IDR forgiveness is a federal loan program that will forgive the remainder of your loan balance at the end of your repayment period (either 20 or 25 years), depending on which Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan you’re enrolled in. Due to ongoing court challenges, borrowers will likely need to switch to the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan to pursue IDR forgiveness.
These periods of student loan repayment also count toward IDR forgiveness:
- Periods when your required payment is zero
- Economic hardship deferment
- Repayment under certain other repayment plans
Repayment Periods
There are active Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans that are eligible to accrue time toward IDR forgiveness:
- Old Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan. To qualify for this plan, you must have first borrowed before July 1, 2014. This repayment period is 25 years.
- New Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan. To qualify for this plan, you must have first borrowed after July 1, 2014. This repayment period is 20 years.
- Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan. This repayment period is 25 years.
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE) plan. This repayment period is 20 years.
Under current IRS rules, you may be required to pay income tax on any amount that’s forgiven under IDR forgiveness.
Tracking Progress toward Forgiveness
Due to ongoing court challenges with the Saving on A Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, the Education Department (ED) removed its IDR Forgiveness Tracker in early 2025. Borrowers should contact their loan servicer for an updated payment count to confirm how many payments they’ve made and how many they have remaining before forgiveness is reached.