According to recent U.S. Department of Education statistics, more than 99 percent of people who have applied for available public service student loan forgiveness have been rejected. As of December 31, 2018, it was reported that 65,500 total applications for the public service student loan forgiveness program had been submitted. However, of this total, 58,000 applications had been processed with the majority of them resulting in denials. An additional 7,200 applications were marked as pending.
The program’s requirements are complicated, and not well-explained to qualifying borrowers. Approval requires more than simply working in public service. The Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Program is offered through the federal government and requires the borrower work full-time, meaning more than 30 hours per week, in an eligible federal, state or local public service job. The borrower can also work for a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so long as the position is a full-time, eligible one. The borrower must make 120 eligible on-time payments to qualify.
Several different reasons were given for these denials. Seventy-three percent of these rejected applications were denied due to the applicant not meeting the “program’s requirements.” These requirements could mean either the borrower did not have student loans that were eligible for forgiveness, did not have qualifying employment, or did not make the 120 consecutive required qualifying student loan payments. Another 25 percent of these student loan forgiveness applications were denied because the applications were incomplete or had missing information on the employment certification form.
The report indicated that only 610 applications for student loan forgiveness had been approved and that 338 borrowers had received a collective amount of $21.1 million in public service student loan forgiveness. Less than 0.5 percent of the applications submitted were successful.
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For borrowers who are struggling with student loan debt, relief options are available. Many student loan borrowers are unaware that they have rights and repayment options available to them, such as postponement of loan payments, reduction of payments or even a complete discharge of the debt. There are ways to file for bankruptcy with student loan debt. It is important you contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
