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Student Loan Debt Forgiveness for U.S. Military Veterans

Student Loan Debt Forgiveness for U.S. Military Veterans
2/4/2020
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Susan Dutca-Lovell

The U.S. Department of Education plans to forgive $1.3 billion in outstanding student loan debt for roughly 25,000 disabled U.S. military veterans, beginning in July. Until now, the Department of Education had required veterans to formally apply for student loan forgiveness - having them complete "unnecessary paperwork to secure relief from their student loans, even after the Department of Veterans Affairs had found that a veteran met the legal requirements for disability-related loan forgiveness." In 2018, over 30,000 totally and permanently disabled veterans eligible for student loan forgiveness had not completed the necessary paperwork; a majority of which had defaulted on their student loans.

"Veterans who put their lives on the line for their country and are now totally and permanently disabled due to their service don't deserve to be saddled with student loan debt," claimed NJ Attorney General Gurbir Grewal. The hope is that, by changing from an "opt-in" approach to an "opt-out" approach for veteran student loan forgiveness, eligible veterans can receive their student loan relief more easily. Grewal also proposed that the department use its new loan-forgiveness policy for disabled U.S. veterans as a "model" for other individuals entitled to student loan forgiveness due to a disability, according to Cape May County Herald.

In your opinion, should disabled veterans have their student loan debt forgiven in this manner? If you are personally looking for ways to manage your college student loans, check out your options for repaying your student loans or consider your options for student loan forgiveness, student loan debt cancellation, and student loan discharge.

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