Millions of student loan borrowers could receive automatic refunds on their payments soon—how to check if you qualify

The U.S. Department of Education shared on their website that millions of student loan borrowers will get refunds soon.

Less than a month ago, President Joe Biden announced that the government would forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loans for people making less than $125,000 a year. The plan does not include private loan holders.

The pause on repayments, interest and collections was extended by Biden in August.

The Office of Federal Student Aid says 9.1 million federal student loan borrowers have made at least one payment. Mark Kantrowitz told CNBC that payments on federal student loans that were eligible for the pause should be refunds. The FFEL loans that were not eligible for the pause will not be eligible for the refund.

If you're eligible for debt cancellation, you'll get a refund.

• “You successfully apply for and receive debt relief under the Administration’s debt relief plan, AND”
• “Your voluntary payments during the payment pause brought your balance below the maximum debt relief amount you’re eligible to receive but did not pay off your loan in full.”

If you had a balance of $10,500 before March 13, 2020 and paid $1,000 toward your loans during the pause, the department will discharge your balance and give you a $500.

Automatic relief programs are the only relief programs that work when it comes to student loans, according to the executive director of the Student Borrower Protection Center.

More information about the loan forgiveness program will be shared in the coming weeks.

The nearly 1.9 million borrowers who paid off their loans during the pause are not eligible for automatic relief, but they can contact their loan servicer until the end of the year.

The application for loan forgiveness will be available in October, a department spokesman told CNBC Make it.

If borrowers apply before Nov. 15 they will be eligible for relief by the end of the year.

You can check it out.

There could be student loan forgiveness before December.

Student loan forgiveness has lifted a heavy burden off of borrowers.

Student loan borrowers say a new repayment plan could be life changing.

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