This page does not determine official eligibility and is not legal, tax, financial, or official program advice. Verify current rules with Federal Student Aid, your servicer, or another qualified source before acting.
Use the tools and checklist first, then verify official details before changing repayment, consolidation, or forgiveness steps.
Answer a few questions and leave with a practical next-step plan.
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Quick Answer
PSLF buyback is records-heavy. Borrowers should save employment history, payment count details, deferment or forbearance months, loan type, and official StudentAid.gov records before assuming a month can count.
What Borrowers Should Know
Start with official records
MOHELA's site says PSLF buyback is managed by the U.S. Department of Education, not MOHELA. That means borrowers should start with StudentAid.gov PSLF records and save the details before asking a servicer for help.
Records to collect
- PSLF qualifying employment history.
- PSLF payment count history.
- Months in deferment or forbearance.
- Loan type and consolidation history.
- Employer certification forms.
- Servicer messages and StudentAid.gov screenshots.
What not to assume
Do not assume every deferment or forbearance month can be bought back. Do not assume a call-center answer is final. Do not apply based only on social media examples from another borrower.
Plain-English example
A public hospital employee believes 14 forbearance months should count. Before acting, they save employer records, loan status history, PSLF count screenshots, and the StudentAid.gov PSLF page used for the decision.
Action Checklist
- Log in to StudentAid.gov and confirm loan type, servicer, balance, payment status, and current plan.
- Save screenshots or PDFs before submitting any repayment, consolidation, forgiveness, or complaint form.
- Ask your servicer for written confirmation when the answer affects payment amount, eligibility, or deadlines.
- Recheck official sources on the day you act, especially when rules, dates, or application access may have changed.
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Plain-English Example
If a borrower is researching PSLF buyback questions, the practical first step is to write down loan type, servicer, balance, current payment, income, employer type, and the document they are trying to complete. That makes the next servicer call more concrete and reduces the chance of acting on a generic answer that does not fit the loan.
What This Guide Covers
- What PSLF buyback is trying to solve
- Why employment history matters
- Why deferment and forbearance records matter
- Where to verify
- What not to assume
Common Questions
What is PSLF buyback?
Do not rely on a verbal forgiveness estimate alone. For PSLF buyback questions, verify loan type, employer history, payment counts, repayment plan, and form status through StudentAid.gov or the official program route.
Who manages PSLF buyback?
Do not rely on a verbal forgiveness estimate alone. For PSLF buyback questions, verify loan type, employer history, payment counts, repayment plan, and form status through StudentAid.gov or the official program route.
What records should I save before PSLF buyback?
Do not rely on a verbal forgiveness estimate alone. For PSLF buyback questions, verify loan type, employer history, payment counts, repayment plan, and form status through StudentAid.gov or the official program route.
Reviewed for borrower clarity, official-source orientation, and no-guarantee language. Last reviewed 2026-06-19.
Official sources checked June 16, 2026. Sources: MOHELA PSLF buyback notice and StudentAid.gov PSLF links: https://mohela.studentaid.gov/; StudentAid.gov PSLF: https://studentaid.gov/pslf