The plan to cancel $10,000 in student loan debt, announced by President Biden in August 2022, never took effect. The Supreme Court struck it down on June 30, 2023, in Biden v. Nebraska, ruling 6–3 that the administration lacked authority to forgive federal loans on that scale. No borrower had any debt canceled under the program. If you applied and were approved, your balance was never reduced, and no broad replacement has taken its place.
What the Plan Would Have Done
Under the announced program, individual borrowers earning less than $125,000 a year, or $250,000 for married couples, qualified for up to $10,000 in federal student loan cancellation. Borrowers who had received Pell Grants as undergraduates qualified for up to $20,000. Eligibility used 2020 or 2021 adjusted gross income.1Wolters Kluwer. President Announces Student Loan Forgiveness Eligibility Details, Application, and Tax Implications
Qualifying loans had to have been disbursed before June 30, 2022. Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, Graduate and Parent PLUS Loans, and federally held FFEL and Perkins Loans were all eligible. FFEL loans held by private lenders were initially eligible if consolidated into a Direct Loan by September 29, 2022. Private student loans were excluded.2American Action Forum. Details on the Biden Administration’s $10K Federal Student Loan Forgiveness
Roughly 26 million borrowers applied before the process was suspended, and the Department of Education approved 16 million of those applications. Another 8 million or so borrowers were identified for automatic forgiveness because the department already had their income data. None of it went through.3CNBC. Close to 26 Million Americans Have Applied for Student Loan Forgiveness
Why the Supreme Court Struck It Down
The administration relied on the HEROES Act of 2003, which lets the Secretary of Education “waive or modify” student loan rules during a national emergency. Chief Justice Roberts, writing for the majority, held that “modify” means moderate or minor changes and does not authorize what the Court called “a whole new regime” of mass debt cancellation worth roughly $430 billion.4Supreme Court of the United States. Biden v. Nebraska, No. 22-506
The majority also applied the major questions doctrine, holding that a program of this economic and political significance needed clear congressional authorization the HEROES Act did not supply. Justice Kagan’s dissent argued the plain text of the HEROES Act gave the Secretary the emergency authority the majority denied.5SCOTUSblog. Biden v. Nebraska
What Replaced It, and What Didn’t
After the ruling, the Biden administration created the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, an income-driven repayment program with lower monthly payments and a shorter timeline to forgiveness. In early 2024, the Department of Education began forgiving balances of $12,000 or less for borrowers who had repaid for at least ten years, canceling $1.2 billion for roughly 153,000 borrowers.6U.S. Department of Education. U.S. Department of Education Announces Agreement with Missouri to End Biden Administration’s Illegal SAVE Plan
SAVE was challenged in court almost immediately. In February 2025, the Eighth Circuit enjoined the entire SAVE rule, finding the Secretary lacked authority to forgive loans through an income-contingent framework because the underlying statute authorizes plans designed for “actual repayment” of loans in full.7U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. State of Missouri v. Trump, Nos. 24-2332, 24-2351 Interest resumed on SAVE loans in August 2025, and on March 10, 2026, a district court officially vacated the rule.8PBS NewsHour. Biden’s SAVE Plan for Student Loans Is Officially Dead. Here’s What Experts Suggest Now More than 7 million borrowers had been enrolled.9Federal Student Aid. IDR Court Actions
The Biden administration provided approximately $190 billion in loan relief to 5.3 million borrowers through other targeted programs before leaving office, but none of that came from the original $10,000 plan.10Center for American Progress. Tracker: Student Loan Debt Relief Under the Biden-Harris Administration
What’s Available to Borrowers Now
Broad, across-the-board forgiveness is not on the table in 2026. Relief runs through specific programs with specific eligibility rules.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
PSLF remains active. As of January 2026, more than 1.2 million borrowers have received PSLF forgiveness totaling $90.6 billion, an average of nearly $75,000 per borrower.11Brookings Institution. The Past, Present, and Future of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program Processing was disrupted in early 2025 when the Trump administration temporarily halted income-driven repayment processing. A lawsuit by the American Federation of Teachers resulted in an October 2025 settlement requiring the department to resume cancellations and reimburse borrowers who paid past their eligibility date.12American Federation of Teachers. Following Lawsuit, AFT, Trump Administration Agrees to Deliver Student Debt Relief
A March 2025 executive order directed the Department of Education to exclude organizations with a “substantial illegal purpose” from qualifying as public service employers, citing categories that include aiding immigration law violations, supporting terrorism, and providing certain medical procedures to minors.13The White House. Restoring Public Service Loan Forgiveness A final rule takes effect July 1, 2026. The department’s own analysis estimated fewer than 10 employers would be affected annually, but a coalition of over 250 organizations warned the language could chill nonprofit and government employment, and litigation is underway.14American Council on Education. ED Finalizes PSLF Rule
Income-Driven Repayment and the New RAP Plan
IDR forgiveness still exists, but the tax treatment changed. The temporary exemption on forgiven balances from the American Rescue Plan expired on January 1, 2026. Debt forgiven through IDR plans after that date is generally taxable as income. PSLF recipients and borrowers whose loans were discharged for school closure or fraud are excepted.15NASFAA. Welcome to 2026: Some Student Loan Forgiveness Is Now Taxable
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law on July 4, 2025, created the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), a new income-driven option scheduled to launch by July 1, 2026. RAP includes provisions to waive unpaid interest for borrowers making on-time payments and small government matching payments toward principal. Payments under RAP count toward PSLF. The law also introduced a Tiered Standard Plan with fixed terms of 10, 15, 20, or 25 years depending on balance.16Federal Student Aid Partners. Federal Student Loan Program Provisions Effective Upon Enactment Under One Big Beautiful Bill Act
The law also removed the “partial financial hardship” requirement for Income-Based Repayment, opening that plan to borrowers with loans originated between July 2014 and July 2026 who previously could not access it.16Federal Student Aid Partners. Federal Student Loan Program Provisions Effective Upon Enactment Under One Big Beautiful Bill Act
If You Were on SAVE
Former SAVE borrowers are being moved to other repayment plans. You have 90 days after your loan servicer notifies you to pick a new plan. If you don’t choose, you will be placed automatically on either the Standard Repayment Plan or the Tiered Standard Plan.17U.S. Department of Education. U.S. Department of Education Announces Next Steps for Borrowers Enrolled in Unlawful SAVE Plan
If You Are in Default
Collections on defaulted federal loans resumed on May 5, 2025. In January 2026 the Department of Education announced it was temporarily delaying involuntary measures such as wage garnishment and tax refund offsets to give borrowers time to adjust.18U.S. Department of Education. U.S. Department of Education Delays Involuntary Collections Amid Ongoing Student Loan Repayment Improvements Over 5 million borrowers are currently in default.19Federal Student Aid. Federal Student Aid Posts Updated Reports to FSA Data Center
Is Another Broad Forgiveness Plan Coming?
Nothing comparable to the $10,000 plan is currently law or currently before the courts. Several forgiveness proposals have been introduced in the 119th Congress, including the SOAR Act, which would create a new IDR plan with forgiveness after 10 to 15 years, but none have advanced beyond introduction.20NASFAA. Legislative Tracker: Loans and Repayment For now, the practical path to having a federal student loan balance reduced or eliminated runs through the existing programs above, each with its own eligibility rules, timelines, and, as of 2026, tax consequences.