More than 7 million student loan borrowers are in a defunct payment plan — what that means for their money

The SAVE plan is officially defunct, but millions of student loan borrowers remain enrolled in the program — a decision that may cost them greatly.

After lengthy legal battles, a federal appeals court earlier this month ordered the end of the Saving on a Valuable Education, or SAVE, plan, the Biden administration-era repayment program that aimed to dramatically lower borrowers’ monthly bills.

Borrowers enrolled in SAVE have been in a forbearance since July 2024 while the legal challenges played out, meaning they didn’t need to make payments on their debt. Any payments they choose to make don’t count toward loan forgiveness.

While the Trump administration has allowed borrowers to remain in the payment pause for now, it’s expected to end the reprieve soon. Interest began accruing on SAVE enrollees’ debts in August.

Still, SAVE enrollees have been slow to exit the program: roughly 7.2 million people were enrolled in the forbearance as of December, according to recently released data by the U.S. Department of Education. A year earlier, in Dec. 2024, that number was around 7.9 million borrowers.