Late Friday night for the first time, some borrowers were able to apply for up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness that President Biden promised in August.
The Department of Education, which directly holds $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt owed by 45 million borrowers, said it began Friday “beta testing the student loan relief website.” student debt”. The agency said it hopes the test will help it catch any issues before the site goes public. This should happen shortly.
“Borrowers won’t need to reapply if they submit their application during beta testing, but no applications will be processed until the site officially launches later this month,” a spokeswoman said. of the department.
Some immediately rushed to the suddenly active site.
“Student Debt Relief Application Now Live!!” Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat of Minnesota, tweeted.
On Twitter, some people said they had successfully submitted applications. Others were greeted with the news that their application was in a queue with the message: “We are accepting applications to help us refine our processes before the official launch of the form. If you submit a request, it will be processed and you will not need to submit it again.
Mr. Biden’s plan to eliminate up to $20,000 per borrower of federal student loan debt — an executive action estimated at $400 billion or more — has been challenged in court, mounting pressure on the government. administration to pay its debt quickly. A federal judge in Missouri this week heard oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by a group of Republican state attorneys general seeking an injunction to stop the debt forgiveness from being implemented.
The Department of Education said in court filings that Oct. 23 would be the earliest scheduled for canceling student debt.