How to Get Student Loan Forgiveness Sooner While SAVE Remains on Hold
Will I have to repay student loans that are already forgiven?
The short answer is no. If you’ve already had your loans forgiven, experts say not to worry, unless you didn’t actually qualify for the relief you received or the discharge was due to an error. Both of these situations would be extremely rare.
“If you have a letter from the Department of Education saying that your loans have been forgiven and that your loan balance is now zero, they really can’t claw that back,” said Mark Kantrowitz, a financial aid and student loan expert. “The actual promissory note that you sign states that you’re eligible for certain types of forgiveness, so you could go to court and enforce that.”
Rubin said she’s only seen one borrower whose student loan forgiveness was revoked. In that case, forgiveness was based on servicer errors. Since the borrower hadn’t actually qualified, the loan was reinstated.
But aside from the rare instances where forgiveness was based on errors or fraud, you don’t need to worry that the federal government will demand its money back. Over the last four years, student loan borrowers have seen over $180 billion in loans wiped out by the Biden administration.
Is Trump killing the SAVE plan?
The Trump administration appears likely to eliminate the Saving on a Valuable Education Plan, or SAVE plan, which was launched in August 2023. The plan provides lower monthly payments for most borrowers and offers loan forgiveness within 10 to 20 years.
The SAVE plan is in limbo due to a series of lawsuits filed by several attorneys general in Republican-led states. Since July 2024, the loans of enrolled borrowers have been in interest-free forbearance. However, unlike with the automatic COVID-19 forbearance that began under the previous Trump administration, borrowers won’t receive credit toward forgiveness for programs like PSLF or income-driven repayment, or IDR, while their loans are in forbearance.
One likely outcome is that the Trump administration will simply stop defending the lawsuits over the SAVE program that began during Biden’s final year in office. According to Kantrowitz, the administration could also eliminate the program through a process called budget reconciliation, which would only require a simple majority vote.
It’s still possible to apply for a SAVE plan – which is a type of IDR plan – but the loan will be placed in forbearance. However, you can make payments that will be applied to future bills once forbearance ends.
Is PSLF going away?
The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program allows borrowers who work in governments, schools and nonprofits to have their loans discharged after 120 on-time payments.
Trump proposed eliminating PSLF in previous budgets during his first term but was overruled by Congress.
Rubin believes that some changes to PSLF would be relatively easy for Trump to undo, including the PSLF Buy Back program. It allows borrowers with the 120 months of public service required to expedite forgiveness by “buying back” months when their loan was in forbearance or deferment. The program was created by the Department of Education, not legislation, and would be fairly simple to reverse.
But major changes to PSLF would require an act of Congress, according to Rubin. If Congress were to alter the program significantly – or do away with it altogether – it’s likely that changes would apply to future borrowers, not those currently working toward forgiveness.
“There are no guarantees as to how they would do a phaseout or elimination, but typically we haven’t seen it go retroactively, removing [the program] for those who had it,” Rubin said.
Other paths to student loan forgiveness
The new administration could also make it harder to get other types of student loan forgiveness.
Biden introduced new rules for the borrower defense program that made it easier for borrowers to get their loans canceled if they were misled or defrauded by their schools. Those rules have been tied up in court challenges for two years. However, the new administration has told the Supreme Court to put its review of the new regulations on pause.
In 2022, the US Justice Department and Department of Education released new guidelines that make it easier to get student loans discharged through bankruptcy. Though the new administration hasn’t said much on the subject, some experts expect Trump to reverse that guidance.
Which student loan forgiveness programs does Trump support?
Trump’s 2024 campaign platform made no mention of student loan forgiveness. He’s also made it clear that he opposes mass loan forgiveness.
Trump’s first budget proposal in 2017 called for consolidating all IDR plans into a single repayment plan that capped monthly payments at 12.5% of the borrower’s discretionary income. It offered a forgiveness timeline of 15 years for undergraduate borrowers and 30 years for those who took out graduate loans.
What should student loan borrowers do?
We don’t know what actions the new Trump administration will take regarding student loan forgiveness. But here are some tips if you’re banking on loan forgiveness or you’ve recently had your loans forgiven.
Think about switching plans if you’re enrolled in SAVE
Given that SAVE is unlikely to survive, you may want to sign up for a different IDR plan – particularly if you’re close to meeting the forgiveness requirements under PSLF or another IDR plan. Though you’re not seeing your balance increase, you’re also not making progress toward forgiveness.
“You’re not being hurt financially,” Kantrowitz said. “The main thing it’s costing you is time.”
Read more: Student Loan Borrowers Can’t Afford to Wait Any Longer to Do These 6 Things
Act quickly if you’re considering a PSLF buyback
Borrowers who have completed their required 120 months of public service may want to consider a PSLF buyback now, according to Kantrowitz, since the new administration could nix the program. Another option is to switch to another IDR plan and resume payments, then apply for forgiveness after you hit the required 120 payments.
Stay on top of correspondence from your servicer
It’s always a good idea to pay attention to any correspondence from your student loan servicer or the Department of Education, especially if you’re enrolled in SAVE.
“At this point in time [the Department of Education] doesn’t anticipate those borrowers to enter repayment any earlier than September, but that was crossover communication from the Biden administration,” Rubin said. “We still have to wait and see if that will hold up with the Trump administration.”
Also make sure to take screenshots or print out copies of your payment count, along with any correspondence with your servicer. Doing so can provide evidence that you’ve met the requirements for forgiveness and offers protection against servicer errors.
Given the uncertainty surrounding student loan forgiveness, it’s essential to stay abreast of what’s happening by checking the Department of Education’s website regularly and following the latest news on CNET.