Information on this page updated as of October 18, 2022
In response to President Biden’s announcement on August 24, 2022, regarding student loan debt cancellation, the UMFK Office of Student Financial Aid has compiled the following information for our current students and alumni. We expect the U.S. Department of Education to release additional information and details on the student loan debt relief program in the coming weeks. As additional information is released, please watch for more communications from our office.
Apply today (but no later than Dec. 31, 2023)! Filling out the application is easy and takes about 5 minutes. You don’t need to log in or provide any documents.
U.S. Department of Education will provide up to $20,000 in debt cancellation to Pell Grant recipients with loans held by the Department of Education and up to $10,000 in debt cancellation to non-Pell Grant recipients. The relief includes current students and borrowers who have federally held undergraduate, graduate, and Parent PLUS loans where the first disbursement was on or before June 30, 2022.
To be eligible, your annual income must have fallen below $125,000 (for individuals) or $250,000 (for married couples or heads of households). If you were a dependent student during the 2021-2022 academic year, this income cap will be based on your parents’ income.
The amount of loan cancellation you are eligible for will depend on the total amount of federal loan debt you have borrowed, as well as if you received a Federal Pell Grant during your time in college. To obtain your federal student loan balance information, as well as information regarding past Federal Pell Grant awards, please visit the Federal Student Aid website. Please note: if you received a Federal Pell Grant prior to 1994, that information won’t display on studentaid.gov, but you will still be eligible to receive the $20,000 benefit.
The Department of Education has a complete record of all students who ever received a Pell Grant, as such, when you submit an application for loan cancellation, you will not be required to provide proof or take any additional action to verify your receipt of a Federal Pell Grant.
Below are the types of federal student loans that are eligible for cancellation (provided that they have an outstanding balance as of June 30, 2022):
You can determine what types of federal loans you have by logging onto the Federal Student Aid website and following the below steps:
Nearly 8 million borrowers may be eligible to receive relief automatically because relevant income data is already available to the U.S. Department of Education – and so you will not have to complete any further steps to receive the loan cancellation.
If the U.S. Department of Education doesn’t have your income data, the Administration will launch a simple application which will be available by early October.
Borrowers who made voluntary payments during the pandemic will be eligible to receive a refund of payments if:
Visit the Federal Student Aid One-Time Student Loan Debt Relief page for additional information on if you may qualify for a refund on voluntary payments made during the pandemic.
To be eligible, your annual income must have fallen below $125,000 (for individuals) or $250,000 (for married couples or heads of households). If you were a dependent student during the 2021-2022 academic year, this income cap will be based on your parents’ income.
The amount of loan cancellation you are eligible for will depend on the total amount of federal loan debt you have borrowed, as well as if you received a Federal Pell Grant during your time in college. To obtain your federal student loan balance information, as well as information regarding past Federal Pell Grant awards, please visit the Federal Student Aid website. Please note: if you received a Federal Pell Grant prior to 1994, that information won’t display on studentaid.gov, but you will still be eligible to receive the $20,000 benefit.
The Department of Education has a complete record of all students who ever received a Pell Grant, as such, when you submit an application for loan cancellation, you will not be required to provide proof or take any additional action to verify your receipt of a Federal Pell Grant.
Below are the types of federal student loans that are eligible for cancellation (provided that they have an outstanding balance as of June 30, 2022):
You can determine what types of federal loans you have by logging onto the Federal Student Aid website and following the below steps:
Nearly 8 million borrowers may be eligible to receive relief automatically because relevant income data is already available to the U.S. Department of Education – and so you will not have to complete any further steps to receive the loan cancellation.
If the U.S. Department of Education doesn’t have your income data, the Administration will launch a simple application which will be available by early October.
Borrowers who made voluntary payments during the pandemic will be eligible to receive a refund of payments if:
Visit the Federal Student Aid One-Time Student Loan Debt Relief page for additional information on if you may qualify for a refund on voluntary payments made during the pandemic.
Here’s a list of Do’s and Don’ts to protect yourself against scams as you prepare to apply for debt relief.
Having the most up-to-date and accurate information is your best protection against scammers.
You will hear directly from the Department of Education or Federal Student Aid when the application for debt relief is available. if you qualify for debt relief without needing to fill out an application, you will also hear from the Department or FSA directly. For additional information, visit Federal Student Aid’s FAQ page on student debt relief.
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