Do Navient Loans Qualify for PSLF?

‍Your federal student loans with Navient qualify for PSLF, but any private student loans you have with them do not.

If you work for the government or a nonprofit organization, any federal student loan debt you have with Navient qualifies for Public Service Loan Forgiveness and the Limited PSLF Waiver — but you’ll need to consolidate the loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan.

The PSLF Program forgives the remaining balance owed on one type of loan only: Federal Direct Loans. If Navient has your federal student loans, those aren’t Direct Loans. They’re likely a Federal Family Education Loan or Federal Perkins Loan.

Related: FFELP Loan Forgiveness

To find out what type of loans you have, check your account with Navient or on the Federal Student Aid website, studentaid.gov. Federal loans will have names like:

• FFEL Subsidized or Unsubsidized

• FFEL Stafford Loans

• Federal Perkins Loans

• Parent PLUS Loans

Those loans are eligible for PSLF and, depending on your adjusted gross income during the pandemic, President Biden’s loan cancellation. Read more about Biden’s $10k student loan forgiveness.

Any private student loans with Navient aren’t eligible for this debt relief opportunity. If you’re struggling to make monthly payments, consider refinancing with a new private lender to get a lower interest rate or longer repayment term.

Related: How to Get Rid of Navient Private Student Loans

Before the pandemic, the PSLF Program had strict eligibility requirements. Borrowers were eligible only if they:

• Had qualifying loans — i.e., loans that are a part of the Direct Loan Program.

• Worked full-time for a qualifying employer — i.e., the government or a not-for-profit organization.

• Switched to a qualifying repayment plan — i.e., any income-driven repayment plan.

• Made 120 qualifying payments — i.e., student loan payments made on time and for the full amount due.

The first requirement — having Direct Loans — tripped up tens of thousands of public servants. They would dutifully pay for years only to submit a PSLF Form and have it rejected because they had the wrong loans.* The only way they could qualify for PSLF was to consolidate into a Direct Loan. But they couldn’t bring the payments they made forward if they did that. They had to start over from the beginning, spend another decade in public service, and make another 120 qualifying monthly payments.

Related: Do I Need to Consolidate My Student Loans for PSLF?

Last October, the White House worked to fix this issue by temporarily overhauling the program to allow borrowers — even those who no longer work in public service — to consolidate and get retroactive PSLF credit for the payments they’ve already made. It also said that time spent in certain periods of forbearance and deferment would count as qualifying payments for PSLF.

Learn More: Who Qualifies for the PSLF Waiver?

To qualify for PSLF, you must consolidate your federal student loans with Navient into a Direct Consolidation Loan. Normally, consolidating resets your payment count towards PSLF and income-driven repayment plan forgiveness. But for a limited time, the Education Department is allowing most federal student loan borrowers* to consolidate and get credit for the payments they made on their loans before they consolidated.

The Limited PSLF Waiver ends on Oct. 31, 2022. You can beat the deadline if you:

1. Submit a consolidation application on studentaid.gov before midnight on Oct. 31, 2022.

2. Document your qualifying public service by completing an employment certification form using the PSLF Help Tool by that same date.

You’ll need an FSA ID to access the website.

*Borrowers who only have Parent PLUS Loans aren’t eligible for the Limited PSLF Waiver.

Some Navient loans qualify for PSLF, but not automatically. You’ll need to consolidate your federal student loans into a Direct Loan to make them eligible for PSLF. If you act quickly, you can consolidate and get credit for the payments you’ve already made.

Let’s talk if you have questions about taking advantage of PSLF and the limited waiver to get rid of your loan balance.

UP NEXT: Will Navient Loans Be Forgiven?