554,000 Borrowers Still Stuck in Student Loan Repayment Backlog Despite Record Processing

About this episode

The episode discusses the recent processing of IDR applications and the ongoing backlog of student loan repayments.

The Department of Education processed more I DR applications in March than any month since court-ordered tracking began, cutting the pending backlog to 553,966. That is down from 576,609 in February and from nearly 2 million in April 2025. The March status report (PDF File), filed today in federal court, also shows IDR loan forgiveness resumed after two consecutive months of zero discharges.

Topics covered

• student loans
• loan repayment
• IDR applications
• education policy
• financial aid

Keywords

• student loans
• IDR applications
• Department of Education
• loan forgiveness
• repayment backlog

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Department of Education

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