Heather,

My husband and I graduated from law school in May of 2011 and were married in September of 2011.  We are both currently on income based repayment - although I am also doing PSLF.  We each have approximately $130,000 in student loan debt.

We both applied for IBR last fall, using our individual 2010 tax returns.  Our 2010 returns were filed individually, but our tax status for our 2011 return is married filing jointly.  Neither one of us had much, if any, income in 2010, so our IBR payments are currently $0/month.  When I applied for IBR, I had just started a 1-year AmeriCorps position, and I believe I reported my stipend on my application.  My husband was still looking for a job at the time.  However, my husband found full-time employment in January.  My AmeriCorps stipend for the year is approximately $10,000 and my husband’s salary is $32,000. 

My understanding was that you continue to submit your tax returns around the same time each year - so we weren’t planning on updating our financial information until this fall.  However, if my husband’s income has changed since applying and we filed taxes jointly, should we report that?  And, if so, how?  Thank-you!