New Mexico Student Loan Forgiveness Programs

New Mexico offers 12 student loan repayment assistance and loan-for-service programs, all through the Higher Education Department. Physicians get the most help, with up to $300,000 under the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program after a 2026 law quadrupled the total, and teachers, public interest lawyers, child welfare workers, professors, and food animal vets each have a program too. If your job isn't on the list below, start with federal forgiveness programs.

Health Professional Loan Repayment Program (HPLRP)

House Bill 66 raised the physician award to $75,000 a year over a four-year commitment, up to $300,000, and directs half of the program's $25 million annual appropriation to licensed physicians (Office of the Governor). Before the change, physicians got the same $25,000 a year over three years as everyone else (Source NM). That puts New Mexico near the top of the state programs in our breakdown of student loan forgiveness for doctors.

More than 25 other licensed health professions remain eligible for up to $25,000 a year for three years in a health professional shortage area, including nurses, dentists, counselors, social workers, pharmacists, physician assistants, EMS providers, and therapists (NM HED). Nurses and allied health workers can compare this with federal Nurse Corps in our roundup of student loan forgiveness for nurses.

Teacher Loan Repayment Program (TLRP)

TLRP pays up to $6,000 a year toward federal student loans for licensed teachers who have taught in New Mexico for at least three years (NM HED). Priority fields are bilingual, early childhood, special education, STEM, and career technical education, plus teaching in low-performing schools where at least 40% of students are economically disadvantaged (NM HED). Teachers can use it alongside the federal programs in our teacher forgiveness breakdown.

Public Service Law Loan Repayment Program

This program pays up to $7,200 a year toward law school loans for attorneys at civil legal aid nonprofits serving low-income New Mexicans, the Public Defender Department, or a District Attorney's office (NM HED). Applicants must first apply to any loan repayment program their law school offers, and HED ranks applicants by income. The same jobs qualify for PSLF, so run both at once.

CYFD Worker Loan Repayment Program

Protective Services and Juvenile Justice workers at the Children, Youth and Families Department who have finished two years of service can get help with federal and private education loans, with awards set by each applicant's debt (NM HED). A 2025 Legislative Finance Committee staff brief put the FY2025 maximum at $6,800 for workers with five or more years of service (LFC). Child welfare workers can also look at our list of nonprofit and public service forgiveness options.

Minority Doctoral Loan Repayment Program

New tenure-track faculty at New Mexico public colleges can receive up to $25,000 a year if they hold a doctorate in engineering, the physical or life sciences, math, or another field where their group is underrepresented (NM HED). Recipients teach one year for each year of awards or repay HED with interest. Faculty should also track PSLF, covered in our graduate school forgiveness breakdown.

Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program

Senate Bill 8, signed in 2025, created this program to pay up to $80,000 to veterinarians who commit at least four years to food animal practice in underserved areas (NM HED). Awards run up to $15,000 in each of the first two years and up to $25,000 in years three and four (NM HED). Vets carrying private loans should also check our list of private student loan forgiveness options.

Medical Loan-For-Service

New Mexico residents accepted to a New Mexico medical school can borrow up to $25,000 a year, renewable for up to four years, and have the loan forgiven by practicing in a designated shortage area (NM HED). Compare the terms with a standard medical school student loan before signing.

Nursing Loan-For-Service

Nursing students at New Mexico public colleges can borrow up to $16,000 a year, renewable for up to four years, and have 100% of the loan forgiven after completing their service agreement in a shortage area (NM HED). Nurses who already have loans should look at HPLRP or our nursing forgiveness roundup.

Allied Health Loan-For-Service

This program lends up to $16,000 a year to students in physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, audiology, pharmacy, respiratory care, lab technology, mental health and social services, emergency medical services, nutrition, and dental hygiene (NM HED). Graduates in these fields can later qualify for HPLRP, and our list of trade school loan forgiveness options covers certificate programs.

Nurse Educator Loan-For-Service

Nurses working toward a teaching role can borrow up to $7,500 a year if they're employed, or plan to be employed, as full-time nurse educators at an eligible New Mexico institution (NM HED). Nursing faculty at public colleges also work for PSLF-qualifying employers, which our graduate school forgiveness breakdown covers.

WICHE Loan-For-Service

Dentistry, veterinary medicine, optometry, and podiatry programs aren't offered at New Mexico public universities, so HED pays the WICHE support fee for New Mexico students at participating out-of-state programs, renewable for up to four years (NM HED). The loan is forgiven through practice in New Mexico, and dentists and vets comparing costs can use our student loan calculator.

Community Governance Attorney Program

Final-year University of New Mexico law students can receive up to the full cost of attendance, and the loan is forgiven after two years working for small political subdivisions, colonias, unincorporated communities, state agencies, or nonprofits serving low-income New Mexicans (NM HED). One year of service earns partial forgiveness, and these employers also count for PSLF.

New Mexico computes its income tax from federal adjusted gross income (NM Taxation and Revenue Department), and it automatically updates with changes in federal law (The College Investor). PSLF, Teacher Loan Forgiveness, and death and disability discharges stay tax-free at both levels.

Forgiveness under income-driven plans became federally taxable again on January 1, 2026, when the American Rescue Plan exclusion expired, and New Mexico follows that treatment (Taxes And Student Loan Forgiveness). Borrowers expecting IBR or RAP forgiveness can estimate the bill with our student loan tax bomb calculator.

Ask HED whether your New Mexico award will be reported as income, and read our explainer on the 1099-C and student loan forgiveness before filing.

Does New Mexico Have A Student Loan Forgiveness Program?

New Mexico offers student loan repayment assistance programs rather than broad loan forgiveness. HED runs six loan repayment programs and six loan-for-service programs for health care workers, teachers, lawyers, child welfare workers, professors, and vets. Borrowers outside those fields rely on federal programs like PSLF and income-driven plan forgiveness.

How Much Can New Mexico Doctors Get Toward Student Loans?

Physicians can now receive $75,000 a year for four years, up to $300,000, through HPLRP after House Bill 66 took effect (Office of the Governor). Medical students can add the Medical Loan-For-Service, and our breakdown of student loan forgiveness for doctors covers federal options.

How Much Can New Mexico Teachers Get Toward Their Student Loans?

TLRP pays up to $6,000 a year for two-year contracts, and federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness adds up to $17,500 for five years at a low-income school (StudentAid.gov). Public school teachers can also pursue PSLF, but years used for Teacher Loan Forgiveness can't also count toward PSLF.

Is Student Loan Forgiveness Taxable In New Mexico?

New Mexico follows federal treatment, so PSLF and Teacher Loan Forgiveness are tax-free while income-driven plan forgiveness granted after 2025 is taxable (The College Investor). Use our tax bomb calculator to estimate what you'd owe.