Companies that qualify for student loan forgiveness

Story at a glance

• Student loan debt is the second-highest consumer debt category after mortgages, with the U.S. holding $1.7 trillion in outstanding loan debt.

• At least 30 companies offer a student loan repayment benefit to attract and retain top talent. 

• As of 2019, about 8 percent of companies offered some form of a student debt repayment benefit. 

More than 43 million Americans hold federal student loan debt, and now some companies are stepping up to help ease the burden of repayment. 

Student loan debt is the second-highest consumer debt category after mortgages, totaling $1.7 trillion. It’s become a huge burden for millions of Americans, with borrowers taking about 20 years to pay off their student loans.  

At least 30 companies have recognized that struggle and offer financial assistance to employees to repay their student loans.  

FlexJobs, a career advancement service, identified 30 remote-friendly companies that offer student loan repayment assistance, ranging from Google to Peloton.  

Abbott, Aetna, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Live Nation, SoFi-Social Finance and others offer eligible employees financial help in paying back student loans. 

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Assistance comes in a variety of forms, with some companies giving monthly payments to those currently repaying their debt while others provide yearly contributions that can be applied to student loans. FlexJobs says payments can range anywhere from $50 to thousands of dollars but usually have a maximum lifetime benefit that also depends on if an employee is full-time or part-time. 

Google announced it was launching a student loan repayment program for employees beginning in 2021. The company said it will match up to $2,500 per year so employees could put their earnings toward purchasing a new home, starting a family or investing in retirement savings.  

At PwC, employees can access the student loan paydown benefit that gives up to $1,200 a year toward student loan payments. Borrowers must enroll in direct payments, allowing PwC to send payments on their behalf. The company will pay $100 a month for up to six years or until an employee is promoted. 

According to FlexJobs, only about 8 percent of companies offered some form of a student loan repayment benefit in 2019. 

Since 2020, most student loan borrowers have not had to make any payments towards their loans due to a COVID-19 moratorium on payments and interest. Millions of borrowers are hoping President Biden will hold steadfast to his campaign promise of canceling at least $10,000 of federal student loan debt per borrower, a decision that could be announced soon. 

Since taking office, the Biden administration has canceled $32 billion in student loan debt for more than 1.6 million borrowers, mostly for students who were defrauded or misled by their schools or through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PLSF) program.  

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Student loan forgiveness might seem too good to be true, but there are legitimate ways to get it through free government programs.

The following options are available only to borrowers with federal student loans. Some programs have very specific requirements that make them difficult to qualify for, but income-driven repayment plans are open to most borrowers.

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Stay up to date on how student loan forgiveness and repayment may affect your finances.

The information below is about existing student loan forgiveness programs, where borrowers must qualify based on specific requirements. If successful, all of the borrower's debt is forgiven.

That's different from broad student debt cancellation, announced Aug. 24, that covers nearly every federal borrower. That plan cancels up to $10,000 in federal loans for borrowers who meet income tests, and up to $20,000 for those who meet the income threshold and were previously awarded Pell Grants. But the remaining balance, if any, must be repaid once payments resume.

Student loan forgiveness programs

1. Income-driven repayment forgiveness. The federal government offers four main income-driven repayment plans, which allow you to cap your loan payments at a percentage of your monthly income. When enrolled in one of these plans, your remaining loan balance will be eligible for forgiveness after 20 or 25 years, depending on the plan. These plans are most beneficial for those with large loan balances relative to their income. Only 32 borrowers have received loan forgiveness through income-driven repayment forgiveness, according to the National Consumer Law Center. This forgiveness was made tax-free retroactive to December 2020 through the end of 2025, as part of the March 2021 American Rescue Plan. However, most borrowers will not qualify for forgiveness through income-driven repayment until the early 2030s.

2. Public Service Loan Forgiveness.Public Service Loan Forgiveness is available to government and qualifying nonprofit employees with federal student loans. Eligible borrowers can have their remaining loan balance forgiven tax-free after making 120 qualifying loan payments. Until Oct. 31, 2022, the Education Department has expanded which payments on federal student loans count toward PSLF through a limited waiver; now, payments on FFEL and Perkins loans, late payments and payments made on any repayment plan will retroactively count as qualifying payments.

3. Teacher Loan Forgiveness. Teachers employed full time in low-income public elementary or secondary schools may be eligible for Teacher Loan Forgiveness after working for five consecutive years. They can have up to $17,500 in federal direct or Stafford loans forgiven. To qualify, teachers must have taken out loans after Oct. 1, 1998.

4. Student loan forgiveness for nurses. Nurses shouldering student debt have several options for student loan forgiveness: Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Perkins loan cancellation, and the NURSE Corps Loan Repayment Program, which pays up to 85% of qualified nurses’ unpaid college debt. Public Service Loan Forgiveness may be the most likely option for most nurses — few borrowers have Perkins loans, and the NURSE Corps program is highly competitive.

Other student loan forgiveness programs

There are a few additional niche student loan forgiveness or payment assistance programs you may qualify for through federal or state programs. Eligibility in these programs depends on your profession and where you work.

1. State-sponsored repayment assistance programs. Licensed teachers, nurses, doctors and lawyers in certain states may be able to take advantage of programs to assist with repaying debt. For example, the Mississippi Teacher Loan Repayment Program will pay up to $3,000 per year for a maximum of four years on undergraduate educational loans to teachers with a specific teaching license for each year of teaching full time in a particular geographical or subject area. Contact your state’s higher education department to find out if you qualify for a program.

2. Military student loan forgiveness and assistance. Military personnel in the Army, Navy, Air Force, National Guard and Coast Guard may qualify for their own loan forgiveness programs. In the National Guard, for example, qualifying soldiers and officers could receive up to $50,000 to pay off federal student loans through the Student Loan Repayment Program.

3. Additional student loan repayment assistance programs (LRAPs): There may be other national or organizational student loan repayment assistance programs offered for public service professions. The National Institutes of Health, for example, offers up to $35,000 in debt assistance annually to health professionals who are appointed by the institutes to conduct research. The American Bar Association has a list of state LRAPs for lawyers.

Student loan cancellation programs

1. Perkins loan cancellation. Borrowers with federal Perkins loans can have up to 100% of their loans canceled if they work in a public service job for five years. In many cases, approved borrowers will see a percentage of their loans discharged incrementally for each year worked. The Perkins loan teacher benefit is for teachers who work full time in a low-income public school or who teach qualifying subjects, such as special education, math, science or a foreign language.

Student loan discharge programs

1. Closed school discharge. You may qualify for loan discharge if your school closes. At the time of closure, you must have been enrolled or have left within 120 days, without receiving a degree. If you qualify, contact your loan servicer to start the application process. You’ll need to continue making payments on your loan while your application is being processed. If you’re approved, you will no longer have to make loan payments and you may be refunded some or all of the past payments you made on the loan.

2. Borrower defense to repayment discharge. Borrowers defrauded by their colleges may qualify for debt relief. You’ll need to file a borrower defense to repayment claim with the U.S. Department of Education. If you qualify, you may have your loans automatically discharged, at the discretion of the Education Department, if your school was involved in clear, widespread fraud or misrepresentation that affected a broad group of borrowers.

3. Total and permanent disability discharge. If you cannot work due to being totally and permanently disabled, physically or mentally, you may qualify to have your remaining student loan debt canceled. To be eligible for a total and permanent disability discharge, you’ll need to provide documentation proving your disability. Once your loans are discharged, the government may monitor your finances and disability for three years. If you don’t meet requirements during the monitoring period, your loans may be reinstated. Details on the application process are available at disabilitydischarge.com.

4. Total and permanent disability discharge for veterans. Veterans who are totally and permanently disabled will have their student loan debt discharged. The process will be automatic unless they decline due to potential state tax liability (there is no federal tax liability for veteran loan forgiveness).

5. Discharge due to death. If you die, your federal loans will be discharged once a death certificate is submitted to your loan servicer. Your parent’s PLUS loans used to pay for your schooling will be discharged if the parent who holds the loan or you die.

The caveats

Legitimate federal forgiveness, cancellation and discharge programs are free through the Department of Education, but there are other costs to consider.

• Beware of scams. So-called debt relief companies claim to get rid of debt but rarely deliver after charging already-struggling borrowers high upfront fees. The only way to get debt discharged is through the legitimate government programs above, and it costs nothing to apply to them.

• Forgiveness isn’t an option for defaulted loans. You’ll need to use consolidation or rehabilitation to get defaulted federal student loans in good standing before they’re eligible for forgiveness programs. If your loans won’t qualify for forgiveness, student loan settlement or bankruptcy may reduce your debt in severe cases. Defaulted federal loans are eligible for discharge programs.

Get the scoop on student loans

Stay up to date on how student loan forgiveness and repayment may affect your finances.

How do I know if my student loans qualify for loan forgiveness?

What types of student loans could be forgiven?

Who benefited from student loan forgiveness?

How can I get all my student loans forgiven?