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Members of the National Guard walk, with the U.S. Capitol in the background, during the first day of a partial government shutdown in Washington, D.C., U.S., Oct. 1, 2025. <\/p>\n
Nathan Howard | Reuters<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The shutdown of the federal government is likely to worsen the delays<\/a> student loan borrowers are already facing in accessing programs <\/a>required by Congress and mandated in their loan terms.<\/p>\n More than 1 million borrowers are in a backlog to enroll in an income-driven repayment plan<\/a>, according to court records<\/a> from mid-September.<\/p>\n During the shutdown, Federal Student Aid staff \u201cwill not be able to perform regular operations, including working on the IDR backlog,\u201d a spokesperson for the Education Department told CNBC on Wednesday. That day, the U.S.\u00a0government<\/a>\u00a0shut down<\/a>\u00a0after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal, meaning that most of the federal workers at the Education Department would be\u00a0temporarily put on unpaid leave<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cEven before the shutdown, borrowers were at a breaking point,\u201d said Michele Zampini, associate vice president of federal policy and advocacy at The Institute for College Access & Success.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, with application processing reportedly at a standstill, borrowers will continue to face unaffordable payments.\u201d<\/p>\n More from Personal Finance:<\/strong> Congress created the first IDR plans in the\u00a01990s<\/a>\u00a0to make student loan borrowers\u2019 bills more affordable. Historically, the plans cap people\u2019s monthly payments at a share of their discretionary income and cancel any remaining debt after a certain period, typically 20 years or 25 years.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what student loan borrowers need to know about getting into a new repayment plan right now.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n As of Aug. 31, there were already 1,076,266<\/a> income-driven repayment plan applications pending with the agency, court records show.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is not surprising that there will be no progress on the IDR backlog during the shutdown, as the staff who work on it aren\u2019t considered\u00a0\u2018essential,'\u201d said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.<\/p>\n But, Kantrowitz said, \u201cthe failure to clear the backlog is disruptive to the lives of borrowers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Many of the borrowers in the backlog are likely trying to switch out of the Biden administration-era SAVE, or Saving on a Valuable Education, plan. A court struck that program down in February and now borrowers who remain in the SAVE forbearance, which borrowers were placed into during the legal challenges, are seeing interest grow on their debt. (The Trump administration started charging interest as of Aug. 1<\/a>.)<\/p>\n \u201cInterest has been accruing on their loans, but they have been unable to switch to another plan,\u201d Kantrowitz said.<\/p>\n In the meantime, borrowers stuck in the backlog may not be making progress toward loan forgiveness, either under the terms of an IDR plan or through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. PSLF offers debt cancellation to certain public servants or non-profit workers after a decade.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n For now, the best move student loan borrowers stuck in the backlog can do is to salt away the money they would have directed to their payments, Kantrowitz said. That way, you\u2019ll have plenty of cash to draw on when the Education Department switches you into another IDR plan and your first bill comes due.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n This remains a waiting game.<\/p>\n Carolina Rodriguez<\/p>\n director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n While this waiting period likely doesn\u2019t count toward IDR or PSLF forgiveness, when you first applied for an IDR plan, you were supposed to be put into a 60-day administrative forbearance at first, and those two months still do count on your forgiveness timeline, Kantrowitz said.<\/p>\n \u201cOur advice to borrowers is to maintain thorough records and monitor any applications submitted during this period,\u201d said Carolina Rodriguez, director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program, speaking about the backlog.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce processing resumes, it\u2019s important to follow up promptly to ensure their application remains on track,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cBeyond that, unfortunately, this remains a waiting game.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
As some colleges near $100,000, these schools are free<\/a>
These college majors have the best job prospects<\/a>
Student loan forgiveness may soon be taxed again<\/a><\/p>\nDelays are \u2018disruptive to the lives of borrowers\u2019<\/h2>\n
What borrowers in the backlog can do<\/h2>\n
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