Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

Upcoming Webinars

Upcoming Webinars

None at this time.
 

Past Webinars

Past Webinars

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF): 2026 Updates – 9/16/2026

Are you pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)? Confused about all the new changes to student loans? Watch our webinar to learn how federal student loan changes affect borrowers pursuing PSLF.

Topics covered include:

• PSLF program overview 
• PSLF Buyback program 
• July 1 changes affecting PSLF 
• Parent PLUS Loans and PSLF 
• Recent PSLF court decisions

Are you a Washington state resident and have questions about your student loans? Submit your question or complaint to the Student Loan Advocate using the Washington State Student Complaint Portal.

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF, 6.94 MB) and transcript (PDF, 248.09 KB).

Navigating Federal Student Loan Repayment: Life after SAVE & Avoiding Default - 6/30/2026

Are you confused about what to do now that the SAVE forbearance is coming to an end? Watch our webinar to learn about the federal student loan repayment options available to borrowers. This webinar features Student Loan Advocates and Ombudspersons from California, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington.

We discuss what to expect as the SAVE forbearance ends, review repayment and forgiveness options, and outline steps borrowers can take to avoid delinquency and default. Participants also learned about income-driven repayment plans vs. fixed repayment plans, temporary relief options like forbearance and deferment, and important timelines and deadlines. The session concluded with guidance on available tools and resources to help borrowers navigate repayment moving forward.

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF, 656.14 KB) and transcript (PDF, 139.1 KB).

Navigating the Future of Student Loans: Insights from State Ombudsmen and Advocates webinar – 3/18/2026

This webinar features state student loan Ombudsmen and Advocates from California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. We discuss the latest updates on federal student loans, vital borrower resources, and how these offices can assist you. As significant changes are on the horizon for 2026, this webinar helps you understand how these updates may affect your options moving forward.

We cover essential topics, including borrower rights, repayment plans, new borrowing limits, Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), default management, and more. This session is open to all students—both new and existing borrowers—as well as parent borrowers. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain crucial insights and support in navigating the evolving student loan landscape!

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF, 575.51 KB) and transcript (PDF, 172.56 KB).

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF): Overview and Updates - 11/19/2025

Have you heard about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, but are not sure if you qualify? Do you want to learn more about how other student loan changes & updates impact PSLF? In this webinar from November 19, 2025, you will get an overview of the PSLF program, including:

• Steps to apply and stay eligible for PSLF.
• Using Studentaid.gov to track your PSLF progress.
• How the PSLF Buyback program works.
• The impacts of recent federal legislation and rulemaking on PSLF.

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF) and transcript (PDF, 171.24 KB).

Understanding Changes to Federal Student Loans - 9/17/2025

Do you want to learn what is happening in the world of student loans right now? Do you have questions about the SAVE forbearance and how it impacts your eligibility for forgiveness? Are you confused about how the “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” will affect your student loans? In this webinar, you will get an overview of updates to federal student loans, including: 

• SAVE forbearance and options to remain eligible for Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) or Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).
• How the “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” is drastically changing federal student loan borrowing and repayment options.
• Status of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
• Changes to other Federal Student Aid programs, including Total and Permanent Disability Discharge (TPD), and the Joint Consolidation Separation process.

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF, 6.34 MB) and transcript (PDF, 521.31 KB).

Stay Informed

Stay Informed

Sign up for email updates from the Office of Student Loan Advocacy. You will receive information about future webinars and other important news about student loans.

Contact Us

Contact Us

To ask questions about your loans (including PSLF and other types of forgiveness) or file a complaint, use the Washington State Student Complaint Portal.

A member of our Student Loan Advocacy team will be happy to help you.

Ask us about:

• Income-driven repayment (IDR).
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).
• Delinquency and default.
• Deferment and forbearance.
• Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) discharge.
• Closed school discharge.
• Consolidation.
• Other student loan questions.
   

Normal PSLF Rules

Normal PSLF Rules

Borrowers who work at least 30 hours per week at one or more public service jobs could be eligible for student loan forgiveness if they meet the requirements:

• Be employed by a U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government or qualifying not-for-profit organization (federal service includes U.S. military service);
• Have Direct Loans (or consolidate other federal student loans into a Direct Loan);
• Repay your loans under an eligible repayment plan; and
• Make a total of 120 qualifying monthly payments (about 10 years).

Learn more on Federal Student Aid’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) page. 

Learn how to manage your PSLF progress on StudentAid.gov.

IDR Payment Count Adjustment – 2024

IDR Payment Count Adjustment – 2024

In the past, there were several reasons why some months did not count toward Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) loan forgiveness and Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). For example, this could happen if you were in a payment plan that wasn’t eligible.

The U.S. Department of Education has made changes to count more months toward IDR and PSLF forgiveness for all Direct Loans and federally owned FFEL Program loans. 

The months now counting towards forgiveness include:

• Any month in repayment status, no matter the payments made, loan type, or repayment plan;
• 12 or more months of consecutive forbearance or 36 or more total months of forbearance prior to July 1, 2024; 
• Any month spent in economic hardship or military deferments from 2013 onwards;
• Any month spent in any deferment (except in-school deferment) before 2013; and
• Time spent in repayment (or deferment or forbearance, if applicable) on earlier loans before consolidation of those loans.

Please note that repayment status does not include periods of in-school deferment, bankruptcy, or default.

Borrowers who applied for consolidation on or before June 30, 2024, and whose consolidation loan was disbursed before Oct. 1, 2024, had these changes applied to their new Direct Consolidation Loan.

Effects on Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Applicants:

• IDR and PSLF forgiveness counts were adjusted for all federally held FFELP and Direct Loans by December 2024.
• All periods credited toward IDR will also count toward PSLF for eligible loans where the borrower certifies public service employment.
• These changes were applied automatically to all PSLF-eligible Direct Loans, including consolidated and unconsolidated Parent PLUS loans.
• If you believe you might benefit, use the PSLF Help Tool to certify periods of employment and track your progress toward forgiveness.
• Borrowers with commercially or federally held FFEL loans needed to apply to consolidate those loans into Direct Consolidation Loans by June 30, 2024, to get PSLF credit under the payment count adjustment. FFEL Loans consolidated after June 30, 2024 will start their PSLF count at zero.

Learn more and read the Q&A on the Payment Count Adjustment page.

PSLF and Direct Parent Plus Loans

PSLF and Direct Parent Plus Loans

Parent PLUS Loans are federal loans taken out by parents to help pay for their children’s education. Many Direct Parent PLUS borrowers ask us, “Am I eligible for PSLF?” 

The answer depends on when your Direct Parent PLUS Loans are issued.

Parent PLUS Loans borrowed before July 1, 2026 

• Borrowers with unconsolidated Parent PLUS Loans may enroll in the 10-year Standard Plan to make progress towards PSLF. However, this plan may lead to no amounts forgiven at the end of the 120 qualifying payments for PSLF. 
  • To have a balance left to forgive under the 10-year Standard Plan, you will need to have at least some periods under eligible forbearance and deferment status (such as the COVID-19 administrative forbearance) while working at a qualifying public service employer.
• Borrowers who have already combined their Parent PLUS Loans, with a single or double consolidation, may access the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) until July 1, 2028, to make progress towards PSLF.
  • To keep long-term access to a PSLF eligible repayment plan, borrowers must make at least one payment under ICR and then switch into the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan before ICR eligibility is phased out (no later than July 1, 2026).

Parent PLUS Loans Borrowed after July 1, 2026

• New Parent PLUS loan borrowers after July 1, 2026, will have access to one repayment plan, the new Tiered Standard Plan. Payments under this plan do not qualify for PSLF. 
• These borrowers will be unable to access a PSLF qualifying repayment plan and will be unable to pursue PSLF. 

Risks of borrowing ANY federal loans on or after July 1, 2026, for parent borrowers:

• If you take out or consolidate ANY federal loans on or after July 1, 2026, your Parent PLUS Loans, Direct Consolidation Loans that included any Parent PLUS Loans, and “double consolidated” Parent PLUS loans will be restricted to the new Tiered Standard plan. 
• In most cases, this will block you from pursuing PSLF for these loan types as you will not have access to a PSLF-qualifying repayment plan. This will also block you from pursuing IDR forgiveness.
• In short, taking out any new loans after July 1, 2026, will stop you from accessing PSLF for your existing loans that include Parent PLUS Loans. 

PSLF Buyback

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Buyback 

PSLF Buyback allows you to buy credit for previously ineligible months in certain forbearance or deferment statuses. Please review the Federal Student Aid’s PSLF Buyback website for information on how PSLF Buyback works.

Our office cannot speed up the processing of your PSLF Buyback request/application. 

Unfortunately, there is a large backlog of unprocessed PSLF Buyback applications. It could take 1-2 years for them to be processed, and duplicate requests will not result in faster processing.

PSLF Buyback and SAVE Forbearance 

PSLF Buyback for time in the SAVE forbearance will NOT be calculated using the SAVE plan formula.

If you were enrolled in the SAVE Plan on or after July 18, 2024, then the IDR plan you were in immediately before you enrolled in the SAVE Plan is used to inform the payment amount.

If you are still on the SAVE forbearance and waiting for your PSLF Buyback application to process, you need to decide what action to take before the SAVE forbearance ends.

Action Options:

1. Apply for another PSLF qualifying repayment plan. 
   • Pros: Continue to make payments towards forgiveness. May lead to forgiveness faster. These payments would either reduce the number of months you need to Buyback or the payments may be applied to your PSLF Buyback amount. 
   • Cons: Monthly payments may be higher than what buying back those older months would be.
2. Contact your student loan servicer and request to be placed on a discretionary forbearance while you wait for Buyback processing. 
   • Pros: No monthly payments would be required – giving time to save up for the Buyback amount.
   • Cons: Interest accrues and forbearance doesn’t count towards PSLF. There is a limit on amount of time you can spend in a discretionary forbearance and Buyback processing time is still unknown. Your Buyback application could be denied, and you may need to resume repayment at that point to reach forgiveness. 

Quick PSLF Overview

Quick PSLF Overview

For a quick, easy to understand explanation of the program, please check out the How to Get your Student Loans Forgiven (No, Really) (PDF) handout.

Steps to Apply for PSLF

Steps to Apply for PSLF

Do you want to apply for PSLF but don’t know where to start? Check out the Steps to Apply for PSLF (PDF) for step-by-step guidance on how to apply and remain eligible for PSLF.

PSLF Frequently Asked Questions

PSLF Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have general questions about the PSLF program? Check out the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) FAQs (PDF) to find answers to the most frequently asked questions about the program.

Information for Employers

Information for Washington State Agencies and Public Institutions of Higher Education

In March 2022, in response to the student loan debt crisis facing the country, the state Legislature passed a law to help public service workers. The law aims to raise awareness and reduce obstacles for these employees to access the PSLF program. This applies specifically to state agencies and public institutions of higher education (ESSB 5847, codified as RCW 28B.77.009, RCW 43.41.425, RCW 41.04.045, and RCW 41.04.055).

Office of Financial Management (OFM) has created a webpage and HR portal. These resources offer guidance to help state agencies and public institutions of higher education follow the new regulations. 

If you have any questions about the PSLF process as an employer, please send your question(s) to PSLF@ofm.wa.gov.
 

Information for Local Municipalities and Nonprofit Organizations

Tribal governments, local government agencies, and many nonprofits are qualifying employers for PSLF. You as an employer play an essential role in helping your employees learn about and receive Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). 

Do you want to help your employees benefit from PSLF, but are not sure how?

We encourage you to regularly share PSLF information with your employees. To make this easy, we created the following template notices that can be easily edited for your use.

• PSLF Notice for New Employees. We recommend sharing this letter (Eligibility Letter for Web (Word Doc) or Eligibility Letter for Print (Word Doc) version) with employees upon hiring, during the onboarding process to introduce the PSLF program and process.  
• PSLF Annual Notice. We recommend sharing this letter (PSLF Annual Notice - Web (Word Doc) or PSLF Annual Notice - Print (Word Doc) version) with employees on an annual basis and any time PSLF regulations change (see below) to continue raising awareness of the program and the resources available.
• PSLF Notice for Separated Employees. We recommend sharing this letter (PSLF Notice - Web (Word Doc) or PSLF Notice - Print (Word Doc) version) with employees during the separation process, so they know which steps to take to receive and potentially continue receiving PSLF credit.

PSLF program regulations may change from time to time. We will periodically update the letters to reflect the most up-to-date PSLF rules. If you would like to receive updates when these materials are updated, please join our mailing list.

We’re here to help PSLF employers! If you have any questions about the PSLF process as an employer, please send your question(s) to LoanAdvocate@wsac.wa.gov.
 

Additional Resources:

• Check out detailed guidance on which nonprofit organizations qualify for PSLF.
• Check out Federal Student Aid’s employer tips on tacking the PSLF form
• Check out Federal Student Aid’s guidance on the employer’s role in PSLF
• Check out step-by-step instructions on how to use the PSLF Help Tool DocuSign (PDF) feature as an employer
• Find out the acceptable signature methods on manual PSLF Forms.
   

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF): Guidance for Local Government Employers (6/10/25)

As of December 2024, 23,900 public service employees in Washington have received over $1.66 billion in federal student loan forgiveness through the PSLF program.

47 percent of recently surveyed employees said that the promise of earning loan forgiveness through PSLF affected their decision to begin working in public service, while 65 percent said that PSLF influenced their decision to stay for at least 10 years.

In this webinar, learn how counties, municipalities, tribal governments, and other local government employers can use PSLF as a no-cost tool to recruit and retain employees. We’ll cover:

• An overview of the PSLF program  
• PSLF best practices for employers
• Resources for employers

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF) and transcript (PDF).

PSLF Employer Resources & Tips for the Nonprofit Association of WA (9/19/24)

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) is a federal program that forgives the remaining balance on Direct Loans for public service employees. Between March 2022 and May 2024, 19,220 public service employees in Washington state have received a total of $1.3 billion dollars in federal student loan forgiveness through the PSLF program.

As a nonprofit employer, learn how you can utilize PSLF as a no-cost tool to recruit and retain your employees. In this webinar, we cover:

• An overview of the PSLF program
• How public service employers can help employees access PSLF
• PSLF resources for employers and employees
• How the Office of the Student Loan Advocate can support employees on their path to forgiveness.

You may also access the presentation slides (PDF, 3.89 MB) and transcript (PDF, 193.71 KB).

Information for Washington State Employees

Washington State Directory for PSLF Contacts

If you are filling out your PSLF form and need your current or former agency's Employer Identification Number (EIN) or HR contact information, check the Washington state agency directory of PSLF contacts. 

The directory provides EINs and HR email addresses for each agency. These are required for employees to complete the PSLF form on the PSLF Help Tool.

Part-time Academic Employees Full-time Calculation

Are you a part-time academic employee (often called “adjunct faculty”) at a public college or university? Did you know that, according to RCW 41.04.055, your human resources department must multiply your in-class teaching hours by 3.35 when you fill out the PSLF form? This is to consider the other duties you perform beyond your assigned in-class teaching hours. 

Your human resources department can apply this calculation retroactively to figure out whether the U.S. Department of Education counts you as “full-time” for the PSLF form. Please note that this calculation does not override any agreements or policies set by your collective bargaining agreements or your educational institution.  
 

SAVE Plan and PSLF

SAVE Plan and PSLF

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) requires borrowers to be on an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan (or the 10-year standard repayment plan). Since the return to repayment in 2023, many student loan borrowers seeking PSLF opted into the SAVE IDR plan that offered more generous benefits. 

• Monthly payments made prior to the SAVE forbearance (July 2024) may qualify for PSLF with qualifying employment.
• The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit has issued a ruling that the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan is not a legally authorized repayment plan and will be discontinued. Beginning July 1, federal loan servicers started sending notices to borrowers currently enrolled in the SAVE Plan with instructions on selecting a new, eligible repayment option.
• What this means for you:
  • You will receive a notice from your servicer about your specific 90-day deadline to select a different repayment plan.
  • You will have 90 days from the date of your notice to choose a new repayment plan.
  • If you do not select a plan within that timeframe, you will be automatically enrolled in the Standard Repayment Plan.
• Our office strongly recommends SAVE borrowers explore their other repayment options as soon as possible. Check out this guide to help you understand your options: Transitioning from the SAVE Repayment Plan (EDCAPNY.org).
• Stay informed: Get updates and more information on the U.S. Dept. of Education's website.

Time spent in the SAVE Forbearance is eligible for PSLF Buyback. If you were enrolled in the SAVE Plan on or after July 18, 2024, then the IDR plan you were in immediately before you enrolled in the SAVE Plan is used to inform the PSLF Buyback payment amount.

Stay informed: Get updates and more information on the effects of the SAVE lawsuit on the U.S. Dept. of Education's website.