In a move that’s surprising Washington insiders, President Donald Trump’s administration has reinstated a federal student loan forgiveness program — one that had been on hold since July.
The Education Department quietly brought back the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) forgiveness plan, according to The Washington Post. The program allows borrowers who’ve paid for 25 years to have their remaining debt completely wiped clean.
This revival comes as millions of Americans still face crippling student debt, a problem Democrats often use to justify massive government spending. But the Trump administration says this isn’t about “handouts” — it’s about following the law and restoring fairness.
Trump’s Education Department Takes Action
Under the IBR plan — created in 2007 — borrowers’ monthly payments are based on income and family size, with full forgiveness after 20 or 25 years of payments.
Government servicers say borrowers have until October 21 to qualify for forgiveness. Around 2 million Americans are enrolled in the program, yet many haven’t made enough qualifying payments to be eligible.
Education experts note that the average IBR loan balance sits around $57,000 — a major burden for working families still trying to recover from the Biden-era economic downturn.
A Bureaucratic Backlog and Union Pressure
Court filings show more than 1.3 million borrowers remain trapped in a massive processing backlog. Another 72,000 Americans are waiting on Public Service Loan Forgiveness decisions — a separate program that rewards government and nonprofit workers after 10 years of service.
Meanwhile, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), one of the most powerful teachers’ unions in the country, has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education. The union — which openly opposes Trump — claims the government isn’t acting fast enough and that borrowers could be hit with huge federal tax bills in 2026 if forgiveness isn’t processed soon.
AFT President Randi Weingarten, a longtime Trump critic, bragged,
“We stood up to them in court and demanded they follow the law.”
But critics argue that Weingarten and her union allies helped create this broken system in the first place — and now they’re demanding the very administration trying to fix it to clean up their mess.
Government Shutdown May Delay Forgiveness
There’s another major obstacle: the ongoing government shutdown.
Nearly 90% of Education Department staff are furloughed, which could cause months-long delays for borrowers waiting on loan cancellation approvals.
The Trump administration has prioritized fiscal discipline and government efficiency, but the temporary shutdown may make it harder to process forgiveness applications in a timely way.
Still, Trump officials insist they are working to restore fairness without adding to America’s debt crisis — a sharp contrast to Biden’s multi-billion-dollar giveaway programs that shift student debt onto taxpayers.
Bottom Line: Fairness, Not Freebies
While the move may appear similar to Biden’s loan forgiveness push, Trump’s decision is fundamentally different. His administration isn’t canceling debt with executive overreach — it’s enforcing the law as written, after years of bureaucratic neglect.
Trump’s focus remains clear:
✅ Hold universities accountable.
✅ Protect taxpayers.
✅ Enforce the law fairly for those who followed the rules.
For millions of Americans nearing retirement or helping their kids with college, this shows once again why President Trump’s “America First” approach is about fairness, not freebies.