The public service loan forgiveness (PSLF) is a program that was established in 2007. It was designed to encourage individuals to pursue a career in public service by offering federal student loan forgiveness after working for ten years with payment in the public service.
The program was enacted to alleviate the burdens of the student debt for individuals that are committed to public service.
Eligible participants were required to make 120 qualifying monthly payments under a qualifying payment plan who working full time for a qualifying employer such as the government or non profit organizations. Upon meeting these criterias, the balance on their direct loan would be forgiven.
More than 2 million Americans have eligible employment and open student loans, according to December data from the Education Department.
Executive order redefining public service eligibility.
In 2017, the Trump administration proposed the elimination of the public service loan forgiveness. The rationale was to simplify students loans repayment processes and reduce federal expenditures.
In March 2025, president Trump signed an executive order directing the department of education to revise the definition of public service in the PSLF program. This was aimed at excluding organizations that are engaged in “illegal businesses” from the loan forgiveness. This order targeted organizations involved in:
- Activities working against federal immigration laws.
- Support for terrorism.
- Aiding illegal discrimination
- Child abuse
- Vandalism.
This move in general was to ensure that the government is not subsidizing organizations that are acting against America’s interest.
What this means
Following the current rules, non profit organizations that are eligible are those that focus in specific areas such as public interest law, public health or education. The Trump’s order seem to be targeted at those who work in certain fields that go headlong with his political agenda, which includes immigration.
Advocates have gone to court to defend the program in the past, and Trump’s action is almost certain to face legal challenges. It drew quick backlash from advocates.
Updating new eligibility rules usually take long and it requires the education department to go through a federal rule marking process. Since the new regulation started this year, it would typically not take effect till 2027.
The forgiveness program has been the subject of a political drag since Trump’s first term, when borrowers first started hitting the 10-year finish line.
Majority of the borrowers who applied for relief in 2017 were rejected because they were found to have enrolled in ineligible payment plans or failed to meet other criteria. An investigation concluded the Education Department had failed to make the program’s eligibility rules clear.
Under President Joe Biden, the Education Department loosened the program’s rules through a federal rulemaking process, expanding eligibility to people who would have been denied previously.
In its final weeks, the Biden administration announced it had granted relief to more than 1 million people through the program, up from 7,000 who were granted cancellation during Trump’s first term.
