Key Points
- The U.S. Department of Education reports 734,221 income-driven repayment (IDR) applications pending as of December 31, down sharply from November.
- Loan forgiveness resumed in December, but only under the older Income-Based Repayment plan; other plans remain paused until at least February.
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Buyback backlogs grew again, with more than 83,000 applications waiting and processing far slower than new demand.
The Education Department’s latest court-ordered status update shows some progress on one front of the student loan system — and continued delays on another.
In a court filing submitted January 14 (PDF File), the department detailed activity from December 1 through December 31, 2025, offering the clearest picture yet of how repayment and forgiveness systems are functioning after months of disruption tied to litigation and a government shutdown.
The report was filed in federal court as part of a lawsuit brought by the American Federation of Teachers, which alleges widespread delays in student loan processing.
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Repayment Plan Processing Shows Improvement
During December, the Department and its loan servicers decided 277,131 IDR applications — more than the 245,441 decided during the last period. That helped drive the pending IDR backlog down to 734,221 as of December 31.
That figure represents an improvement from November, when 802,730 applications were pending, and a dramatic reduction from August 2025, when the backlog exceeded 1 million.
Approval rates remained high. Of the December decisions, 242,655 applications were approved and 34,476 were denied, an approval rate of about 88%.
For borrowers waiting to switch repayment plans, the data suggests servicers are finally processing more cases than they are receiving. Comments on our videos and social media continually highlight about a 3-7 day processing time on average.
PSLF Buyback Processing Delays Got Worse
While IDR processing improved, the outlook for PSLF Buyback got worse.
As of December 31, 83,370 PSLF Buyback applications were pending, up from 80,210 at the end of November and 74,510 in August.
During December, the department received 5,090 new Buyback requests but decided only 1,930.
Of those decisions, 1,690 were approved, 190 denied, and 50 closed due to missing information. The department cautioned that Buyback approval figures are fluid, because applications can be closed and later reopened, and the database reflects only current status.
It's important to note that at this processing rate, it would take 43 months to clear the backlog - or 3.5 years.
This is a reminder to really assess if PSLF buyback is worth pursuing.
What This Means For Borrowers
For borrowers applying for IDR plans, December’s report offers cautious reassurance. Processing capacity appears to be improving, and backlogs are moving in the right direction. This is especially important as 7 million borrowers work to leave the SAVE plan in the coming months.
For public service workers considering PSLF Buyback, the numbers raise harder questions. With more than 83,000 applications pending and fewer than 2,000 decided in December, Buyback is moving slowly - very slowly.
What Comes Next
The Department said it expects technical updates in February that would allow broader IDR forgiveness (for PAYE and ICR) to resume. SAVE is also ending, but the timeline remains uncertain.
For now, the December data shows progress on IDR repayment plan processing, but backsteps on PSLF buyback processing.
The end result is there are still millions of borrowers in limbo during this time of massive change.
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Editor: Colin Graves
Robert Farrington is the founder of The College Investor and is widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading voices on student loan debt and saving for college. He holds an MBA from UC San Diego Rady School of Management and has spent over 15 years researching, writing, and advising on student loans, 529 plans, financial aid programs, and saving and investing for young professionals.
Robert has been featured in the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NBC News, and Forbes, where he has been a regular personal finance contributor for over a decade. His work combines both professional expertise and personal experience – he successfully navigated his own student loan repayment journey and has helped thousands of readers do the same.
He is committed to making the intersection of personal finance and education transparent and accessible. You can learn more about Robert on the About Page or on his personal site RobertFarrington.com.