PSLF Countdown Calculator
Track progress toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness: payments remaining of 120, years to forgiveness, and the estimated balance forgiven. Runs in your browser.
72 payments to go
- Qualifying payments made
- 48 of 120
- Payments remaining
- 72
- Time to forgiveness
- ≈ 6.0 years
- You will pay before forgiveness
- $21,600
- Estimated balance forgiven
- $60,000
PSLF forgives the remaining federal Direct Loan balance after 120 qualifying monthly payments (10 years) while working full-time for a qualifying employer. The forgiven amount is the balance remaining at payment 120 — on income-driven plans the balance often stays roughly flat, so current balance is a reasonable estimate. Forgiven amounts under PSLF are not taxed federally. Verify payment counts at studentaid.gov. Not financial advice.
About this tool
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) forgives the remaining balance on federal Direct Loans after 120 qualifying monthly payments — ten years — made while working full-time for a qualifying employer (government or a 501(c)(3) nonprofit). This tracker turns your progress into clear numbers: how many of the 120 payments you have made, how many remain, the time to forgiveness in years, how much more you will pay before then, and the estimated balance that will be forgiven. Because PSLF is paired with income-driven repayment, where payments often do not fully cover interest, the balance tends to stay roughly flat — so your current balance is a reasonable estimate of what gets forgiven, and forgiven amounts under PSLF are not subject to federal income tax. The big asterisk is qualification: only Direct Loans, only qualifying repayment plans, only payments while employed full-time by a qualifying employer, and the payment count is what the official PSLF servicer certifies. Always verify your certified count at studentaid.gov. Informational, not financial advice. Everything runs in your browser.
How to use it
- Enter your number of certified qualifying payments.
- Enter your current loan balance and monthly payment.
- Read payments remaining, years to forgiveness, and the estimated amount forgiven.
- Verify your official payment count with the PSLF servicer.
Frequently asked questions
- How many payments does PSLF require?
- 120 qualifying monthly payments — equivalent to 10 years — though they need not be consecutive. They must be made under a qualifying repayment plan while working full-time for a qualifying public-service employer.
- How much will be forgiven?
- Whatever Direct Loan balance remains after the 120th qualifying payment. On income-driven plans the balance often stays roughly level (payments may not cover all interest), so your current balance is a reasonable estimate of the forgiven amount.
- Is PSLF forgiveness taxed?
- No — forgiveness under PSLF is excluded from federal income tax. (This differs from the 20–25 year forgiveness under income-driven plans, which has historically been taxable, subject to changing rules.)
- What counts as a qualifying payment?
- A full, on-time payment made under a qualifying repayment plan (income-driven plans, or the 10-year Standard plan) on Direct Loans, while employed full-time by a government or qualifying nonprofit employer. Other loan types must be consolidated into a Direct Loan first.
- Why does my count differ from my own tally?
- Only the official PSLF servicer's certified count is authoritative, and it depends on employer certification (form filed for each period), loan type, and plan. Submit certification regularly and check your count at studentaid.gov; this tool just projects from the number you enter.
- Is this financial advice?
- No. It is an informational tracker. Confirm eligibility, your certified payment count, and rules with your servicer and studentaid.gov.