Getting Student Loan Help in Early 2025

On Feb. 18, 2025, a federal court ruling eliminated the SAVE Repayment Plan. The same decision also impacted the PAYE and ICR plans, two of the remaining income-driven repayment (IDR) plans.

The situation is fluid. This article is designed to provide guidance for borrowers as the situation evolves. It will be edited and updated as we learn more.

Where Things Stand

These are the most important facts at this time:

• The SAVE Repayment Plan is dead — The court’s decision effectively ends the SAVE Plan. We provide details in this article
• Income-Based Repayment (IBR) is untouched — The ruling targeted IDR plans developed by the Department of Education (ED). IBR is exempt because it was created directly by Congress. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) was spared for the same reason.
• Borrowers may apply for IDR plans — The IDR application form was reactivated on March 18, 2025. Borrowers may apply for IBR, ICR and PAYE online or by mailing in a downloadable paper form. Make sure you understand your options before applying for IDR. Applications aren’t being processed, but ED signaled this is a temporary measure.
• The future of IDR is unclear — — ED hasn’t announced if it will reform IDR plans to conform with the court’s decision or move borrowers to alternate plans.

What Should You Do Now?

Your next steps largely depend on your specific circumstances. However, there are some actions all borrowers should take.

• Confirm your loan’s status — Log in to your StudentAid.gov and loan servicer accounts to check the current status of your loans. What repayment plan are you enrolled in? Are you in a deferment or forbearance? Are you past due on a payment? Don’t assume. Be certain. Mistakes happen, and they can cost you.
• Update your contact info — While you’re checking your loan status, make sure your name, email, phone number and address are all current. Missing important notifications can lead to late payments, fines and negative credit reporting before you’re aware of any missed payments.
• Watch out for scams — Scammers will take advantage of the current confusion to target student loan borrowers. Only trust information from ED, your servicer, your former school, and representatives of your school. Read this article to learn more about avoiding scams.
• Beware of disinformation — You’ll hear some wild rumors over the next few months. Use trusted sources like ED or your loan servicer to verify the information.

To get additional advice, click the link that matches your situation:

• I’m currently enrolled in the SAVE Plan
• My application for an IDR plan is being processed
• I can’t afford my current monthly payments

If You’re Enrolled in SAVE

If your SAVE application was approved , you should still be enrolled in the SAVE Plan. Your loans should also be in a general forbearance. That means you don’t need to make payments and your debt isn’t accruing interest.

ED believes your forbearance will continue until at least September 2025. Your first payment will be due no earlier than December 2025.

At some point in the near future, you’ll need to switch to another repayment plan. Get ready by taking these steps:

• Choose a new plan — You can explore other repayment plans that are based on your income, or consider plans like Graduated or Extended.
• Prepare for repayment — Whatever plan you choose, it’s clear that you’ll need to start making payments sometime in winter 2025. Get ready by following these tips.
• Check for updates — In addition to official emails, ED will update this page as they formulate a response to the court’s ruling.
• Automate your IDR recertification — If choosing another IDR plan, you need to update your income and family size every year. Don’t get caught off-guard. Log in to StudentAid.gov and set your account to automatically recertify IDR.

You can learn more about why SAVE was struck down in “Court Ruling Signals Death of SAVE Plan .” That article also delves into what the future might hold for IDR plans in general.

If Your IDR Application is Processing

If you submitted an IDR application and your loan servicer started processing it before Feb. 18, 2025, you should be in a processing forbearance. That means your debt is growing as interest accrues.

If your application was accepted more than 60 days ago, you should be in a general forbearance. Your payments will still be paused, but your loans WILL NOT gain interest.

Watch for new developments, and follow these steps:

• Monitor your loans closely — Set a monthly reminder to check if your account status has changed.
• Prepare for repayment — Use your forbearance time wisely. Follow these tips to be ready when your payments start.

If You Can’t Afford Your Payments

SAVE may be dead, but there are still ways to lower or pause your monthly payments. If you’re having trouble making payments, it’s critical to take action. Follow this process to find the best solutions for your personal challenges.

1. Access your student loan accounts — Make sure you can successfully log in to your StudentAid.gov and loan servicer accounts. Each provides access to important information and resources.
2. Write out your challenge — Document the issues you’re having with repayment. Use this to guide your search for answers and explain your problem to call center agents. Not sure where to start? Follow these steps.
3. Investigate likely solutions — The solutions you research depend on the problems you face. Whichever options you choose, the goal is to get out of delinquency.

• Short-term solutions — Qualifying for deferment or forbearance will temporarily pause your payments. That will get you out of delinquency and help protect your credit score. Unfortunately, these plans won’t fix long-term issues and your total debt will continue to grow. Learn more.
• Long-term solutions — Switching repayment plans can lower your monthly bill. Securing an affordable monthly payment can help you avoid missed payments in the future. Learn more about repayment plans here. Pay special attention to the IBR and Graduated repayment plans. They offer low monthly payments and were unaffected by the recent court action.

Get Expert Help

Student loan repayment can be confusing at the best of times. The constant changes experienced since 2020 have only made it worse. The good news is you don’t need to do this on your own!

Help with your student loans is freely available:

• Talk to a Borrower Advocate — Call Student Connections at (866) 311-9450. Our Borrower Advocates will listen to your problems, help you find a solution, and help you put it into action. Our services are paid for by schools across the country and are FREE to you.
• Get help from your loan servicer — Federal law requires your loan servicer to provide you with FREE assistance. If you don’t know who your loan servicer is, follow these instructions. If calling your servicer feels intimidating, read our tips on how to make your call less stressful.
• Use the Loan Simulator — The FSA Loan Simulator can use your actual loan data to narrow down your repayment options. Note that it has not been updated in response to the court’s decision and may provide answers that are currently unavailable.
• Define your goals — If you prefer a DIY approach, try working through this exercise on defining your student loan repayment goals.

Don’t wait! Get help today!