All my grad and undergraduate loans were dispersed during or prior to 2007. If I decided to re-consolidate my loans again in 2016 in order to be eligible for the PSLF program, would that make me ineligible for IBR? I understand they are trying to get rid of IBR and that all new loans will no longer be eligible, but my loans are currently eligible. My concern is that if I consolidate, will that make the loans new in terms of IBR eligibility?

We did the math and with kids, realized that if we file our taxes separately, both of our IBR payments will be 0 for the next 10 years and then will be forgiven under PSLF.

Bump

If you consolidate and get a new loan, you are not considered to be a new borrower as of the date they were consolidated. Even if it is considered a new loan, the original disbursement date is still in effect. I believe that the original PAYE was only eligible to new borrowers after 2014, and I know that consolidating a loan would not have made me eligible for it. Whether or not you can still enroll in IBR should be clear on the Consolidation application. I believe it asks you on the application what kind of repayment plan you want, and if IBR is an option I don’t see why you cannot choose it. There is a new IBR which sets the minimum payment to 10% of your income, but you’d have to be a new borrower after 2014 to be eligible for it. The old IBR plan should still be available….

Thank you. I have started filling out the new application and it does not specify if I am eligible. It basically states to pick a payment plan and if I am not eligible, one will be assigned to me. I wish a loan holder would give clarification on this before I hit submit. Do we have time allowed to reverse the loan if the payment plan we want is not given to us after making the loan?