Fired federal workers risk losing the student-loan forgiveness they signed up for

"For payments to count toward PSLF, a borrower must be working for a qualifying employer, like the federal government, when the payments are made. That means that a federal worker impacted by the RIF will not receive credit toward PSLF unless they get hired at a different employer that would qualify for the program. Once they get a new qualifying employer, they will be able to pick up where they left off with their PSLF payments."

"Carolyn Fast, director of higher education policy at the left-leaning think tank The Century Foundation, told Business Insider that she recommends borrowers affected by the federal cuts document their PSLF payment count now and make sure they have copies of it to avoid any issues down the road when they have to verify their payments to receive relief. She also said that borrowers who are at the 120 payment mark should apply for forgiveness as soon as they can."

"The latest round of federal worker firings could leave laid-off public servants with student loans high and dry. Over the past week, the Trump administration implemented another force reduction across federal agencies, impacting over 4,100 federal workers, as the government shutdown continues. Fired federal workers could lose progress toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness, which forgives student debt for government and nonprofit workers after 10 years of qualifying payments."

Over 4,100 federal workers received reduction-in-force notices as the government shutdown continues, causing widespread furloughs and terminations. Affected workers risk losing credit toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness because PSLF payments count only while working for a qualifying employer. Terminated federal employees will not receive PSLF credit unless they secure employment with another qualifying employer, at which point they can resume progress toward forgiveness. Borrowers impacted by the cuts should document their PSLF payment counts and retain copies of verification records to prevent future issues. Borrowers who have reached 120 qualifying payments should apply for forgiveness promptly to secure relief.

Read at Business Insider