​Student Loan Payments Could Skyrocket for SAVE Borrowers. Here’s How Much Yours Could Rise 

About 8 million federal student loan borrowers had hopes of smaller monthly payments and lower lifetime costs when the Biden administration rolled out the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) repayment plan in 2023. But early in 2024, the plan was met with legal challenges and put on hold.SAVE is an income-driven student loan repayment plan that lowers monthly student loan payments, reduces the burden of interest and offers more options for forgiveness.Borrowers in SAVE are now waiting for courts to decide the fate of their student loan debt. Experts don’t expect SAVE to survive its legal challenges and warn borrowers to prepare for it to disappear later this year. When that happens, you may face monthly payments for the first time since the pandemic pause in March 2020 — and those payments could be higher than you expect.”The payment is likely going to go up” if SAVE is eliminated, said Elaine Rubin, a student loan policy expert for Edvisors and CNET Money expert review board member.Under income-driven repayment (IDR) plans, many borrowers under certain income levels have had their payments lowered to $0 per month since March 2020. The new formula for monthly payments under SAVE would have extended that reality to millions more. With SAVE’s likely demise, borrowers already in SAVE stand to see increases in their monthly payments.Read more: No, Trump Can’t Take Back Your Student Loan Forgiveness — Except in This SituationHow student loan payments for IDRs are calculatedSAVE offers the most affordable monthly payment for most student loan borrowers. Here’s how the payment calculation for SAVE compares with other income-driven repayment plans:Less of your income is counted: With SAVE, your discretionary income is defined as 225% of the federal poverty level, compared with between 100% and 150% under other IDR plans. If you’re married and file taxes separately, your spouse’s income won’t count.Payments are a smaller portion of income: SAVE was paused before payments could be dropped to 5% of your monthly discretionary income. Other IDRs cap monthly payments at 10% to 20%.Balances don’t grow with interest: Under SAVE, your monthly payment doesn’t cover all accrued interest, the government subsidizes the difference.How much could your student loan payment increase if SAVE is eliminated?It’s likely your student loan payment will rise if SAVE is repealed, but the amount depends on several factors, including your income, loan amount, type of loan and even where you live. I used the Department of Education’s loan simulator and found the payments could jump up steeply, by hundreds of dollars per month, in some cases. Here are a few examples of what adjusted payments could look like if SAVE is repealed:Note: The above calculations are based on the circumstances of an individual living in Pennsylvania with a $38,000 unsubsidized undergraduate loan. Monthly payment calculations consider factors including whether you contribute to a retirement ac