Teacher Loan Forgiveness Enhancement Act

This bill forgives federal undergraduate student loans for public school teachers. If you work full-time as a teacher in a public elementary or secondary school for 8 straight years, the government cancels your remaining balance, including interest, and the forgiven amount is not counted as taxable income. You can use this benefit along with other programs, like teacher loan forgiveness, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, or AmeriCorps, even for the same years of service.

While you are teaching, you can pause payments and no interest will build up; this protection also lasts for six months after you stop teaching. It covers Direct, FFEL, and Perkins loans, and it applies to new loans and many loans already in repayment when the law takes effect. To make the process smoother, the IRS may share basic employer information with the Education Department to confirm a teacher’s employment for loan discharge purposes.

• Who is affected: Public elementary or secondary school teachers with federal undergraduate student loans.
• What changes: Full forgiveness after 8 consecutive years of teaching; forgiven amounts are not taxed; can be combined with other programs; payment and interest pause while teaching and for six months after; agencies can verify employment to speed up forgiveness .
• When: The deferment applies to loans made on or after the law takes effect and to loans already in repayment on that date; forgiveness applies after completing 8 straight years of service .