Can you eventually be ineligible for IBR??

[CuriousPharmD]

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I'm currently on the IBR repayment plan...but is it possible to be eventually ineligible for the IBR plan???

 

[CuriousPharmD]

Let me clarify my situation...im currently on the IBR repayment plan but is it possible to eventually be ineligible for the IBR payment plan after being on it for awhile by paying down the loan amount???

 

[dpmd]

You can eventually become ineligible for IBR by your income increasing to a point where you would be at or above your standard repayment (at which time your payments become your standard repayment). Whether this can happen by prepaying some on your loan is a little less clear to me, but presumably if your debt burden is so low that your income to debt ratio is high enough that your payment would equal or exceed the standard repayment you would then be placed back on standard plan. See the thread where someone had their payments increase by paying 4K on a 40K loan. I guess this is what happened to them (especially if they count that extra money as income-that OP got the money from his parents). You payments would still count towards PSLF or the longer loan forgiveness, but the trick is that you would likely pay off the entire loan (or much of it) before forgiveness time happens (since the standard repayment is meant to pay off your loans in 10 yrs)

 

[dpmd]

Unless you are making extra payments, I can't imagine you will be paying down your loan in a way that would bump you off the IBR.

 

[PetMySausage]

Also, don't forget, if you have non-gov loans, you can always switch to ICR so they take your private loans into consideration with regard to your ability to repay.

 

[jsp132]

what is ICR?

 

[PetMySausage]

what is ICR?

Income Contingent Repayment, it takes your private loans into consideration with regard to disposable income and monthly payment amount for federal loans. If your private loan payments are large enough relative to your income, it can still zero out your federal loan payments.

 

[hamlin]

Thought I understand this but now not so sure. I am planning to enroll into IBR but now I am confused. I am currently a resident making a resident salary but I am concerned that once I start making a "real" doctor's salary I will be removed from IBR. I currently owe roughly 270,000 going into IBR making around 50,000. So should I be concerned? Thanks

 

[MT Headed]

IBR is set up so that residents with small incomes will not be burdened with crushing debt payments. Likewise, it does not force attendings with large incomes to make payments in excess of the original loan agreement which was a 10 year payment plan.

I suppose as an attending you could calculate what your enormous IBR payment would have been and make payments that large. Your loan would be paid off very quickly if you did that.