Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) for Nurses

Updated on August 4, 2026

Nurses qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) if they work for a government or nonprofit employer. Your job title doesn’t determine eligibility — your employer does. That means a nurse at a nonprofit hospital or public health department may qualify, while a nurse at a for-profit hospital or private practice will not.

Which Employers Make Nurses Eligible for PSLF?

To qualify for PSLF, nurses must be directly employed by one of the following:

Government employers: federal, state, or local facilities, including Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals
Nonprofit employers: hospitals or clinics with qualifying 501(c)(3) status (not all nonprofits automatically qualify)
Tribal health organizations: federally recognized entities
Public health departments: providing community services

Not eligible: jobs at for-profit hospitals, staffing agencies, or private practices.

Related: PSLF Eligible Employers

Common PSLF Scenarios for Nurses

Borrowers often ask how PSLF applies to specific nursing jobs. Here are the most common situations:

Does HCA qualify for PSLF?

No. HCA Healthcare is a for-profit company, so jobs there are not eligible for PSLF.

Do travel nurses qualify for PSLF?

Sometimes. Travel nurses qualify only if they are directly employed by a government or nonprofit organization. Jobs through for-profit staffing agencies do not qualify. The special rule that lets California and Texas physicians qualify as 1099 contractors does not extend to nurses, who must be directly employed by a qualifying organization—see PSLF for 1099 physicians in California and Texas.

Do nurse practitioners qualify for PSLF?

Yes. Nurse practitioners may qualify if their employer is a government or nonprofit entity. Like registered nurses, eligibility depends on the employer — not the role.

Do nurses get loan forgiveness after 10 years?

Yes. Nurses may qualify for PSLF forgiveness after making 120 qualifying monthly payments under an IDR plan while working full-time for an eligible employer. Payments don’t need to be consecutive but must be certified with Employment Certification Forms (ECFs). To understand how this is calculated, see PSLF payments explained.

Does PSLF cover private student loans for nurses?

No. PSLF applies only to federal Direct Loans. Private student loans are not eligible, even if you work for a nonprofit or government employer. Nurses with private debt should consider refinancing or state-based loan repayment programs as alternatives.

Related: Does Kaiser Qualify for PSLF?

PSLF Rules Nurses Must Meet

Nurses must follow the same PSLF program requirements as other borrowers:

Loan type: Only federal Direct Loans qualify. Other loans—such as FFEL or Perkins—must be consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan before payments count. See which loans and repayment plans qualify for PSLF.
Repayment plan: You must enroll in an Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan, which sets your payment based on income and family size.
Payments: You must make 120 qualifying on-time monthly payments while working for a qualifying employer.
Work hours: You must work full-time—at least 30 hours per week or your employer’s full-time standard, whichever is greater.
Certification: Submit an Employment Certification Form (ECF) each year to confirm your employer’s eligibility.

If something goes wrong with your payment count or certification, you may need to fix PSLF mistakes such as buyback, waivers, or refunds.

The 2025 PSLF Employer Rule Was Vacated

In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order directing the Department of Education to revise PSLF rules. The Department published a final rule on October 30, 2025 that would have let it disqualify an otherwise-qualifying nonprofit or government employer if it determined the employer engaged in activities with a “substantial illegal purpose.” That rule was scheduled to take effect July 1, 2026.

A federal court vacated the rule on June 30, 2026 — one day before its effective date. It never took effect. The Department has since removed the employer attestation from the PSLF form to comply with the court’s order.

What this means for nurses:

The qualifying-employer definition that applied before the rule is still the definition that governs. If you work for a qualifying government or nonprofit employer, your eligibility did not change.
There is no “substantial illegal purpose” screen applied to your employer, and no attestation for your employer to sign.
If you delayed certifying your employment, or held off on taking a public-service job, because of this rule, there is no longer a reason to wait.

One wrinkle worth knowing if you go looking it up: the “substantial illegal purpose” definition is still printed in the regulations at 34 CFR § 685.219(b)(30). A court vacating a rule and the government striking the rule’s text from the Code of Federal Regulations are two separate steps, and the second one has not happened. Finding that language in the regulations does not mean it is in force.