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Student loan forgiveness application: Here's what to know

The Biden administration recently announced the program to relieve up to $20,000 in student loan debt if you received a Pell Grant and up to $10,000 if you didn’t.

WASHINGTON — If you're looking to get some relief on student loans, make sure you set some time aside to get your application in. It'll set you back about five minutes, according to The Department of Education.

RELATED: Yes, the official student loan forgiveness application is now open

President Joe Biden on Monday announced more details about who can apply for student loan debt relief after sharing that those who took out loans can relieve up to $20,000 in student loan debt if they received a Pell Grant and up to $10,000 if they didn’t.

Individuals planning to apply have until Dec. 31, 2023, to submit their information.

Federal Pell Grants are generally awarded to undergraduate students with low or moderate income, and applicants won't need to provide proof of their Pell Grant when they apply.

People looking to verify if they received a grant can find out by logging into StudentAid.gov and checking “My Aid.” The Department of Education says they have records to check if an individual received a grant and does not ask for any additional information beyond the application to prove someone received one.

The "My Aid" landing page will also show individuals the servicer(s) for their loans. The “Loan Breakdown” section will show a list of the loans received, along with loans paid off or consolidated into a new loan.

Applicants should also be aware that if they received a Pell Grant before 1994, the information won't display on StudentAid.gov, but The Department of Education will still have it in their records.

The income requirements for those who qualify for the program include people who made less than $125,000 in 2021 or 2020, or families that made less than $250,000 in 2021 or 2020.

 Applicants are also urged to keep in mind that, if they filed federal taxes, income requirements are based on adjusted gross income (AGI), which tends to be lower than total income. The application states that your AGI can be found on line 11 of the IRS Form 1040.

In addition, the debt relief applies only to loan balances you had before June 30, 2022. Federal Student Aid specifies that any new loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2022, aren’t eligible for debt relief, and that other rules apply to consolidation loans (which are also eligible for relief).

The Department of Education has also confirmed that for those who can't apply online, a paper form will soon be provided. It will have the same December 2023 deadline.

Applicants can expect to receive an email confirmation after they apply. Then, the application will be reviewed and Federal Student Aid will be in contact if any more information is necessary.

Everyone who qualified will receive notification that their application was approved and loan servicers will apply the debt relief and notify the applicant.

To learn more and browse additional FAQs, click here.

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