The 2026 Policy Changes That Affect New York Borrowers
Federal student loan policy changed significantly in 2026 — and these changes affect every borrower in New Yorkregardless of which state you live in. Here's what you need to know:
The SAVE Plan Is Currently Blocked
The SAVE Plan — which would have provided the lowest payments for most income-driven repayment borrowers — is under a federal court injunction. If you are enrolled in SAVE, your payments are paused (administrative forbearance), but those paused months do not count toward IDR forgiveness or PSLF.
If you're in New York and enrolled in SAVE, the best path for most borrowers is to switch to IBR (Income-Based Repayment), which is fully operational and qualifies for both IDR forgiveness (after 20–25 years) and PSLF (after 120 payments for public service workers).
Federal Options Available to New York Borrowers
- IBR (Income-Based Repayment): 10% of discretionary income if your first loan was after July 1, 2014; 15% if before. Forgiveness after 20 or 25 years. Open to all eligible federal borrowers regardless of state.
- ICR (Income-Contingent Repayment): 20% of discretionary income or fixed 12-year payment, whichever is lower. Available for Parent PLUS loans after consolidation.
- PSLF (Public Service Loan Forgiveness): If you work for a government or nonprofit employer in New York (or anywhere), you may qualify for forgiveness after 120 qualifying payments. All three branches of New York state government are qualifying employers.
New York-Specific Programs
In addition to federal programs, New York has its own loan assistance program:
New York Get On Your Feet Loan Forgiveness Program
New York offers up to 24 months of federal loan forgiveness for eligible NY residents who completed NY college degrees.
Learn more about this program →Who Qualifies for PSLF in New York?
PSLF is available to borrowers with Direct federal loans who work full-time for a qualifying employer. Qualifying employers in New York include:
- All New York state government agencies and offices
- All New York county and city government employers
- Public schools and school districts in New York
- Public colleges and universities in New York
- 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations registered in New York
- Public hospitals and health systems
Federal employees in New York also qualify — this includes U.S. military members, federal agency employees, and USPS workers.
PSLF discharge data for New York
ED data reports 79,180 borrowers with processed PSLF-related discharges in New York, representing about $5,573,700,000 in discharged balance.
View New York PSLF data →Finding Your Loan Servicer in New York
Your loan servicer is the company that sends you bills and manages your repayment. MostNew York borrowers are serviced by one of these four servicers:
- Aidvantage — formerly Navient federal portfolio
- MOHELA — official PSLF servicer for all borrowers
- Nelnet
- EdFinancial
Not sure who services your loans? Log in to studentaid.gov with your FSA ID to see all your federal loan details in one place.
CFPB complaint dashboards for New York
For servicers with enough public CFPB complaint data in New York, StudentDebt.ai publishes state-level complaint dashboards with issue and response patterns.
- MOHELA complaints in New York (1,307 matching complaints)
- PHEAA / FedLoan complaints in New York (1,016 matching complaints)
- Nelnet complaints in New York (992 matching complaints)
- Aidvantage complaints in New York (454 matching complaints)
County Student Loan Debt in New York
StudentDebt.ai also publishes county-level student loan debt profiles for New Yorkusing Urban Institute data. These pages compare borrower share, median balance, delinquency signals, payment amounts, and debt-to-income ratios.
- St. Lawrence County: median balance $21,098, borrower share 18.4%, debt-to-income 29%
- Cattaraugus County: median balance $20,091, borrower share 16.5%, debt-to-income 29%
- Montgomery County: median balance $21,078, borrower share 17.2%, debt-to-income 28%
- Bronx County: median balance $18,856, borrower share 15.1%, debt-to-income 28%
Should New York Borrowers Refinance?
Refinancing federal loans into a private loan is irreversible — you permanently lose access to IDR plans, PSLF, federal forbearance, and any future forgiveness programs. For most New York borrowers with federal loans, refinancing is not recommended unless you:
- Work in the private sector (not government or nonprofit)
- Have stable, high income
- Do not need PSLF or IDR forgiveness
- Have loans above approximately 5% interest
If you have private loans, refinancing those is a separate decision and does not affect your federal loan protections.