Biden opens student loan forgiveness application

The application for federal student loan forgiveness officially launched Monday, President Biden announced.

"Today, I'm announcing millions of people working and middle-class folks can apply and get this relief. And it's simple and it's now. It's easy," Biden said at a press event with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, per CNN. Biden described the "incredible amount of effort to get this website done in such a short time."

This next phase in Biden's plan to provide debt relief to millions of qualified loan borrowers comes after the website briefly opened its application for beta testing Friday evening. During the beta testing period, Biden said the website "handled more than 8 million applications without a glitch or difficulty," per CNN.

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The application is now available in English and Spanish. Qualified applicants are those who have federally held student loans and meet the income requirements. Direct loans borrowed for undergraduate degree programs and federal PLUS loans taken out by graduate students or parents qualify for the debt relief program.

In August, Biden announced his plan to cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt for individuals who make under $125,000 yearly and an additional $10,000 for Pell Grant recipients. His plan has garnered criticism from Republicans, leading to multiple lawsuits that could temporarily put the program on pause, CNN reports. Biden told reporters he believes his administration's plan will hold up in court. Biden said outrage from his critics was "wrong" and "hypocritical."