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Time of India
12 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Student loan interest resumes on August 1: What 7.7 million SAVE plan borrowers need to know
Student loan interest under SAVE plan to resume August 1 onwards. From August 1, interest will start accruing again on federal student loans under the SAVE repayment plan, affecting more than 7.7 million borrowers across the United States. The move comes after nearly a year-long pause in interest, prompted by legal challenges and policy uncertainty surrounding the Biden-era student loan reform. With SAVE now set to be phased out over the next few years, and new repayment rules in place, borrowers must reassess their repayment strategies to avoid unexpected debt growth. Why interest is returning The Education Department had paused interest and payments for SAVE borrowers in response to lawsuits challenging the legality of the program. But a court injunction has forced the department to resume charging interest, even though borrowers are not yet required to resume monthly payments. This means that while SAVE enrollees can remain in the plan for now, their balances will start increasing due to accumulating interest, starting August 1. The SAVE plan is being phased out The SAVE plan, introduced in 2023 as a more generous income-driven repayment (IDR) option, is being formally ended under a new tax law signed this month. Under the new law: New borrowers won't be allowed to join SAVE after July 1, 2026 . Existing enrolees will be required to exit the plan by July 1, 2028 . This phase-out could happen even sooner if federal courts rule against the program in the ongoing lawsuits filed by Republican-led states. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like When Knee Pain Hits, Start Eating These Foods, and Feel Your Pain Go Away (It's Genius) Read More Undo What repayment options will replace SAVE? Two new plans are being introduced to replace SAVE for future borrowers: The Standard Plan will stretch payments across 10 to 25 years, based on how much the borrower owes. Those with lower debt will repay over a shorter period, while high-debt borrowers may have terms extending to 25 years. The Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) will base payments on total income, ranging from 1 to 10 percent. Unlike SAVE, this plan introduces a minimum payment of $10 per month and eliminates the zero-payment option for low-income borrowers. It also offers partial interest waivers and small monthly forgiveness, but full forgiveness will only be granted after 30 years of repayment. What should current SAVE borrowers do? Current borrowers have a few options. They can continue under SAVE for now but should be aware that interest will now grow even if payments are postponed. Borrowers nearing forgiveness thresholds—especially under public service programs—may benefit from switching to a different plan to keep progressing toward cancellation. Alternatives like Income-Based Repayment (IBR), Pay As You Earn (PAYE), and Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) remain open for now. However, after July 2028, only IBR will be available to those who remain in the federal loan system. For public service workers pursuing loan forgiveness Borrowers working in public service or nonprofit sectors and aiming for forgiveness through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program need to ensure they are in a qualifying repayment plan. Months spent in SAVE's forbearance do not currently count toward PSLF. However, the Department of Education is offering a 'buyback' option that allows borrowers to retroactively earn PSLF credit by making a lump-sum payment for those missed months. This option may be particularly relevant for those nearing the 120-payment requirement. What borrowers should do now Borrowers are encouraged to check their loan status on and consider switching to a more stable repayment plan if SAVE no longer aligns with their financial goals. Those who submitted IDR applications between July 2024 and April 2025 may need to resubmit their forms due to technical and legal changes. There is also a backlog of over 1.5 million IDR applications, which may slow down processing times. Being proactive now can help avoid higher interest charges and delays in receiving credit toward loan forgiveness. In summary The return of interest on August 1 marks a turning point for the SAVE plan and its borrowers. With the program's future now limited, understanding available alternatives and acting early can help borrowers manage repayment more effectively and avoid unexpected debt accumulation in the coming years. TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here . Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Why student loan bills are doubling for millions as the SAVE plan ends this August
Millions must switch repayment plans as SAVE student loan relief expires. (AI Image) Millions of federal student loan borrowers across the US are expected to see their monthly repayments double as the Biden-era SAVE (Saving on a Valuable Education) plan comes to an end. The plan, which allowed interest-free forbearance on repayments, is now effectively defunct following recent policy changes announced by the Trump administration. The SAVE plan had enrolled nearly 7.7 million borrowers, according to the US Department of Education. Many of these borrowers are now required to transition to new repayment plans, most of which result in significantly higher monthly bills. The end of the SAVE programme will particularly affect borrowers who are unable to make payments that cover accruing interest, which resumes from August 1, as announced earlier this month. SAVE plan allowed reduced repayments for millions Under the SAVE plan, introduced during President Biden's term, borrowers were allowed to make payments based on just 5% of their discretionary income. This plan was described as 'incredibly generous' by Scott Buchanan, Executive Director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, a trade group for federal loan servicers, as reported by NBC News. While legal challenges to the SAVE plan were underway, the Biden administration placed enrolled borrowers in forbearance, which paused mandatory payments and interest accumulation. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Bangladesh: Dubai Villa Prices Might Be Cheaper Than You Think Villas Dubai | Search Ads Undo However, with the programme now defunct, this interest-free period is set to expire, and borrowers who do not switch to a new plan will begin to see their loan balances grow again. Borrowers advised to switch to income-based repayment plans US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon stated in a press release, as reported by NBC News, that borrowers in the SAVE programme should 'quickly transition to a legally compliant repayment plan — such as the Income-Based Repayment Plan.' According to NBC News, Buchanan explained that the IBR plan is now the most viable option for most former SAVE enrollees. The IBR plan calculates repayments at 10% of a borrower's discretionary income, a substantial increase from the 5% calculation under SAVE. For some borrowers with older loans, the share could rise to 15%. Higher repayment burdens under IBR plans The end of the SAVE plan is likely to impose financial pressure on many borrowers. Nancy Nierman, Assistant Director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program in New York City, told NBC News that many federal student loan borrowers 'simply won't be able to afford the payments under IBR.' Other income-driven repayment plans created by Congress in the 1990s are also expected to be phased out under what President Donald Trump has referred to as his 'big beautiful bill,' as reported by NBC News. These plans typically cap monthly payments at a percentage of discretionary income and cancel remaining debt after 20 or 25 years. TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here . Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!
CNET
5 days ago
- Business
- CNET
SAVE Borrowers Encouraged to Move to IBR Even Though Forgiveness Options Are Paused. Here's What's Going On
Zooey Liao/CNET/Getty Images Millions of SAVE borrowers seeking forgiveness have been encouraged to move their loans to an Income-Based Repayment plan -- especially since their loans will start accruing interest in about a week. But now forgiveness through IBR is paused, at least for the time being. The Federal Student Aid website says student loan forgiveness through IBR is on hold while the Education Department updates its system to recalculate eligible payments. "IBR forgiveness will resume once those updates are completed," said an FAQ section updated July 9. The key question is how the Education Department counts payments made under the Saving on a Valuable Education repayment plan, which was struck down by the courts earlier this year. Borrowers on the IBR can have the payments they made on other income-driven repayment plans (including SAVE, PAYE and ICR) count toward their IBR forgiveness. But one of SAVE's features allowed borrowers to count months in certain types of forbearance when they didn't make payments, according to student loan expert Mark Kantrowitz. "The decision of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals blocks these additional deferments and forbearances from counting toward forgiveness," he said in an email. "So the US Department of Education will need to make changes to the qualifying payment counts." Student loan forgiveness options have dwindled considerably during President Donald Trump's second administration. IBR is currently the only repayment plan available that offers a path to forgiveness to existing borrowers. Eligible student loan borrowers can receive forgiveness after 20 or 25 years' worth of payments on the income-driven student loan repayment plan, depending on when they took out their loan. We'll explain what could happen with IBR, and what you should do if you're waiting for student loan forgiveness. Read more: SAVE Student Loan Borrowers: You Don't Have to Move to IBR by Aug. 1, but You May Want to: Here's How to Decide Is student loan forgiveness going away? Multiple paths to student loan forgiveness have disappeared in the past year. ICR, PAYE and SAVE plans are no longer eligible for forgiveness directly, following the court ruling in February that Congress exceeded its authority by approving them. Since IBR was created under a different rule, it wasn't affected by the court's ruling. Forgiveness through IBR should be safe for now. But it's understandable that borrowers -- deciphering confusing and misleading information as they wait for forgiveness -- may be skeptical of the Education Department's reassurances that IBR forgiveness is coming back. After February's court decision, the application for income-driven repayment plans was removed from the federal student loan site, causing concern among borrowers. But it was made available again a month later with revisions. This could, in theory, be a similar scenario, where the IBR forgiveness will resume at a later date. When will IBR forgiveness come back? Though the Education Department calls it "temporary," there's no indication how long the IBR pause will last. With a backlog of 1.5 million applications for repayment plans and huge swaths of the Department of Education staff wiped out, it's unclear how long it could take to resolve the payment recalculation. The Washington Post reported that several student loan servicers have said the Education Department hasn't asked them to process loan forgiveness for any borrowers since mid-January. "This not only affects the loan servicers, but also the US Department of Education, since final approval of loan forgiveness is handled in-house," Kantrowitz said. The Department of Education didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Are there other options for forgiveness besides IBR? Besides IBR, existing borrowers will have another option next year under the new Republican-backed law passed earlier this month: the Repayment Assistance Plan. The new Repayment Assistance Plan could offer slightly lower monthly payments for some borrowers, but the plan calls for 30 years of qualifying payments before loans are forgiven, compared with the 20 to 25 years under the current IBR. So you'll end up paying more in interest over time. Anyone who takes out student loans after July 2026 will have just two repayment options: RAP and the standard repayment plan. Should I still apply for IBR if I'm a SAVE borrower? Millions of borrowers enrolled in SAVE will start accruing interest on their loans again starting Aug. 1. However, payments remain on hold while your loans are in a general forbearance, which could last until mid-2026. You aren't required to switch plans until then, although interest will pile up during that time. However, if you decide to switch, you can compare other income-driven repayment plan options using the Federal Student Aid loan simulator. You can apply to switch to an IDR on the FSA website to restart payments that count toward forgiveness. If you do apply for a new plan, expect the application to take several months to process due to the backlog, Kantrowitz said. The Department has been encouraging SAVE borrowers to switch to IBR, which could mean an even higher volume of applicants as the Aug. 1 deadline approaches. What should I do if I'm enrolled in an IBR? If you're enrolled in an IBR and near or past the payment threshold to be eligible for loan forgiveness, Kantrowitz advises you to continue making payments until you receive notification that your loans have been forgiven, which should happen automatically. "Any excess payments will be refunded," he said. "They could switch into a general forbearance, but there's a risk that they've counted their qualifying payments incorrectly. It is better to just continue making payments."
The Wire
5 days ago
- Business
- The Wire
STL reports Q1 FY26 results; continued positive momentum in Revenue and Order Book
• YoY growth in Revenue and EBITDA of ~17% and ~94%, respectively • Order intake of INR 1,500 Cr in Q1 FY26 MUMBAI, India, July 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- STL (NSE: STLTECH), a leading optical and digital solutions company, today announced its financial results for the quarter ended 30 June, 2025. For the first quarter of FY26, the Company reported revenues of INR 1,019 Cr and EBITDA of INR 140 Cr, a growth of ~17% YoY and ~94% YoY, respectively. Amidst a dynamic tariff landscape, we remain focused on driving performance and profitability through product innovation and cost leadership. We continue strengthening relationships with our customers and driving sales in our key markets of US, Europe and India. This has been reflected in our strong open order book of INR 4,888 Cr. with order intake of INR 1,529 Cr this quarter alone. In Q1 FY26, Optical Networking Business reported an 18.6% revenue growth and 55.7% EBITDA growth as compared to Q1 FY25. We remained focussed on co-developing optical products for our customers meeting their end-to-end connectivity requirements. The attach rate for Optical Connectivity (OC) segment reached to ~23% for the quarter, following the launch in the US last year. STL achieved ~23% revenue this quarter from Enterprise and Data Centre segment. Recently, STL expanded its Data Centre portfolio to cater to the rising demand of AI-led Data Centres, which includes high-performance fibre and copper cabling solutions. These solutions offer high-capacity and low-latency for scalable, future-ready deployments for end-to-end data centre connectivity. STL Digital - Acquired 4 new customers in Q1, taking the total count to 30 global customers. STL Digital signed multi-million and multi-year contracts with 3 leading private healthcare services providers to provide Digital Marketing services and a multi-million deal with a global communications devices company for network modernisation. Some key highlights for Q1 FY26 Key wins - Signed a 3-year Long-Term Supply Agreement (LTSA) for Intelligently-Bonded Ribbon (IBR) cable with a leading European telecom operator and secured significant order inflow with a key US customer for high fibre count OFC solutions, marking a strong comeback after a year. Partnered with Swoop to upgrade ~1,000 homes in Western Australia with high-speed Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) connectivity. Innovation - STL becomes the first company globally to deploy Multi-Core Fiber (MCF) in both aerial and underground networks. STL, in collaboration with the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), achieved India's first Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) transmission over a 100 km, 4-core MCF network. Recently, STL with IIT Madras, conducted a test with MCF cable on 5 km live testbed. We are now leading global standards in MCF design and testing. Our patent count stands at 740 by the end of Q1 FY26. Recognition and Awards - STL was recognised by TEPC (Bharat Telecom 2025) in the category 'Telecom Products (Hardware & Software) – Large Enterprises' for driving global exports through Make-in-India innovation. Also received the ET Telecom Award for Impactful IoT Solution of the Year - Sensron (Fibre Optic Sensing). Sustainability - We achieved a major milestone in sustainable manufacturing for Maharashtra's first green hydrogen and green oxygen production facility for optical fibre. This will enable STL to become one of the world's first optical fibre manufacturers to deploy 100% green hydrogen in its production processes and support its goal to achieve Net Zero by 2030. "With our trusted global partnerships and continuous product innovation, we are well-positioned for long-term success. The recent expansion of our AI-led Data Centre portfolio and industry-first innovations like multi-core fibre are addressing the growing global demand for high-speed, secure, and scalable connectivity, said Ankit Agarwal, Managing Director, STL. "As we continue to co-create with customers and build next-gen optical networks, we remain committed to powering the digital backbone of tomorrow's world." Financial highlights (INR Cr) Financials** INR Cr Q1 FY26 Q1 FY25 Revenue 1,019 872 EBITDA 140 72 **All financials are from continued operations About STL - Sterlite Technologies Ltd: STL is a leading global optical and digital solutions company providing advanced offerings to build 5G, Rural, FTTx, Enterprise and Data Centre networks. Read more, Contact us, | Twitter | LinkedIn | YouTube (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI This is an auto-published feed from PTI with no editorial input from The Wire.
Business Standard
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
STL reports Q1 FY26 results; continued positive momentum in Revenue and Order Book
PRNewswire Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], July 26: STL (NSE: STLTECH), a leading optical and digital solutions company, today announced its financial results for the quarter ended 30 June, 2025. For the first quarter of FY26, the Company reported revenues of INR 1,019 Cr and EBITDA of INR 140 Cr, a growth of ~17% YoY and ~94% YoY, respectively. * YoY growth in Revenue and EBITDA of ~17% and ~94%, respectively * Order intake of INR 1,500+ Cr in Q1 FY26 Amidst a dynamic tariff landscape, we remain focused on driving performance and profitability through product innovation and cost leadership. We continue strengthening relationships with our customers and driving sales in our key markets of US, Europe and India. This has been reflected in our strong open order book of INR 4,888 Cr. with order intake of INR 1,529 Cr this quarter alone. In Q1 FY26, Optical Networking Business reported an 18.6% revenue growth and 55.7% EBITDA growth as compared to Q1 FY25. We remained focussed on co-developing optical products for our customers meeting their end-to-end connectivity requirements. The attach rate for Optical Connectivity (OC) segment reached to ~23% for the quarter, following the launch in the US last year. STL achieved ~23% revenue this quarter from Enterprise and Data Centre segment. Recently, STL expanded its Data Centre portfolio to cater to the rising demand of AI-led Data Centres, which includes high-performance fibre and copper cabling solutions. These solutions offer high-capacity and low-latency for scalable, future-ready deployments for end-to-end data centre connectivity. STL Digital - Acquired 4 new customers in Q1, taking the total count to 30 global customers. STL Digital signed multi-million and multi-year contracts with 3 leading private healthcare services providers to provide Digital Marketing services and a multi-million deal with a global communications devices company for network modernisation. Some key highlights for Q1 FY26 Key wins - Signed a 3-year Long-Term Supply Agreement (LTSA) for Intelligently-Bonded Ribbon (IBR) cable with a leading European telecom operator and secured significant order inflow with a key US customer for high fibre count OFC solutions, marking a strong comeback after a year. Partnered with Swoop to upgrade ~1,000 homes in Western Australia with high-speed Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) connectivity. Innovation - STL becomes the first company globally to deploy Multi-Core Fiber (MCF) in both aerial and underground networks. STL, in collaboration with the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), achieved India's first Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) transmission over a 100 km, 4-core MCF network. Recently, STL with IIT Madras, conducted a test with MCF cable on 5+ km live testbed. We are now leading global standards in MCF design and testing. Our patent count stands at 740 by the end of Q1 FY26. Recognition and Awards - STL was recognised by TEPC (Bharat Telecom 2025) in the category 'Telecom Products (Hardware & Software) - Large Enterprises' for driving global exports through Make-in-India innovation. Also received the ET Telecom Award for Impactful IoT Solution of the Year - Sensron (Fibre Optic Sensing). Sustainability - We achieved a major milestone in sustainable manufacturing for Maharashtra's first green hydrogen and green oxygen production facility for optical fibre. This will enable STL to become one of the world's first optical fibre manufacturers to deploy 100% green hydrogen in its production processes and support its goal to achieve Net Zero by 2030. "With our trusted global partnerships and continuous product innovation, we are well-positioned for long-term success. The recent expansion of our AI-led Data Centre portfolio and industry-first innovations like multi-core fibre are addressing the growing global demand for high-speed, secure, and scalable connectivity, said Ankit Agarwal, Managing Director, STL. "As we continue to co-create with customers and build next-gen optical networks, we remain committed to powering the digital backbone of tomorrow's world."
