The Biden administration quietly changed its policy on who is eligible for student-debt “relief” on Thursday, scaling back its promise to millions amid legal challenges.
Until Thursday, the Department of Education’s website advertised that borrowers with privately held federal student loans — Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) or Perkins Loans — should consolidate their loans into the Direct Loan program to be eligible for up to $20,000 of student-debt “relief.”
The website was modified with no announcement Thursday morning. It now reads, “as of Sept. 29, 2022, borrowers with federal student loans not held by ED cannot obtain one-time debt relief by consolidating those loans into Direct Loans.”
FFEL borrowers with Direct Loans are still eligible to consolidate those loans, an administration official told NPR, but that policy is not reflected on the website.