Student loan forgiveness: Here's the number of eligible borrowers who applied by US state

The White House this week released data showing the number of student borrowers in each state who applied for or were automatically eligible for President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan.

More than 26 million people applied for cancellation in the few weeks the loan forgiveness application was available. Over 16 million of those applications were fully approved by the Education Department (ED) before it stopped accepting applications because of lawsuits.

Overall, more than 40 million borrowers are eligible for its student debt relief plan, according to White House projections. The White House also noted that 90% of forgiveness will go to those who make less than $75,000.

In August, President Biden announced $10,000 in cancellation for borrowers who meet certain income restrictions plus an additional $10,000 in loan forgiveness for Pell Grant recipients.

Still, student loan borrowers face a long road to find out if they will ultimately get federal debt cancellation as they wait for the Supreme Court to take up the cases against Biden's relief plan in February. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed its opening brief to the court earlier this month.

There likely will be more legal filings before the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in late February and renders an opinion. Opponents in the Texas and 8th Circuit cases before the court have until Jan. 27 to submit their brief and the DOJ has until Feb. 15 to respond.

Experts expect a ruling could come as early as March or as late as June or July.

Last month, President Biden extended the payment pause on federal student loans until June 30, 2023, as litigation continues. If the lawsuits have not been resolved by then, payments will begin 60 days after that.

Borrowers are not required to make payments during the forbearance payment pause and should beware of scams offering loan forgiveness. The official website for federal student loan forgiveness is StudentAid.gov/debtrelief.

Ronda is a personal finance senior reporter for Yahoo Finance and attorney with experience in law, insurance, education, and government.

Follow her on Twitter @writesrondaRead the latest personal finance trends and news from Yahoo Finance. Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Flipboard, and LinkedIn

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