Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans are student loan repayment plans that set your monthly payment based on how much money you earn and the size of your family. If you stay on an IDR plan long enough, any remaining balance on your loans can be forgiven.
The basics
- Your payment is a percentage of your discretionary income — not your full income.
- When your income is low, your payment is low. For some borrowers it can even be $0 a month, and that $0 still counts as a qualifying payment.
- You re-certify your income once a year, so your payment tracks your real situation.
The forgiveness part
After a set number of qualifying payments — typically 20 to 25 years depending on the plan and loan type — the government forgives whatever balance is left. On some plans, smaller original balances can reach forgiveness sooner.
Why it matters
IDR is the safety net that keeps payments tied to what you can actually afford, and it’s the path to forgiveness for borrowers who don’t work in public service. Even if you never reach forgiveness, it can keep you out of default during tight years.
Use the Loan Simulator at studentaid.gov to compare IDR plans and see your estimated payment and forgiveness timeline.