What the SAVE Plan Is and Who Can Use It

The SAVE plan (Saving on a Valuable Education) is a federal income-driven repayment option for federal student loans. It calculates your monthly payment based on your current income and family size rather than your loan balance, which means your payment could be as low as $0 per month if your income is below a certain threshold. SAVE became available to all borrowers in July 2024, replacing the PAYE plan as the newest income-driven option.

You can enroll in SAVE if you have federal student loans—Direct Loans, FFEL loans, or Perkins Loans. Private student loans do not may have access to. The plan works for undergraduate and graduate loans, and you can switch to SAVE from another repayment plan at any time without penalty. If you are currently on an income-driven plan, you do not have to wait for your current plan to end.

Key Takeaways

  • You enroll in SAVE through StudentAid.gov using your FSA ID, and the entire process takes 10 to 15 minutes if you have your income information ready.
  • You will need your most recent tax return or an estimate of your current income, your spouse's income if you are married filing jointly, and your family size.
  • After you submit your enrollment, the Department of Education verifies your information and your servicer recalculates your payment, which usually takes 2 to 4 weeks.
  • Your payment amount is recalculated each year based on the income information you provide, so you must recertify your income annually to stay on the plan.
  • If your income changes significantly between annual recertifications, you can request an out-of-cycle recalculation without waiting for the next year.

Step 1: Gather Your Documents Before You Start

Before you log into StudentAid.gov, collect the documents you will need. Have your most recent federal tax return available—either your 2023 return if you have already filed for 2024, or your 2022 return if you have not yet filed for 2023. If your current income is significantly different from your tax return (for example, you lost your job or started a new one), you can provide an estimate of what you expect to earn this year instead.

If you are married and filing taxes jointly, you will also need your spouse's income information. Have your family size ready—this includes you, your spouse if applicable, and any dependents you claim on your tax return. You will also need your Federal Student Aid (FSA) ID, which is your username and password for StudentAid.gov. If you do not have one, you can create it on the StudentAid.gov homepage before you begin the SAVE enrollment.

Step 2: Log In and Start Your SAVE Enrollment

Go to StudentAid.gov and click "Log In" at the top right. Enter your FSA ID username and password. If you do not have an FSA ID, click "Create an FSA ID" and follow the prompts—you will need your Social Security number, date of birth, and email address. Once you are logged in, you will see your loan summary page.

Look for the section labeled "Repayment Plans" or "Manage My Student Loans." Click on the option to change your repayment plan or enroll in a new plan. The site will show you all available repayment plans. Select SAVE from the list. The system will then ask you to confirm which loans you want to place on SAVE—you can enroll all your federal loans or select specific ones. Most borrowers enroll all their federal loans at once.

Step 3: Enter Your Income and Family Information

The enrollment form will ask you to provide your income information. You have two options: you can authorize the Department of Education to retrieve your income data directly from the IRS (called "tax return information retrieval"), or you can enter your income manually. Using tax return retrieval is faster and more accurate if your current income matches your tax return. If your income has changed since you filed taxes, enter it manually instead.

If you are married filing jointly, the form will ask for your spouse's income as well. Enter your family size—the number of people in your household that you claim as dependents, plus yourself. If you are married filing jointly, include your spouse. The form will then calculate your estimated monthly payment based on the income and family size you provided. Review this number before you submit—it should be significantly lower than your current payment if you are switching from a standard plan.

Step 4: Review and Submit Your Enrollment

Before you submit, the form will show you a summary of the information you entered: your income, family size, and calculated monthly payment. Check that all the numbers are correct. If you used tax return retrieval, the form will show you the specific tax year it pulled from. If anything is wrong, go back and correct it—submitting incorrect information will delay your enrollment.

Once you have verified everything, click "Submit" or "Enroll in SAVE." You will see a confirmation page with a reference number. Write down this number or take a screenshot—you can use it to check the status of your enrollment if you need to follow up. You will also receive a confirmation email at the address associated with your StudentAid.gov account.

What Happens After You Submit: Processing and Payment Recalculation

After you submit your enrollment, the Department of Education sends your information to your loan servicer (the company that manages your loans). Your servicer then recalculates your payment based on the income and family size you provided. This process usually takes 2 to 4 weeks, though it can occasionally take longer if there are delays.

During this time, you should continue making payments under your current repayment plan. Once your servicer has processed your SAVE enrollment, you will receive a new payment notification showing your new monthly payment amount and your new due date. This notification comes by mail or email, depending on how your servicer communicates with you. Your first SAVE payment will be due on the date shown in this notification.

If you do not receive a notification after 4 weeks, log back into StudentAid.gov and check the status of your enrollment. You can also contact your loan servicer directly—their phone number is on your loan statement or on StudentAid.gov under "My Loan Servicers."

Annual Recertification: Keeping Your Payment Accurate

SAVE requires you to recertify your income once per year. This means you must update your income information so your payment stays accurate. The Department of Education will send you a recertification notice by mail or email 60 days before your recertification is due. The notice will tell you the exact date you need to recertify by.

To recertify, log back into StudentAid.gov, go to your repayment plan section, and select "Recertify Income." You can use tax return retrieval again if your income has not changed, or enter your current income manually if it has. The process is identical to your initial enrollment and takes about 10 minutes. If you miss your recertification important date, your plan will convert to a standard 10-year repayment plan, and your payment will jump significantly. If this happens, you can re-enroll in SAVE and your servicer will backdate the change.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if my income changes between annual recertifications?

You can request an out-of-cycle recalculation without waiting for your annual recertification date. Log into StudentAid.gov, go to your repayment plan section, and look for the option to update your income. You will need to provide documentation of the income change—such as a termination letter if you lost your job, or a new offer letter if you started a new position. Your servicer will recalculate your payment within 2 to 4 weeks.

Can I enroll in SAVE if I have Parent PLUS loans?

Parent PLUS loans cannot be placed on SAVE. However, you can consolidate your Parent PLUS loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan, and then enroll that consolidation loan in SAVE. This is a separate process—you consolidate first through StudentAid.gov, and once the consolidation is complete, you enroll in SAVE. Consolidation takes about 30 days.

What if I am married but file taxes separately?

If you are married but file taxes separately, you can enroll in SAVE using only your own income. Your spouse's income will not be counted in your payment calculation. However, if you file taxes jointly, you must include your spouse's income even if they do not have student loans. You cannot exclude a spouse's income if you file jointly.

Will enrolling in SAVE affect my other financial aid?

Enrolling in SAVE does not affect your may be able to access for other federal aid such as grants or subsidized loans. It only changes how your existing federal student loan payments are calculated. If you are still in school and taking out new loans, your enrollment in SAVE will not impact those new loans.

What happens to my loans if I do not recertify?

If you do not recertify by your important date, your loans will automatically move to a standard 10-year repayment plan. Your monthly payment will increase to whatever the standard plan calculates based on your loan balance. You can re-enroll in SAVE at any time after this happens, and your servicer will backdate the change to your original recertification due date, so you will not owe the higher payments retroactively.