Big Updates on the SAVE and IDR Plans: What Physicians Need to Know

On January 15, 2025, the Department of Education (DoED) released some important updates about the SAVE plan and Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans

With all the changes happening, it can be a lot to keep track of, so we’ve broken down the key updates for you:

1. Extended Forbearance Period

One of the biggest changes is the extended forbearance period. If you’re on the SAVE plan or another affected IDR plan, you’ll stay in an interest-free forbearance until servicers can roll out accurate billing systems, which won't be until September 2025 at the earliest. This means:

• Your first payments won’t be due until December 2025.
• You don’t need to make any payments during this time, and interest won’t accrue.
• However, keep in mind that this period won’t count toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) or IDR forgiveness.

2. Recertification Dates Pushed Back

For SAVE borrowers, the recertification deadlines have been pushed back too.

• Your anniversary recertification date will now be no earlier than February 1, 2026, and then there will be rolling deadlines after that.
• To make sure you don’t miss any recertification deadlines you may want to sign up for auto-recertification so you stay enrolled in your plan without having to worry about missing a deadline.

3. Changes to Forgiveness

When it comes to forgiveness, there’s still some uncertainty. Forgiveness under any of the IDR plans created by the Department of Education, including the SAVE (formerly REPAYE), PAYE, and ICR plans, is currently on hold due to court rulings. This likely only affects forgiveness after 20-25 years of payments, not the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. But keep in mind, nothing is definitive at this point, so it’s important to stay updated.

That said, you can still get forgiveness under the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan. Plus, if you’ve been making payments under SAVE, PAYE, or ICR, they’ll still count toward IBR forgiveness if you decide to switch to IBR.

4. IDR Application Processing Temporarily Suspended

IDR and Consolidation applications have been taken offline and borrowers will likely have to wait until they're back to make a switch in payment plans. Applications for SAVE are still paused because of ongoing legal issues.

5. PSLF Buy Back Program Gets Bigger

The PSLF Buy Back program is getting an expansion!  Soon, borrowers will be able to “buy back” months of PSLF credit for any time they spent in forbearance—even if they haven’t yet hit 120 months of qualifying employment. This is a big change because it was previously only available to borrowers who had already hit that 120-month mark.

6. What’s Up with Consolidation Loans?

If you have a consolidation loan, here’s what you need to know:

• You can only buy back months of PSLF credit for the time spent on your current consolidation loan.
• You can’t buy back months from loans that were included in your consolidation or from before the first disbursement date of your consolidation loan.

That's All ... for Now

We know keeping up with all the changes in the world of student loans can be overwhelming. The best thing to do now during this time of uncertainty is to stay on top of any updates from your loan servicer, and feel free to reach out if you need help navigating it all!

Additional  Resources:

Finance for Physicians podcast: The SAVE Plan Blows Up - What's Next for Physicians and Student Loans with Jeff Wenger, CSLP®, CFP®

Wrenne Financial Planning is a registered investment adviser. The content of this blog post is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investment advice. The views expressed in blog post are subject to change based on market and other conditions. Some information has been obtained/provided from third party sources and is believed to be reliable, but its accuracy is not guaranteed. There is no representation or warranty as to the current accuracy, reliability or completeness of, nor liability for, decisions based on such information, and it should not be relied on as such