If you work as a teacher, it’s likely that you chose the position because you needed to have at least a bachelor’s degree rather than for the financial compensation. Paying off student loan debt while a teacher is paid can be extremely difficult.
To help teachers reduce or even completely erase their student loan debt, there are loan forgiveness programs. One of the three government-sponsored student loan forgiveness programs for federal student loans is the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program (TLFP).
Here are the things you should know before applying for Teacher Loan Forgiveness if you’ve considered doing so.
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The Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program’s goal is to inspire people to pursue careers in teaching by offering loan forgiveness.
To qualify for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program:
- Your current loans must have been disbursed after October 1, 1998, and any loans that were disbursed on or before that date must have been paid off to a balance of zero dollars prior to the disbursement of your current loans. All of the underlying loans must have been paid off by 10/1/98 in order to qualify for consolidation loans.
- You must work as a full-time teacher at a Title I school that is listed on the Department of Education’s Teacher Cancellation Low Income Directory (TCLI) for five consecutive full academic years. For at least the first year of your five years of service that qualify, the school must be accepted. Even if the school is no longer eligible, the time you spent teaching will still be applied to your overall
If youre employed by a government or nonprofit organization, you may be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. The PSLF Program forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loans after youve made the equivalent of 120 qualifying monthly payments under an accepted repayment plan.
The Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) Loans are all commercially held federal loans that are serviced by AES; however, you may benefit from having your FFELP Loans consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan.
If you consolidate your loans by April 2024, you can take advantage of the limited-time opportunity of one-time adjustments to payment counts under the Income-Driven Repayment and PSLF programs. For more information, please visit StudentAid.gov.
- To fill out the Teacher Loan Forgiveness form, log in to Account Access and select Manage Repayment/Loan Forgiveness.
- Send your completed application and any necessary supporting materials by mail or fax to American Education Services, Attention: Teacher Loan Forgiveness P. O. Box 2461 Harrisburg, PA 17105-2461 Fax: 717-720-3916 .
For help completing this application, send us an email or give us a call at 1-800-233-0557.
Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance
You may apply for a Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance while you are finishing your five years of teaching at a Title I school that qualifies. You must reapply each year because the forbearance will be applied in 1-year increments.
To qualify:
- You must be qualified for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program with your loans.
- The TCLI website must list the school where you are completing your qualifying service.
- When your qualifying period of teaching service is over, the anticipated forgiveness amount will satisfy your anticipated outstanding loan balance (including interest).
FAQ
Who do I send my loan forgiveness application to?
After completing the PSLF form with your employer, you can send it to MOHELA, the federal student loan servicer that manages PSLF, along with your employer’s certification. Additionally, you can fax MOHELA your PSLF form at 866-222-7060. On MOHELA’s website, you can upload your form if MOHELA is currently your service provider.
Where do I submit my completed PSLF form?
Should you decide to fill out a PDF version of the PSLF form that you have downloaded, it needs to be turned in with legitimate signatures from both you and your employer. You may also fax your PSLF form to 866-222-7060. If MOHELA is currently your provider, you can submit your PSLF form via their online platform. You may contact MOHELA at 1-855-265-4038.
Who approves teacher loan forgiveness?
Apply for TLF The certification section must be completed by the chief administrative officer of the school or educational service agency where you completed your qualifying teaching service. You have to send a different form to every loan servicer you’re applying for forgiveness of if you have multiple loans with them.
Read More :
https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/teacher
https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/TeacherLoanForgiveness-en-us.pdf