The New York State Department of Financial Services has provided information about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), for which SUNY New Paltz employees may be eligible.
Please note: Because the process of obtaining a Direct Consolidated Loan may take a few months, it is recommended that you begin the process as soon as possible in order to meet the deadline of Oct. 31, 2022.
The full message from New York State is copied below.
To: All Agency Employees
Subject: Public Service Loan Forgiveness Eligibility for State Employees
This email outlines changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, to bring attention to a benefit for which you may be eligible. Full-time employees of New York State may have federal Direct loans forgiven after 10 years of qualifying loan payments and public service.
The U.S. Department of Education recently announced a limited waiver to the PSLF program that runs through Oct. 31, 2022. Ordinarily, payments on Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL), Perkins, or other non-Direct federal loans did not qualify towards the required 120 loan payments required for loan forgiveness under the PSLF program. However, under the temporary waiver program, your payments on non-Direct loans (e.g., FFEL loans) may count towards the 10 years of loan payments required for loan forgiveness. The waiver program will also count certain payments on non-Direct loans that were late, for less than the full amount due, or made in the wrong payment plan.
If you have FFEL, Perkins, or other non-Direct federal loans, you will need to consolidate them into a federal Direct Consolidation Loan to take advantage of the current limited PSLF waiver, and for loan forgiveness to be granted.
Borrowers with non-Direct federal loans need to take the following two affirmative steps prior to Oct. 31, 2022 to take advantage of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program waiver:
1) Apply to consolidate your federal loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan, at https://studentaid.gov/app/launchConsolidation.action or by calling your student loan servicer.
2) After your loans are consolidated, complete the PSLF form. You may use the PSLF Help Tool (https://studentaid.gov/pslf/) to assist you in starting the PSLF form or access the form at hhttps://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/public-service-application-for-forgiveness.pdf. After filling out Sections I and 2, you will need to have your employer complete Section 3 and 4. The completed form must then be submitted to the address identified in Section 7 of the form.
It could take a few months to obtain a Direct Consolidated Loan once you have applied. Because you must consolidate your loans and submit the PSLF form prior to Oct. 31, 2022 to benefit from the PSLF waiver program, we recommend you begin the process to consolidate your loans as soon as possible.
You may use the PSLF Help Tool (https://studentaid.gov/pslf/) to search for a qualifying employer and learn what actions you need to take to be eligible for loan forgiveness. You may also contact your student loan servicer, visit DFS’s website (https://www.dfs.ny.gov/consumers/student_protection) or the U.S. Department of Education’s website (https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service) for more information about the recent changes to the PSLF program.
