New Bipartisan Bill Would Count SAVE Forbearance Months Toward PSLF, No Buyback Required

Reps. Bill Foster (D-IL) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) introduced the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Inclusion Act of 2026, which would update what counts as a qualifying payment under Public Service Loan Forgiveness in two ways: it would let payments under graduated, extended, and the new tiered standard plans count during a borrower’s first 60 months, and it would treat months spent in administrative forbearance as qualifying payments for borrowers working in public service.

It was referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce the same day it was introduced, with nine cosponsors.

This first provision is a win for many borrowers who’ve found themselves in the wrong repayment plan (especially graduated – which we’ve called a trap). These borrowers have seen their payment counts drop as a result.

The second provision is especially important for the roughly 7 million borrowers who spent more than two years in the SAVE forbearance. Under current law, those months earn zero PSLF credit unless the borrower buys them back. Under this bill, they would count automatically, with no lump-sum payment and no application.