Perkins Loan - Cancellations
A borrower may have all or part of his or her loan (including interest) canceled for engaging in certain qualifying public service or military service.
100% cancellation is granted in the case of the borrower's death. It may also be granted in the event of a borrowers Total and Permanent Disability. Regulatory changes added classification of Total and Permanent Disability based the VA in 2008.
The following cancellations may be available to borrowers
whose NDSL/Perkins loans were obtained while attending UMass Amherst or UMass Boston. Click on a
specific cancellation type to review the eligibility
requirements.
- Head Start
- Special Education Teaching
- Teaching in a shortage area
- Teaching in a low-income school
- Nurse/Medical Technician
- Child or Family Services
- Early Intervention
- Pre-K Service Provider
- Law Enforcement/Corrections Officer
- Military Service
- Volunteer Service
- 9/11 Survivors
- Firefighter
- Public Defender
- Librarian
- Tribal College/University Faculty
- Speech Pathologist
- Death
- Total and Permanent Disability
- VA approved Total/Permanent Disability
Click here for Cancellation form
CANCELLATION RATE:
As of August 14, 2008 and with the exception of cancellations for Head Start and volunteer services, the cancellation rate for each year of qualifying full-time service is:
- 15% of the original principal loan amount plus accrued interest for the first and second years of service.
- 20% of the original principal loan amount plus accrued interest for the third and fourth years of service.
- 30% of the original principal loan amount plus accrued interest for the fifth year of service.
A "year of qualifying full-time service" consists of 12 consecutive months with the exception for teaching service which consists of full-time service for a full academic year or its equivalent.
Although cancellation provisions vary based on when a loan was disbursed, the following procedures apply to all cancellations:
- Requests for cancellation must be completed annually on the appropriate cancellation form.
- No portion of the loan may be canceled for services performed before the loan was disbursed or during the enrollment period covered by the loan.
- No repayment made during a period for which a borrower qualified for cancellation may be refunded. Therefore, it is the borrower's responsibility to file forms in a timely manner.
Please note regulatory changes effective August 14, 2008, extend certain cancellations ( Firefighter, Public Defender, Librarian, Tribal College/University Faculty, Pre-K provider, Speech Pathologist) to borrowers who have performed qualified service for any 12 month period including August 14, 2008 or after. These cancellations are effective for service performed after August 14, 2008 and cannot be granted for periods of service prior to that date.
FEDERAL PERKINS STUDENT LOAN CANCELLATION BENEFITS
A borrower may be eligible to cancel all or a portion of their loan for teaching services as follows:
- A full-time teacher in a public or nonprofit elementary or secondary school serving students from low-income families.
- A full-time teacher of handicapped students in a public or nonprofit elementary or secondary school. The majority of children being taught must handicapped.
- A full-time special education teacher, including teachers of infants, toddlers, children or youth with disabilities in a public or nonprofit elementary or secondary school system.
- A full-time teacher in a public or other non-profit elementary or secondary school in the fields of mathematics, science, foreign languages, bilingual education or in any other field of expertise that is determined by a state education agency to have a shortage of qualified teachers in that state. Click here to bring up a listing of teacher shortage areas based on individual states.
An eligible teacher is defined as someone with:
- direct classroom teaching
- classroom type teaching in a non-classroom setting
- educational services directly related to classroom teaching
(school librarians and school guidance counselors are eligible under this category)
Eligibility - NDSL/ Perkins loans made on or after July 1,
1972
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
HEAD START:
A borrower may qualify for a cancellation for service as a
full-time staff member in the educational part of a preschool
program carried out under the Head Start Act.
Eligibility - NDSL/Perkins loans made on or after July 1, 1972
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100% at a rate of 15% of the
original principal loan amount plus accrued interest for each
year of service
NURSE/MEDICAL TECHNICIAN:
A full-time nurse or medical technician providing health
care services.
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES:
A full-time qualified professional provider of early
intervention services in a public or other nonprofit program
under public supervision.
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
CHILD OR FAMILY SERVICES:
A full-time employee of an eligible public or private
nonprofit child or family service agency who is providing or
supervising services to both high-risk
children who are from low-income communities and the
families of such children, exclusively. The children must be the primary
recipients of the services.
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
LAW ENFORCEMENT:
A borrower may be entitled to receive cancellation benefits
for full-time service as a qualifying law enforcement or
corrections officer. Borrowers serving as
campus police or military police qualify for this benefit as well.
Eligibility - Perkins loans made on or after November 29, 1990
or NDSL loans made before November 29, 1990 for service
performed beginning October 7, 1998
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
MILITARY SERVICE:
A borrower may cancel a portion of their loan for service in
the U.S. Armed Forces in an area of hostilities or in an area
of imminent danger that qualifies for special pay under
Section 310 of Title 37 of the U.S. Code.
Effective August 14, 2008, The HEOA removes the 50% limitation on military service cancellations. Borrowers may now receive military service cancellation for service in an area of hostilities of up to 100% percent of the loan.
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
VOLUNTEER SERVICE:
A borrower may cancel a portion of their loan for volunteer
service under the Peace Corps or Vista Service. However, Americorp recipients cannot cancel a portion of their loan if they have received a national service education award for the same period of service (Subtitle D of Title I of the National and Community Service Act of 1990).
Eligibility - Perkins loans made on or after July 1, 1987 or NDSL loans made before July 1, 1987 for service performed beginning October 7, 1998
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 70% of the loan at the
following increments:
15% of the original principal loan amount plus accrued
interest for the first and second years of service.
20% of the original principal loan amount plus accrued
interest for the third and fourth years of service.
TOTAL/PERMANENT DISABILITY:
A loan will be granted a conditional cancellation by the
Department of Education upon the lending institution's
approval of the disability request for a borrower who became
permanently and totally disabled after receiving the loan. A
determination of permanent and total disability must be based
on medical evidence certified by a physician (medical doctor
or doctor of osteopathy). If a loan is granted a final
discharge based on permanent and total disability, the
borrower can not be required to repay the loan, even if the
borrower's medical condition improves to the point of no
longer being disabled, unless the school can prove that the
claim of disability was fraudulent. The beginning date of the
3 year conditional discharge will be the date the physician
certifies the request form. At the end of 3 years, the
Department of Education will review the case and make a
determination for final discharge or repayment status.
For detailed information regarding TPD, please review the
Department of Education’s web site at: http://disabilitydischarge.ed.gov
Eligibility - Perkins, and Federal Perkins loans
Maximum Amount Canceled - 100%
Click here for Disability Discharge form
DEATH:
A loan will be canceled in full upon receipt of proof of the
borrower's death. Proof must be in the form of the original
certified death certificate or a valid copy of a certified
death certificate.
Maximum Amount Canceled - 100%
9/11 SURVIVORS:
Effective September 30, 2006 (and NOT retroactive), loan
principal will be canceled for a borrower who is the surviving
spouse of an eligible public servant. An eligible public
servant is a police officer, firefighter, member of the Armed
Forces, or other safety or rescue personnel who died or became
permanently and totally disabled as a result of injuries
suffered in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks at the
World Trade Center in New York, New York; at the Pentagon in
Virginia; at the Shanks, Pennsylvania site; or on board
American Airlines flights 11 and 77 and United Airlines
flights 93 and 175. This cancellation applies to loans on
which amounts were owed on September 11, 2001 and on which
amounts are still owed on the day cancellation is requested.
Eligibility - Perkins, and Federal Perkins loans
Maximum Amount Canceled - 100%
Click here for 9/11 Cancellation form
FIREFIGHTER:
full-time fire fighters with a local, State, or Federal fire
department or fire district
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
PUBLIC DEFENDER:
full-time attorneys employed in Federal Public Defender
Organizations or Community Defender Organizations, established
in accordance with Section 3006A(g)(2) of Title 18, U.S.C.
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
LIBRARIAN:
librarians with a master's degree in library science who are
employed in an elementary or secondary school that qualifies
for Title I funding, or in a public library that serves a
geographic area that includes one or more Title I schools
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
TRIBAL COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY FACULTY:
full-time faculty members at a Tribal College or University
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
PRE-K SERVICE PROVIDER:
full-time as a staff member in a pre-kindergarten or childcare
program, or in the educational part of a preschool program
carried out under the Head Start Act.
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
SPEECH PATHOLOGIST:
full-time speech-language pathologists with a master's degree
who are working exclusively with Title I-eligible schools.
Eligibility - Federal Perkins or NDSL/ Perkins Loans for
service performed for 12 month period including or after
August 14, 2008
Maximum Amount Canceled - Up to 100%
VA APPROVED TOTAL/PERMANENT DISABILITY:
If you are a veteran, you will be considered totally and permanently disabled for purposes of discharging your Perkins Loan if you provide documentation from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs showing that you have been determined to be unemployable due to a service-connected condition along with completing Sections 1 and 3 of the Discharge Application. The information must be returned directly to the Student Loan office at the address listed below.
Once received by the Student Loan Office, the request will be forwarded to the Veterans Disability Unit for final determination. Upon approval by the VA, the loan will be discharged.
Disability Discharge Application