On Oct. 17, the U.S. government launched the application for student loan forgiveness. Those who applied during the beta period, which took place over the weekend, do not need to reapply if a confirmation email was received. The Department of Education recommends that all qualifying borrowers apply for the relief even though 8 million borrowers qualify for automatic forgiveness. 

Borrowers can complete the recommended online application, which asks for the borrower’s basic information and social security number, within one to two minutes. Those who qualify for relief must have received a loan on or before July 1, 2022. 

“We will determine your eligibility and will contact you if we need more information,” the Federal Student Aid website stated. “Your loan servicer will notify you when your relief has been processed.” 

Borrowers who received loans through the Family Federal Education Loan program only qualify for relief if the loans were consolidated into a Direct Loan before Sept. 29, 2022. Borrowers who moved to consolidate their FFEL on or before Sept. 29 can still apply for the relief even if their loan has yet to fully be consolidated. 

The application for loan relief, which borrowers can find on the Federal Student Aid website, will be open until Dec. 31, 2023.