Should You Switch from SAVE or PAYE to IBR for Forgiveness?

Only one income-driven plan is forgiving loans in 2025 — IBR. If you’ve been repaying for 25 years (about 300 qualifying payments), switching into IBR lets your loans be reviewed for discharge while forgiveness is still tax-free under the American Rescue Plan Act.

20-year plans like PAYE and the newer IBR version won’t reach eligibility until the 2030s, so this year’s discharges apply only to borrowers on the 25-year track.

Related: IBR Loan Forgiveness

Borrowers are switching to IBR because it’s the only income-driven plan where forgiveness is still moving forward. The Education Department paused discharges under SAVE, PAYE, and ICR after a court order blocked the SAVE Plan. All three programs rely on the same legal authority, so once the courts froze SAVE, the Department had to freeze the others as well.

IBR was unaffected because it was created by Congress, not by the Education Department. That makes it the only reliable path toward loan forgiveness right now. Borrowers with about 25 years (300 months) of repayment can already receive forgiveness—even if many of their payments were made under SAVE, PAYE, or ICR—and borrowers on the 20-year track will become eligible around 2032, when those loans reach 240 qualifying payments.

Learn More: Will I Owe Taxes on IBR Loan Forgiveness After 2025?

Nothing happens to the forgiveness credit you’ve already earned when you switch plans. Switching to IBR doesn’t restart your timeline—your past qualifying payments still count.

The Education Department counts qualifying repayment months across eligible IDR plans. When you switch to IBR, prior qualifying months under SAVE, PAYE, or ICR generally continue to count toward the 20- or 25-year forgiveness timeline.

Your clock resets only if you consolidate after switching, because consolidation creates a new loan. Even then, your old payment history is restored later through the one-time IDR adjustment, as long as you met the federal deadlines.

If your tracker shows “null” or “0” counts, it’s likely a temporary data glitch that should correct once updates finish syncing.

Related: How to Fix Your IBR Payment Count

Switching to IBR can make sense if you’re close to forgiveness and can handle a higher monthly payment.

Moving into IBR lets your progress toward forgiveness continue. If your backdoor tracker shows you’re at 298 or more qualifying payments, switching to IBR can complete the final stretch while forgiveness remains tax-free through December 31, 2025.

The trade-off is cost. IBR bases payments on 10–15% of discretionary income, compared with SAVE’s 5%, and interest begins accruing again. For those in forbearance, staying put may be the better move — you can wait for the new repayment plan or stay until your financial situation improves. Those in PAYE can remain there until 2028.

If you’re still far from forgiveness or can’t afford the larger payment, staying where you are preserves more flexibility.

Apply to change plans at StudentAid.gov/idr. This is the fastest way to move from other IDR plans to IBR, though you can also submit a paper form through your servicer’s portal or request one directly.

1. Complete the application. Select Income-Based Repayment (IBR) and verify your income with the IRS Data Retrieval Tool or by uploading a recent tax return or pay stub. If you file jointly and your spouse’s income raises your payment, filing taxes separately limits the calculation to your income only.

2. Wait for processing. Reviews usually take two to eight weeks, though delays are common during the 2025 rebuild. While your application is pending, your account may show “processing forbearance” or “IDR pending review.” These months still count toward forgiveness once your plan updates.

3. Confirm your new plan. You’ll get an email when IBR is active. Your new payment appears in your portal the next billing cycle. Some systems list IBR simply as “IDR” — that’s normal while data syncs.

4. Save your records. Keep copies of your submission, confirmation email, and updated Aid Summary. They help resolve any payment-count issues later.

If there’s no update after 60 days, contact your servicer. Still no progress? Open a case through the FSA Feedback Center and request review by the Ombudsman Group.

If your switch to IBR is taking longer than expected, it’s probably just the backlog. The Education Department is still reviewing thousands of IDR applications, and even complete files can sit in line for weeks.

While you wait, keep your account in good standing. Continue making payments under your current plan if you can. If you can’t — or if you’re not in an IDR plan — ask your servicer to place your loans in administrative processing forbearance so you don’t fall behind. Some of those months may still count toward forgiveness once your plan updates.

If there’s still no update after several weeks, escalate. Start with your servicer, then open a case with the FSA Ombudsman Group or contact your congressional office for help. Just know that responses may take time because of ongoing staffing shortages. You can also submit a new IBR application — some borrowers have found that reapplying prompts a faster review.

Switching from SAVE, PAYE, or ICR to IBR doesn’t hurt your progress toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).

PSLF requires three things:

1. Full-time work for a qualifying employer

2. Eligible Direct Loans

3. Payments under a qualifying repayment plan

IBR meets that plan requirement, and your PSLF payment count continues as long as you stay in repayment. Only a break in payments or a new consolidation can temporarily reset your count, which can later be restored under the one-time IDR adjustment.

Borrowers can continue enrolling in the IBR plan until June 30, 2028. After that date, the Education Department will have phased out the income-driven repayment plans, leaving only the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) as the income-driven option for borrowers.

If you’re already in IBR by June 30, 2028, you can stay there until your forgiveness is complete. Your progress continues to count month-for-month, even after RAP becomes the default plan.

Borrowers who later move from IBR into RAP keep the same qualifying payment count, but RAP adds five more years to the forgiveness timeline.