The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program is intended to encourage individuals to enter and continue to work full-time in public service jobs. Under this program, you may qualify for forgiveness of the remaining balance due on your William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program loans after you have made 120 qualifying payments on those loans while employed full-time by certain public service employers.
Student borrowers and parents who hold PLUS loans on behalf of students, may be eligible for public service loan forgiveness. PSLF may be of great benefit to some borrowers. However, there are many additional details to understand and consider.
For example, while it might be possible to consolidate older federal loans from the FFEL Program, Perkins loans, or Health Professions Student Loans, into a Direct loan that is eligible for PSLF, prior payments made on those loans do not count toward forgiveness; plus consolidating those loans means they are no longer eligible for other forgiveness programs that might be less restrictive.
Take time to determine if PSLF is right for you.
Borrower eligibility requirements for loan forgiveness under the PSLF Program:
If you believe you may be eligible for and interested in PSLF confirm you have:
If you are interested in applying for PSLF or have questions about your eligibility, submit a completed Employment Certification for PSLF Form to FedLoan Servicing, the U.S. Department of Education's servicer for the PSLF Program. FedLoan Servicing can help you track time served and confirm if you are making qualifying PSLF payments.
Certification and Certification Instructions
Under Minnesota Statute 136A.1792, certain public service employers in Minnesota must take steps to provide their employees with information about the PSLF Program.
Here are the types of organizations meeting the definition of "public service organization" for purposes of the PSLF Program:
Eligible not-for-profit organizations include:
Employers must provide each new employee information about PSLF eligibility, and provide each employee an annual notification with the following:
The employer may use the letter, Fact Sheet and FAQ here. employers may prepare their own documents or use documents published by a federal agency as long as the documents meet the requirements.
The information may be provided in written (paper) or electronic format.
Note: documents in Portable Document Format (PDF) require Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0 or higher to view.