Get Your Sallie Mae Federal Student Loans Forgiven
Student loans can put you in a deep financial hole that can take years to pay off. However, the federal government has loan-forgiveness programs that allow some or all of a student loan to be wiped out if certain qualifications are met. Loan holders must work in certain fields for specified time increments and their loans must be certain specified types.
Instructions
1. Verify that your student loans meet the criteria. According to the Department of Education's Federal Student Aid website, only nondefaulted loans made under the William D. Ford Direct Loan program are eligible for forgiveness. These loans include Federal Direct subsidized and regular Stafford loans, Direct PLUS Loans and Federal Direct Consolidation Loans. However, you do have the option to consolidate other loans into a Direct Consolidated loan to qualify for the forgiveness option.
2. Make 120 required payments under Direct Loan repayment plans. According to the Federal Student Aid website, these include Income Based Repayment Plans, Income Contingent Repayment Plans and Standard Repayment Plans.
3. Work full time for a public service employer while you make the 120 required payments. Approved employers include any public, state or local government, including public schools and colleges. Private employers who have received 501c3 nonprofit status from the IRS are also eligible. You must then fill out a forgiveness form from the Department of Education and have it signed by your boss to verify employment.
4. Find employment as a teacher in certain schools or fields for at least five consecutive years and you can qualify for Direct Loan forgiveness. According to the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application, highly qualified secondary math and science teachers can qualify for up to $17,500 in loan forgiveness. Highly qualified elementary special education teachers can also qualify for up to $17,500 in forgiveness. Other teachers in elementary and secondary schools can qualify for up to $5,000 in forgiveness, according to the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application.
Tags: Federal Student, Direct Loan, qualify forgiveness, Repayment Plans, Department Education, Federal Direct, Federal Student Loans
