North Carolina teachers can erase student debt through several programs at once: the federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness program (up to $17,500), Public Service Loan Forgiveness (full remaining balance after 10 years), Perkins Loan cancellation for teachers who hold those loans, and state-run forgivable loans including Forgivable Education Loans for Service (FELS), the NC Teaching Fellows Program, and the Principal Fellows Program. NC teacher loan forgiveness is not a single benefit but a menu, and the right pick depends on your loan types, your balance, what and where you teach, and how long you plan to stay in the classroom.
Federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness
The federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness (TLF) program forgives up to $17,500 in federal student loans after five complete, consecutive academic years of full-time teaching at a qualifying low-income school.1Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application
The amount depends on what you teach. The $17,500 cap applies to highly qualified secondary math and science teachers and to highly qualified special education teachers at the elementary or secondary level. Other highly qualified full-time teachers can receive up to $5,000.2Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Options
You need a bachelor’s degree and full state certification. Temporary, emergency, and provisional licenses do not qualify. Newer teachers must also demonstrate subject-matter competency, typically by passing a rigorous state licensing exam or completing an academic major or graduate degree in their subject.3Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Forbearance Request
Only Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans and Federal Stafford Loans are eligible. PLUS loans and Perkins Loans do not qualify. You also must have been a “new borrower” with no outstanding Direct or FFEL balance as of October 1, 1998.1Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application
Which North Carolina Schools Qualify
A school qualifies if more than 30% of its students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The federal Teacher Cancellation Low-Income (TCLI) Directory is the official list, and the NC Department of Public Instruction supplies the state’s data.4NC Department of Public Instruction. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Search the directory at the Federal Student Aid TCLI lookup by state, school name, or location.5Federal Student Aid. Teacher Cancellation Low-Income Directory If a school is hard to find, NCDPI suggests leaving the school name blank and searching by the first few letters of the county or district.
Applying
Apply only after your five consecutive years are complete. A chief administrative officer at your school certifies your employment on the application, and you send the completed form to your loan servicer. If you have more than one loan holder, submit a separate application to each.1Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Application NCDPI does not process these applications and directs applicants to Federal Student Aid and their servicers.6NC Department of Public Instruction. Teacher Loan Forgiveness
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) forgives the entire remaining balance on Direct Loans after 120 qualifying monthly payments while working full-time for a government or qualifying nonprofit employer. North Carolina public school teachers count as public service employees.7American Federation of Teachers. Public Service Loan Forgiveness
PSLF has no forgiveness cap, and the forgiven amount is not treated as taxable income for federal tax purposes.2Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Options For teachers with balances well above $17,500 who plan to spend a career in public education, PSLF alone is generally the better deal because the whole remaining balance is wiped out after 10 years of payments.8Forbes. Teacher Loan Forgiveness vs Public Service Loan Forgiveness
You Cannot Double-Count Years for TLF and PSLF
The same years of service cannot count toward both programs. If you use five years to qualify for TLF, those payments will not count toward the 120 required for PSLF. Stacking the programs is possible, but doing TLF first and then PSLF pushes the total timeline to roughly 15 years.2Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Options
What Changed With Repayment Plans
The federal repayment landscape shifted after the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed on July 4, 2025.9NASFAA. One Big Beautiful Bill Act The SAVE income-driven plan, popular with teachers, was terminated after a court-approved settlement in March 2026, and the roughly 7.5 million borrowers on SAVE must move to a new plan.10U.S. Department of Education. Next Steps for Borrowers Enrolled in Unlawful SAVE Plan
The new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) launched July 1, 2026. Monthly payments run 1% to 10% of adjusted gross income, with a $50 credit per dependent and a $10 minimum. RAP payments count toward PSLF.11CNBC. Student Loan Borrowers New Repayment Plans PAYE and ICR are being phased out by July 1, 2028; borrowers who do not pick a new plan by then will be auto-enrolled in RAP.7American Federation of Teachers. Public Service Loan Forgiveness
If you are pursuing PSLF, keep filing the PSLF employment certification form every year and whenever you change employers, using the PSLF Help Tool at studentaid.gov.7American Federation of Teachers. Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Perkins Loan Cancellation for Teachers
If you have Federal Perkins Loans, teaching gives you a separate cancellation track. Up to 100% of a Perkins Loan is cancelled over five years of qualifying full-time service: 15% in each of years one and two, 20% in each of years three and four, and 30% in year five.12Federal Student Aid. Perkins Loan Cancellation
Qualifying positions include teaching at a school where more than 30% of enrollment qualifies for Title I services, teaching special education, or teaching in a designated shortage area such as mathematics, science, foreign languages, or bilingual education.12Federal Student Aid. Perkins Loan Cancellation Apply through the college or university that holds the loan, not a federal servicer.
Watch one trap. Consolidating Perkins Loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan makes them eligible for PSLF but permanently forfeits Perkins cancellation. If you hold both Perkins and Direct Loans, run the numbers on keeping them separate and using both tracks before consolidating everything.2Federal Student Aid. Teacher Loan Forgiveness Options
NC Teaching Fellows Program
The NC Teaching Fellows Program is a state forgivable loan aimed at people still preparing to teach, not existing debt. Recipients get up to $10,000 per year for tuition, books, and fees while completing a teacher preparation program at one of ten participating universities, including Appalachian State, East Carolina, Elon, Fayetteville State, Meredith College, NC State, NC A&T, UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC Charlotte, and UNC Pembroke.13UNC System. NC Teaching Fellows
The program targets licensure in elementary education, special education, STEM fields, and agriculture education.14UNC System. NC Teaching Fellows Program Seeks Applicants The loan is fully forgiven if you teach in a North Carolina public school for one year for each year of funding received. Service at a “low-performing” school forgives at an accelerated rate: one year of low-performing service forgives one year of funding, versus two years of non-low-performing service for the same amount.15NCSEAA. North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program
Miss the service obligation and the loan converts to cash debt with interest of up to 10% per year. Repayment must begin no later than 27 months after leaving the program and finish within eight years, with extensions to 12 years possible for extenuating circumstances.16NC General Assembly. House Bill 339 The next application cycle is expected to open in August 2026.
Forgivable Education Loans for Service (FELS)
FELS, administered by the NC State Education Assistance Authority, provides forgivable loans to students preparing for fields the state has identified as critical shortage professions.17NCSEAA. Loan Forgiveness FAQ
For 2025-2026, approved education programs include elementary education (including birth-through-kindergarten, ESL, reading, and exceptional children tracks), middle grades math, science, and foreign language, secondary math, science, and foreign language, special education, bachelor’s-level school counseling, and master’s or doctoral school psychology.18NCSEAA. FELS Approved Programs
Forgiveness is a straight ratio: one academic year of funding is forgiven for each year of full-time qualifying employment in North Carolina in the funded field. Part-time work counts at half rate. The whole obligation must be finished within ten years of graduation.17NCSEAA. Loan Forgiveness FAQ You must notify NCSEAA that you intend to pursue forgiveness within 90 days of graduating, and get your worksite approved before starting.19NCSEAA. Forgivable Education Loans for Service
Fail to complete the service and the loan turns into cash debt at 8% interest accruing from the original disbursement date, with payments due 180 days after leaving the program.17NCSEAA. Loan Forgiveness FAQ FELS and Teaching Fellows cannot be received concurrently, so prospective teachers should compare the two before applying.20CFNC. Forgivable Education Loans for Service
Principal Fellows and the National Board Certification Loan
Educators moving into administration have their own forgivable loan. The Principal Fellows Program provides up to $20,000 per year (with a $40,000 aggregate cap) for master’s-level school administration study. One year of full-time work as a principal or assistant principal at a high-need school forgives 50% of the loan; the rate at other public schools is 25% per year. The service obligation must be completed within seven years of graduation.21NCSEAA. Principal Fellows Program Rules
The state also offers a $1,900 loan through NCSEAA to cover the assessment fee for first-time National Board Certification candidates.22NC Department of Public Instruction. Application for State Funding This one is not forgivable through service. It carries a 12-month interest-free period followed by three years of monthly payments.23NCSEAA. National Board Certification Loan Teachers who earn the credential do receive a 12% salary supplement from the state for as long as they hold it.24EdNC. A Look at North Carolina’s State Bonuses and Supplements for Teachers
How to Choose the Right Program
Match the program to your loan type, your balance, and how long you plan to teach.
A secondary math teacher at a low-income school with $15,000 in Direct Loans can clear the whole balance through federal TLF in five years. That teacher probably does not need PSLF at all.
A teacher with $80,000 in Direct Loans who plans to spend a career in public schools is far better off with PSLF, since it has no forgiveness cap and wipes out whatever remains after 120 qualifying payments. Do not burn the first five years on TLF; you will forfeit those payments toward PSLF and lose ground.
If you hold Perkins Loans, plan the Perkins cancellation track separately before you decide whether to consolidate. Consolidation opens PSLF but ends Perkins cancellation for good.
If you are still in a teacher preparation program, Teaching Fellows and FELS keep debt from piling up in the first place. You cannot use both at once, so compare eligible fields, service terms, and forgiveness ratios and pick the fit.
For federal programs, studentaid.gov keeps the current TCLI directory of qualifying schools and the PSLF Help Tool. For state programs, ncseaa.edu handles FELS, Teaching Fellows, and Principal Fellows, and NCDPI publishes North Carolina-specific guidance on teacher loan forgiveness.6NC Department of Public Instruction. Teacher Loan Forgiveness