The Biden administration has announced the forgiveness of $6 billion in student debt. Here’s who qualifies for this forgiveness

The Biden administration announced on Thursday that it will forgive nearly $6 billion in student debt for 77,700 borrowers, who will receive an email from President Joe Biden informing them of their debt cancellation.

The recipients eligible for this round of student loan forgiveness are public service employees, including teachers, nurses, social workers, and firefighters, according to a statement from the White House. On an individual basis, the forgiveness amounts to approximately $77,000 per person.

Following the Supreme Court’s invalidation of the Biden administration’s broad-based student loan forgiveness plan last year, the administration has focused on utilizing existing and new loan repayment plans to provide debt relief to nearly 4 million individuals. With Americans carrying about $1.77 trillion in student debt, many college graduates find it challenging to achieve financial milestones like purchasing a home.

To address issues in the nation’s student loan repayment system, the Biden administration introduced a new program called SAVE and streamlined the process for public servants to have their debt forgiven.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona stated, “For too long, our nation’s teachers, nurses, social workers, firefighters, and other public servants faced logistical troubles and obstacles when trying to access the debt relief they were entitled to under the law.” He emphasized that the administration is taking steps to fix these issues and expand opportunities for more Americans.

Under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, 77,700 borrowers will receive debt forgiveness. This includes public servants who enrolled in the Biden administration’s limited PSLF waiver, allowing workers in the public sector who previously did not qualify for loan relief to receive credit for past repayments.

The PSLF program, established in 2007, aimed to forgive student debt for Americans working in public sector jobs for at least 10 years. However, due to complex regulations and misleading guidance from loan-servicing companies, few public servants received debt relief before the Biden administration’s changes to PSLF. Only 7,000 individuals had their loans forgiven through the program prior to the administration’s adjustments.

Since the White House implemented modifications to PSLF, approximately 871,000 Americans have received student loan forgiveness through the program.

The 77,700 qualifying borrowers will receive a letter from President Biden congratulating them on their relief. Additionally, another 380,000 individuals enrolled in PSLF will receive an email from Biden next week, informing them that they are within one to two years of qualifying for debt forgiveness through the program. The email encourages recipients to continue their public service work to become eligible for forgiveness.