Biden’s Student-Loan Forgiveness Program Temporarily Halted by Appeals Court

Millions of borrowers have applied for the program, which would grant up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness for eligible applicants

A federal appeals court Friday temporarily stopped the Biden administration from moving forward with its plan to forgive up to $20,000 in student-loan debt for millions of Americans.

The Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued the halt in a one-page order that will remain in place for a short period while it considers a request by Republican leaders in six states to block implementation of the program.

The Biden administration has said in court filings that it wouldn’t discharge any student-loan debt before Oct. 23. The appeals court order at least pushes back that start date a few days, though White House officials have said it could take weeks to process the bulk of the applications.

Friday’s decision by the appeals court comes one day after the Supreme Court rejected a request to block President Joe Biden’s plan for broad federal student loan debt cancellation. The appeals court, which is hearing an appeal of the Missouri judge’s order, set a briefing schedule with deadlines early next week.

The development comes just hours after President Biden touted his efforts to forgive student loans during a speech at a Delaware university on Friday.

Federal student loan borrowers with annual income levels of less than $125,000—or households with annual incomes of less than $250,000—are eligible for the program. Pell Grant recipients are eligible for up to $20,000 in loan forgiveness, while others are eligible for up to $10,000 in forgiveness.

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