Student Loan Forgiveness in New York

New York is one of the best states to live in, not only because it has many site-seeing opportunities such as the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State Building, but also because it offers several types of powerful student loan forgiveness programs designed to help residents who are buried in college loan debt.

Anyone who lives in the Empire State and who is struggling with their loans should listen up, because New York’s state-sponsored student loan forgiveness benefits are some of the best in the entire country, offering great rewards to those people who qualify for the programs.

To receive student loan forgiveness in New York State, look over the available forgiveness programs below and pay close attention to the Eligibility Rules and Application Procedures to figure out which programs you may be able to access.



Get Help With Your Loans!

If you're truly struggling with student loan debt, then you should consider paying a Student Loan Debt Relief Agency for help. Why? Because the people working at these companies deal with student loans all day, every day, and they're your best chance at figuring out how to get your loans back under control.

For help with Federal Student Loans call the Student Loan Relief Helpline at 1-888-906-3065. They will review your case, evaluate your options for switching repayment plans, consolidating your loans, or pursuing forgiveness benefits, then set you up to get rid of the debt as quickly as possible.

For help with Private Student Loans call McCarthy Law PLC at 1-877-317-0455. McCarthy Law will negotiate with your lender to settle your private loans for much less than you currently owe (typically 40%), then get you a new loan for the lower, settled amount so you can pay off the old loan, repair your credit and reduce your monthly payments.

I've spent 10 years interviewing debt relief agencies, talking to all sorts of "experts", and these are the only two companies that I trust to help my readers. If you have a bad experience with either of them, please make sure to come back and let me know about it in the Comments!


The District Attorney and Indigent Legal Services Attorney Loan Forgiveness Program

Program Overview

The District Attorney and Indigent Legal Services Attorney Loan Forgiveness Program awards a maximum pf $20,400 or eligible student loan debt, whichever is less. It awards $3,400 each year of qualified service or remaining loan indebtedness.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be legal residents of New York State
  • You must be a U.S. citizen or an eligible non-citizen
  • You must be employed as a District Attorney, Assistant District Attorney, or Indigent Legal Services Attorney in New York State for at least four years, but no more than nine years
  • You must have an outstanding balance on an eligible student loan debt
  • You must have a year of qualified service
  • You must not be in default on a student loan made under any NYS or federal education loan program or repayment of any NYS award
  • You must be in compliance with the terms of any service condition imposed by a NYS award.

How to Apply


NYS Licensed Social Worker Loan Forgiveness Program

Program Overview

The NYS Licensed Social Worker Loan Forgiveness Program offers up to $26,000 in student loan forgiveness benefits.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be legal residents of New York State for at least one year
  • You must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens
  • You must be social workers professionally licensed to practice in New York State
  • You must have an outstanding balance on an eligible student loan debt
  • You must have a year of qualified service
  • You must not be in default on a student loan made under any NYS or federal education loan program or repayment of any NYS award
  • You must be in compliance with the terms of any service condition imposed by a NYS award.

How to Apply


Nursing Faculty Loan Forgiveness Incentive Program

Program Overview

The Nursing Faculty Loan Forgiveness Incentive Program offers up to $40,000 in student loan forgiveness benefits, awarded annually to licensed, registered nurses who hold graduate degrees and teach in the field.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be legal residents of New York State for at least one year
  • You must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens
  • You must be registered nurses professionally licensed to practice in New York State
  • You must possess a master’s degree in nursing or a doctoral degree qualifying them as nursing faculty or as adjunct clinical faculty
  • You must have prior clinical experience as a licensed registered nurse
  • You must have an outstanding balance on an eligible student loan debt
  • You must have a year of qualified service
  • You must not be in default on a student loan made under any NYS or federal education loan program or repayment of any NYS award
  • You must be in compliance with the terms of any service condition imposed by a NYS award

How to Apply


New York State Young Farmers Loan Forgiveness Incentive Program

Program Overview

The New York State Young Farmers Loan Forgiveness Incentive Program offers student loan forgiveness benefits of up to $50,000. The program provides the awards to individuals who have obtained an undergraduate degree from an approved New York State college or university, who also agrees to operate a farm in New York State full-time for at least 5 years.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be legal residents of New York State
  • You must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens
  • You must obtain an undergraduate degree from an approved NYS college or university
  • You must have an outstanding balance on an eligible student loan debt(s)
  • You must apply for this Program within two years after graduation
  • You must operate a farm in NYS on a full time basis
  • You must execute a service contract agreeing to operate a farm in New York State on a full time basis for at least five years
  • You must not be in default on a student loan made under any NYS or federal education loan program or repayment of any NYS award
  • You must be in compliance with the terms of any service condition imposed by a NYS award

How to Apply



Regents Physician Loan Forgiveness Award Program

Program Overview

The Regents Physician Loan Forgiveness Award Program offers up to $10,000 in student loan debt per year for up to 2 years. This program was designed to encourage physicians to work in areas of New York State that have a shortage of medical personnel.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be licensed to practice medicine in New York State
  • You must have completed a professional residency program within the five years immediately preceding the period for which the first award would be granted or will complete training in 2018 in an accredited residency program in family practice, pediatrics, internal medicine, emergency medicine or obstetrics. Psychiatry is also considered primary care in certain State facilities
  • You must be residents of New York State
  • You must also be US citizens, legal residents, or legal refugees

How to Apply



Albany Law School Loan Repayment Assistance Program

Program Overview

The Albany Law School Loan Repayment Assistance Program offers student loan forgiveness benefits of up to $10,000 per year, for 3 years. This program was designed to help alleviate any financial burden of student loans for people pursuing careers in public interest law.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must have graduated from Albany Law School on or after May 2012
  • You must have secured full-time employment (at least 35 hours per week) in a qualified
  • You must have public interest law-related position
  • You must have countable assets which are both less than the unpaid balance of the
  • You must have law school educational loans and less than $10,000 after the allowable asset deduction
  • You must have total projected annual adjusted gross income
  • You must have a principal law school loan balance of at least $50,000
  • You must only be a graduates whose yearly loan repayments exceed 10% of their adjusted annual gross income minus deductions shall qualify
  • You must have exhausted other means of assistance
  • You must not be in default on any educational loans

How to Apply


Physician Loan Repayment – Qualified Educational Loan Repayment

Program Overview

The Physician Loan Repayment Program provides up to $150,000 in funding over a five-year period to physicians who agree to commit to an obligated 5 year service in “undeserved” regions of the New York State.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien holding an I-155 or I-551 card
  • You must be licensed to practice in New York State by the time the service obligation begins
  • You must not currently working in, or serving, an underserved area in New York State where the current service to the underserved area began prior to July 1, 2010
  • You must not fulfilling an obligation under any state or federal loan repayment program where the obligation periods of the state or federal loan repayment program would overlap or coincide with the DANY obligation period, including any current DANY obligation
  • You must not a past recipient of DANY Physician Practice Support or Physician Loan Repayment funding
  • You must be in good standing with the Department’s Office of Professional Medical Conduct
  • You must not in the employ of a federally-operated facility

How to Apply


New York City Loan Forgiveness Program

Program Overview

The New York City Loan Forgiveness Program will grant a reimbursement of $4,000 or 1/6th of the outstanding loans in the semester, after one year of satisfactory service.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must be in possession of an appropriate New York State initial or provisional certificate corresponding to one of the above shortage areas
  • You must be bilingual areas require possession of a bilingual extension to the certificate. If the applicant has not yet received the actual certificate or extension, an official letter from the college/university indicating that they have satisfactorily completed a state approved education program
  • You must have proof of U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Residence
  • You must complete 6 years of service in NYC public school inside an assigned area of shortage

How to Apply



Steven C. Krane Loan Assistance for the Public Interest Program

Program Overview

The Steven C. Krane Loan Assistance for the Public Interest Program offers student loan forgiveness at up to $4,000 in annual repayment benefits.

Eligibility Rules

  • You must have earned a J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school, be admitted to the New York State bar, practicing public interest or government law for at least five (5) years and be a member in good standing
  • You must be employed at least 35 hours per week at a qualified work site
  • You must have qualifying loans
  • You must meet income guidelines

How to Apply


Will I Owe Taxes On My Forgiven Debt?

There is a strong possibility that you will be taxed on any forgiven debt, unless your loan or the loan forgiveness program that you qualify for contains a provision that says you won’t need to count the forgiveness as taxable income.

According to the IRS rules, any debt forgiveness you receive must be counted as taxable income on your IRS return, so if you got $20,000 in student loans forgiven this year, you’d need to add that $20,000 to your income when filing taxes, and pay taxes on that amount.

This could create a huge problem for anyone who was already struggling making their smaller monthly payments against their student loans, but who are now faced with a large, lump-sum payment due to the IRS.

Because of the danger here, I’ve created an entirely new website designed to help people out with tax-related problems, called Forget Tax Debt. On this site, I provide tax and taxes-related advice, covering topics like Settling Tax Debt with the IRS, Choosing an IRS Tax Resolution Service, and Avoiding IRS Phone Call Scams.

If you find yourself having trouble with the IRS, please visit www.forgettaxdebt.com.



Where Can I Go For Other Questions?

If you have any other questions or concerns about finding effective student loan relief, make sure to check out the other pages of my website, where I cover both Federal and Private student loan assistance programs in detail.

If you need Federal Student Loan Relief, look at my pages on Federal Loan Forgiveness, The Borrower’s Defense Against Repayment Program, the Closed School Discharge Program, Federal Student Loan Bankruptcy Discharges, Federal Consolidation Programs and Federal Student Loan Repayment Plans.

If you need Private Student Loan Relief, be sure to visit my pages about Private Loan Forgiveness, Private Loan Consolidation, Private Student Loan Bankruptcy Discharges and Private Student Loan Default Help.

If you run into any other questions about NY student loan forgiveness benefits, forgiveness, or cancellation programs, leave a comment in the section below and I’ll get you a response as soon as possible.


Disclaimer:Information obtained from Forget Student Loan Debt is for educational purposes only. You should consult a licensed financial professional before making any financial decisions. This site receives some compensation through affiliate relationships. This site is not endorsed or affiliated with the U.S. Department of Education.

By: 

Tim's experience struggling with crushing student loan debt led him to create the website Forget Student Loan Debt in 2011, where he offers advice, tips and tricks for paying off student loans as quickly and affordably as possible.