"During the testing period, eligible borrowers can apply for the SAVE Plan, but some website functionality may be limited as the Department's technical team monitors site performance and refines and tweaks the application as needed," a department spokesperson told Insider.
According to Federal Student Aid, borrowers who are not currently on an IDR plan and want to lower their monthly payments should complete the new application, along with borrowers who are currently on a plan but need to recertify their income or make any other changes. Borrowers who complete an application during this testing period will not need to reapply, and they will receive a confirmation email after they have applied.
Additionally, if borrowers are already enrolled in a REPAYE Plan, they will automatically be put on the new SAVE Plan and they will not need to reapply or request a change to their plan. Borrowers can learn more about whether they need to apply for new plan, and how to do it,"When fully live, millions of borrowers will be able to complete the new application in ten minutes or less and will never have to reapply," a department spokesperson said.
This beta period is in preparation for a full launch later in August, and it's standard practice for the launch of a new program to root out any errors or technical difficulties. , the SAVE Plan would increase the income exemption from 150% above the poverty line to 225%, meaning that borrowers earning $32,800 or less or a family of four earning $67,500 or less will not owe student-loan payments.