A Guide To Parent Student Loan Forgiveness in 2025

If you're one of the 3.5 million borrowers with an outstanding parent PLUS loan, you may be exploring options for loan forgiveness. There are a few avenues for parent student loan forgiveness, including the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program and forgiveness through an income-driven repayment plan. Some states and employers also offer repayment assistance to qualifying professionals.

Here's what you need to know about your options, along with recent legislative changes, to find out if you're eligible for parent student loan forgiveness.

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Can parent PLUS loans be forgiven?

Parent PLUS loans can be eligible for student loan forgiveness through two main programs: income-driven repayment forgiveness and Public Service Loan Forgiveness.

Parent PLUS loans can be forgiven after repaying them under an income-driven repayment plan. The Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan is the only income-driven PLUS loan repayment option for parents, and you must consolidate your parent PLUS loans through a Direct Consolidation Loan to become eligible. At the end of 25 years of payments on ICR, you can have any remaining balance forgiven.

The other main option for parent PLUS loan forgiveness is the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. If you work in public service full-time and meet other eligibility requirements, you may qualify to have your balance forgiven after 10 years.

“If you're eligible for loan forgiveness and you don't have the ability to pay off your loan, then you should absolutely pursue loan forgiveness,” says Robert Farrington, student loan expert and founder of The College Investor.

How Income‑Contingent Repayment works for parents

After consolidating your parent PLUS loans, you can switch to the Income-Contingent Repayment plan. Income-Contingent Repayment adjusts your payments to one of the following, whichever is less:

• 20% of your discretionary income
• The amount you'd pay on a fixed 12-year plan, adjusted based on your income

ICR has a 25-year repayment term. To remain on this plan, you'll need to recertify your income and family size on an annual basis. If you consent to it, the Department of Education can automatically recertify your plan each year by accessing your tax information.

How are policy changes affecting parent PLUS loan forgiveness?

The “One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act” was signed into law in July 2025 and made major changes to student loans. The following changes affect parent PLUS loan forgiveness:

• Elimination of ICR: The Income-Contingent Repayment plan will be closed by July 1, 2028. If you're not on ICR yet, you'll need to consolidate your parent PLUS loans and apply for ICR before July 1, 2026. You can remain on that plan or switch to another income-driven repayment plan until July 1, 2028.
• Introduction of new repayment plans: Starting in July 2026, there will be 2 new repayment plans: a Standard Repayment Plan that spans 10 to 25 years, depending on your loan amount, and a 30-year Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), which adjusts your payments based on your income. New parent PLUS loans taken out on or after July 1, 2026, will only be eligible for the Standard Plan, not RAP.
• Transition to RAP or IBR: If you take out parent PLUS loans before July 1, 2026, you can repay them under the ICR plan until July 1, 2028. At that point, eligible loans will be transitioned to the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP); any loans that aren't eligible for RAP will be placed on the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan.

“[These changes] mean that old borrowers are eligible for PSLF, but not new borrowers,” says Mark Kantrowitz, financial aid expert and author of “How To Appeal for More College Financial Aid.”

“Technically, parent PLUS loans will remain eligible for PSLF, but with the only available repayment plan being Standard Repayment,” he continues. “There would be no debt remaining after 10 years.”

How to qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program offers parent PLUS loan forgiveness after 10 years of full-time work in the public sector. Qualifying employers include:

• Not-for-profit organizations
• U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government
• U.S. military

Along with working as a public servant for a decade, you have to make 120 qualifying payments on an income-driven repayment plan. Parent PLUS loans are only eligible for ICR, and you must first consolidate them with a Direct Consolidation Loan.

You can confirm your PSLF eligibility using the PSLF help tool. It's wise to certify your employment by filling out a PSLF form each year. This will help ensure you're on track to meet the program's requirements.

What other discharge or forgiveness options exist for parent borrowers?

As a parent borrower, you may be eligible for parent loan discharge under the following circumstances:

• School closure: If the school closed while the student was pursuing their degree, you may be eligible for a discharge of your parent PLUS loan.
• False certification: You could get your loan discharged if the school certified it even though you weren't eligible. This could occur if the student didn't graduate with their high school diploma, for example.
• Identity theft: This is another instance of false certification. You could qualify for a parent PLUS loan discharge if it was taken out as a result of identity theft.
• Disability: If you become totally and permanently disabled, you could have the loan discharged. This only applies to the parent borrower, not the student.
• Death: If the parent borrower or the student dies, the parent PLUS loan can be discharged.
• Bankruptcy: Discharging student loans through bankruptcy is difficult, but not impossible. You'll have to prove that your loan causes undue hardship to get the debt discharged.
• Failure to pay a loan refund: If the student's school was supposed to issue a loan refund but didn't, you can have your loan discharged.
• Borrower defense to repayment: This discharge applies if the student enrolled in the school or remained enrolled based on misleading information.
• Fraud: If your signature was forged on the loan agreement, you can be eligible for the discharge of your parent PLUS loan.

Beyond federal forgiveness for parent borrowers, it's also worth exploring opportunities for loan repayment assistance through your state, employer, or a private organization. Many states offer loan repayment programs for health care providers, lawyers, or other professionals who work in shortage areas. Some employers also provide student loan benefits, such as tuition reimbursement, to help their employees pay off their student debt.

Is parent PLUS loan forgiveness right for you?

Parent PLUS loan forgiveness may be right for you if you're committed to working in public service for at least a decade. It could also be a good fit for low-income borrowers who need relief from an income-driven repayment plan. However, your options for parent PLUS loan forgiveness will be restricted in the future due to legislative changes.

An alternative repayment strategy to consider is student loan refinancing. Depending on your credit profile, you could qualify for a better interest rate than you have now, which could lead to savings. You'll also get to choose a new repayment term, typically anywhere from five to 20 years.

Note that refinancing federal student loans moves them to a private lender. As a result, your loans will no longer be eligible for federal forgiveness programs or repayment plans. If you can qualify for parent PLUS loan forgiveness, you're better off keeping your loans where they are.

If not, refinancing may be worth exploring for the potential savings it could offer on your student loans. Credible can help you check your rates with multiple lenders at once to find the best student loan refinancing offer for you.