Nine million people received an email last month that looked like they were approved for student loan forgiveness, but it turns out that was a mistake.
According to CNN, the Department of Education sent out emails with an inaccurate subject line that said their application for the one–time Student Loan Debt Relief Plan had been approved, when it really hadn’t. Of course, everyone was excited and the news spread quickly — only to be followed by a correction email.
The Department of Education sent out new emails on Tuesday to everyone who received the first one, explaining there had been a “vendor error.” It clarified that although the application had been received, it had not yet been approved or rejected. The emails with the wrong subject line were sent out on November 22 and 23, and since the program is being blocked by federal courts, no one has received debt forgiveness yet.
Though confusion reigns, there are still some borrowers who were already deemed eligible for debt relief by the Department of Education. But for the nine million people who received that incorrect email, it’s a waiting game.
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments over the issue in February, with a decision expected by June. If the Supreme Court allows the program to move forward, millions of low– and middle–income borrowers will be eligible for up to $10,000 in federal student debt cancellation, and those who received a Pell grant while enrolled in college would be eligible for up to $20,000 of debt relief.
The Biden administration has argued that the lawsuits are meritless, and that Congress gave the secretary of education “expansive authority to alleviate the hardship that federal student loan recipients may suffer as a result of national emergencies” like the Covid–19 pandemic, according to a memo from the Department of Justice.
It’s a legal battle that nine million borrowers are watching closely, each hoping for the chance to receive debt relief. The Department of Education has promised to review more student loan forgiveness applications if and when the government’s case prevails in court, but for now all that can be done is wait and see.
