Income-Driven Repayment Plans in 2026: Which Ones Still Exist

By Student Relief Solutions Editorial — Reviewed by Marcus Whitfield

Four income-driven repayment plans existed for federal student loan borrowers entering 2025. By mid-2026, only two are open to most borrowers — and a third launches July 1, 2026. Here is a current-state guide to what exists, what was eliminated, and which plan fits which borrower.

The short version

SAVE (Saving on a Valuable Education) was eliminated by federal court rulings in 2025. Borrowers who were enrolled in SAVE were placed in administrative forbearance — that forbearance is not a repayment plan and does not count toward IDR forgiveness. The active IDR options for most borrowers as of mid-2026 are Income-Based Repayment (IBR) and, for qualifying borrowers, PAYE (which sunsets in 2028). A new plan — the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) — launches July 1, 2026 with a different payment formula. ICR remains available in a narrow context for Parent PLUS borrowers.

SAVE: eliminated

SAVE was the Department of Education's flagship IDR plan since 2023. It offered the lowest monthly payments of any IDR plan for most borrowers — 5% of discretionary income for undergraduate loan debt, with discretionary income defined as income above 225% of the federal poverty line (more generous than IBR's 150% threshold).

SAVE was challenged in federal court on the grounds that the Department lacked authority to create the plan. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the Department in 2025, and SAVE was vacated. Roughly 8 million borrowers who had enrolled in SAVE were placed in administrative forbearance.

If you were in SAVE forbearance: You are not on a qualifying repayment plan. You should enroll in IBR or wait for RAP on July 1, 2026. Administrative forbearance months do not automatically count toward IDR forgiveness or PSLF. Confirm with your servicer whether any months have been credited.

IBR: Income-Based Repayment (currently open to all eligible borrowers)

IBR is the most broadly available income-driven repayment option in 2026. Per studentaid.gov, IBR has two tracks depending on when you first borrowed federal loans:

New IBR (borrowed on or after July 1, 2014)

• Monthly payment: 10% of discretionary income (income above 150% of the federal poverty guideline for your family size)
• Forgiveness timeline: 20 years of qualifying payments
• Cap: Payment cannot exceed the standard 10-year plan amount
• PSLF eligible: Yes

Old IBR (borrowed before July 1, 2014)

• Monthly payment: 15% of discretionary income (income above 150% of the federal poverty guideline)
• Forgiveness timeline: 25 years
• Cap: Payment cannot exceed the standard 10-year plan amount
• PSLF eligible: Yes

Sample payment (New IBR): A single borrower earning $50,000 per year in 2026. The HHS federal poverty guideline for a family of one is $15,060 (2026 per HHS). 150% of that is $22,590. Discretionary income: $50,000 minus $22,590 = $27,410. Monthly New IBR payment: 10% of $27,410 divided by 12 = approximately $228/month.

Eligibility: Direct Loans and FFEL Loans (FFEL must be consolidated into a Direct Loan first). Must have federal loans from an eligible program and demonstrate a partial financial hardship for Old IBR, though the financial hardship requirement has effectively been loosened for New IBR in 2026. Confirm current eligibility at studentaid.gov/idr.

RAP: Repayment Assistance Plan (launches July 1, 2026)

RAP is the new federal IDR-style plan created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 and finalized in the Federal Register in May 2026. It is the most significant structural change to federal loan repayment since SAVE.

Key mechanics per the final regulations:

• Payment formula: Tiered percentage of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) across 11 income brackets, ranging from 1% to 10% of AGI. Lower-income borrowers pay a smaller percentage; higher-income borrowers pay a higher percentage.
• No $0 payments: Every enrolled borrower pays at least 1% of AGI per year (divided monthly). This is a structural difference from IBR and SAVE, which allowed $0 payments for very low-income borrowers.
• Borrower eligibility: RAP is designed as the primary IDR plan for new borrowers taking loans on or after July 1, 2026. Existing borrowers may also enroll — check studentaid.gov for confirmed eligibility rules as they are finalized.
• Forgiveness: Forgiveness provisions exist under RAP but the exact timeline and taxability were still being finalized as of the May 2026 Federal Register publication. Verify at studentaid.gov before relying on forgiveness projections.

For a full breakdown including comparison tables, see our RAP explainer.

PAYE: Pay As You Earn (sunsetting July 1, 2028)

PAYE remains open to borrowers who already qualified for it, but is scheduled to close to new enrollees on July 1, 2028, per Department of Education regulations. PAYE offers:

• Payment: 10% of discretionary income (income above 150% of the federal poverty guideline)
• Forgiveness: 20 years of qualifying payments
• Payment cap: Does not exceed the standard 10-year plan amount
• PSLF eligible: Yes
• Eligibility requirement: Must have no outstanding Direct Loan balance before October 1, 2007 AND have received a Direct Loan disbursement on or after October 1, 2011 (per studentaid.gov)

If you are currently on PAYE, the question is not "should I panic" but rather "should I stay or switch to IBR before 2028." The answer depends on your income trajectory, current balance, and whether you are pursuing PSLF. See our PAYE sunset decision guide for the full analysis.

ICR: Income-Contingent Repayment (limited availability)

ICR is not broadly available to most borrowers in 2026. It remains accessible primarily to Parent PLUS borrowers who consolidate their loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan. The consolidation deadline for Parent PLUS borrowers to access ICR (and through ICR, IBR) is July 1, 2026. After that date, new Parent PLUS loans will have no IDR access.

ICR payment is 20% of discretionary income or a fixed 12-year payment divided by repayment period, whichever is less. Forgiveness after 25 years. See our Parent PLUS IDR deadline guide.

Comparing the plans side by side

Sources: studentaid.gov IDR plans; Federal Register final rule (May 2026). Verify RAP details at studentaid.gov before enrollment.

Who should be on which plan

Most post-SAVE borrowers who need payment relief: IBR. It is open, it qualifies for PSLF, and the payment formula is well-established. If your IDR payment under IBR is still more than you can manage, contact your servicer about deferment or forbearance while you assess your situation.

Borrowers on SAVE forbearance who are pursuing PSLF: Enroll in IBR as soon as possible. PSLF requires payments made under a qualifying IDR plan. Administrative forbearance months are not currently counting toward PSLF (confirm this with your servicer — the rules around forbearance credit are subject to pending guidance).

Borrowers who want to evaluate RAP: Wait until July 1, 2026 and monitor studentaid.gov for enrollment details. If your income is very low, the 1% minimum AGI payment under RAP may actually be higher than a $0 IBR payment. Compare plans using the Loan Simulator.

Borrowers considering switching from PAYE to IBR before 2028: Run the numbers. If PAYE gives you a lower payment than IBR for your income level and you have years left in your forgiveness window, there may be no reason to switch yet. See the full analysis.

What you lose on any IDR plan (honest trade-offs)

• Total interest paid is higher on IDR versus the standard 10-year plan if you don't receive forgiveness. Lower payments = more interest-accrual months.
• Non-PSLF forgiveness is federally taxable as ordinary income in the forgiveness year (IRS Publication 4681). State tax treatment varies — some states exempt forgiven debt from state income tax.
• Annual recertification required. Missing your deadline causes interest capitalization (accrued interest added to principal) and a jump to standard payment amounts. Mark your recertification date and set a 90-day reminder.
• Income changes affect payments. Significant income growth can raise your IDR payment to the standard plan level, eliminating the payment benefit.

How to enroll

Apply at studentaid.gov/idr. You need your FSA ID and most recent tax return or alternative income documentation (if income changed since your last filing). Processing time is typically 2 to 6 weeks with most servicers. Confirm enrollment and your first payment amount directly with your servicer after submission.

Common mistakes

• Treating SAVE forbearance as an active repayment plan or assuming forbearance months count toward IDR forgiveness. Confirm this with your servicer explicitly.
• Reading IDR guides written before 2026 that still list SAVE as an option. Any guide that does this is out of date.
• Enrolling in an IDR plan without running the Loan Simulator first. If your income is high enough that the IDR payment equals the standard payment, IDR provides no payment benefit (only the cost of annual recertification overhead).
• Refinancing federal loans to private loans as a reaction to SAVE elimination. Refinancing permanently removes all IDR access, all PSLF eligibility, and all federal discharge rights. This is irreversible. See our refinance decision guide.

Related guides

• Federal Student Loan Repayment Options: A Complete 2026 Guide
• The Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP): What Borrowers Need to Know for July 2026
• SAVE Plan Eliminated: What Borrowers Must Do Before July 2026
• PAYE Plan 2026: Should You Stay or Switch Before the 2028 Sunset?
• Income-Based Repayment (IBR): The Plan That's Still Open to Everyone
• Parent PLUS Loan IDR Deadline: Consolidate Before July 1, 2026 or Lose Access

This article was generated by AI under editorial supervision. All program rules and figures are sourced from primary government documents (studentaid.gov, CFPB, ED.gov). This is information, not financial advice — talk to a fiduciary or your servicer about your specific situation.