economy
February 9, 2026
Some student loan borrowers wait over a year in public servant debt forgiveness backlog
More than 83,000 federal student loan borrowers are waiting for a Public Service Loan Forgiveness Buyback application decision. What experts say to do while in line.
TL;DR
- Over 83,000 federal student loan borrowers are waiting in a backlog for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Buyback applications.
- Katy Punch has been waiting over 14 months for a decision on her PSLF Buyback application, which would forgive approximately $30,000 in student loans.
- The PSLF program, established in 2007, offers loan forgiveness to those with a decade of service in public or non-profit sectors.
- The PSLF Buyback option, introduced by the Biden administration in 2023, allows borrowers to pay for past periods of forbearance or deferment to speed up forgiveness.
- The backlog of pending PSLF Buyback requests has been increasing, with numbers rising from 74,510 in August to 80,210 in November.
- Some advocates report no successful buyback requests completed by their teams, while others have seen approvals.
- The popularity of PSLF Buyback increased after courts blocked the Biden-era SAVE plan in 2024, causing many borrowers to be placed in forbearance and freezing their PSLF progress.
- Millions of borrowers are in the SAVE payment pause, and over 734,000 are stuck in a backlog for new repayment plan applications.
- Experts suggest continuing to make loan payments and not solely depending on the buyback option for forgiveness.
- Borrowers still in the SAVE plan may consider applying for the Standard Repayment Plan to expedite remaining PSLF payments, as this backlog primarily affects income-driven repayment plan switches.
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