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Education Department Reverses Some Borrowers' PSLF Payment Credit, Citing Data Errors

A StudentAid.gov warning banner says Public Service Loan Forgiveness payment counts are wrong for some borrowers, with reports of 15 or more qualifying payments vanishing since July.

By THRYV Life Desk·Published August 20, 2026·Updated August 20, 2026·4 min read
Education Department Reverses Some Borrowers' PSLF Payment Credit, Citing Data Errors
Education · Illustration commissioned for THRYV. Photography is replaced with original imagery as each story is produced.

The takeaway

The Education Department says a data error is causing incorrect Public Service Loan Forgiveness payment counts for some borrowers, with StudentAid.gov displaying a warning banner since early August. Some borrowers report losing 15 or more qualifying payments toward the 120 needed for forgiveness. Officials say a fix is coming but haven't given a timeline.

The Education Department says a data error is behind incorrect Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) payment counts appearing for some borrowers, after a warning banner went up on StudentAid.gov in early August. Some borrowers report losing 15 or more qualifying payments toward the 120 needed for forgiveness, with July 2026 payments appearing especially affected. Officials say a fix is coming but have not given a timeline.

What the banner says

StudentAid.gov is displaying a message telling borrowers: "PSLF Qualifying Months of Employment Incorrect. The number for your PSLF qualifying months of employment is incorrect. We are working to fix the data issue and will provide an update soon." Federal Student Aid (FSA) representatives have told borrowers the underlying payments still count toward forgiveness — it's the tracker itself that is malfunctioning, not their eligibility.

A department spokesperson told Forbes the issue traces back further than this year's system changes: "While revamping federal student aid systems for July 1 changes, FSA identified multiple PSLF counter code errors stemming from changes implemented in May 2024 under the Biden Administration."

Who's affected

The department has not said how many borrowers are affected or published a full account of the error's scope. PSLF forgives remaining federal student loan balances after 120 qualifying monthly payments made while working full-time for a government or qualifying nonprofit employer, typically in income-driven repayment plans.

Disputed details

The department's public messaging has been inconsistent — dashboard banners have at different points suggested the changes were simple data errors and, at other times, described them as deliberate corrections. Whether legitimate PSLF credit was wrongly removed, or some of it was miscounted in borrowers' favor to begin with, remains unresolved and disputed.

What borrowers should do now

  • Download your PSLF payment history and employment certifications now, and screenshot your tracker details, in case records change again.
  • Don't assume lost credit is gone for good — past PSLF data errors have eventually been corrected once FSA fixed the underlying system.
  • If you believe your count is wrong, contact your loan servicer and consider escalating through your congressional representative's office.
  • Watch StudentAid.gov for the removal of the warning banner, which should signal the count has been corrected.

Sources

This article is original writing by THRYV. We link to primary reporting and official documents rather than reproducing them.

  1. Education Department Rescinds Student Loan Forgiveness Credit, But Scope Of Rollback Is Unclear — Forbes
  2. Your PSLF Payment Count May Be Wrong: New StudentAid.gov Banner Explains Why — The College Investor

Why you can trust this article

Written and edited in-house by the THRYV Life Desk. We do not republish or reword agency copy, and we do not invent quotes, statistics, testimonials or ratings. Where figures move frequently, we point you to the primary release rather than printing a number that will be out of date. Advertising and affiliate partnerships have no influence on our reporting — see our editorial standards, fact-checking policy and affiliate disclosure. Spotted an error? Write to newsroom@thryv-news.com.

General information only. Not personalised financial, medical or legal advice.

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