Biden's Education Department is notifying 8 million student-loan borrowers that they do not need to apply for debt cancellation and their relief will be automatically processed

• The Education Department is notifying around 8 million borrowers automatically eligible for relief.
• Those borrowers will not need to apply, but those who want to opt out must do so by November 14.
• Those eligible for automatic relief can also choose to submit a form if they want it processed sooner.

Millions of student-loan borrowers won't need to take any action to get President Joe Biden's debt cancellation.

On Monday, Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona formally launched the application for up to $20,000 in student-loan forgiveness. It's a simple form that should take less than five minutes to fill out — borrowers just need to input basic contact information like their names, email addresses, and Social Security numbers. But for around 8 million borrowers, those five minutes might be saved. The Washington Post first reported on Tuesday that the Education Department has started notifying those borrowers that they are eligible to have their loans wiped out automatically.

The borrowers likely to receive notifications are those for whom the department already has income information on file. That typically happens either by enrolling in the FAFSA, or federal financial aid form, or by being currently enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan which gives borrowers affordable monthly payments based on the income they bring home. 

The department also told the Post that borrowers who are eligible for automatic relief can choose to opt out of it for any reason, but they must do so by November 14 by contacting their student-loan company. Failure to do so means the relief will be processed for the borrowers after that deadline.

Here's what that notice will likely look like, per a borrower who said she received it this morning.

All other borrowers can apply through the form on studentaid.gov, and the department recommends they submit those forms by mid-November so the relief can be processed and applied to borrowers' accounts before payments resume next year. While it's unclear how many borrowers will choose to opt out of the program, a lawsuit filed last month by a conservative group argued that an Indiana plaintiff would be stuck with an unwanted tax if relief was implemented.

But that case was quickly struck down by a judge, and the White House clarified that "anyone who does not want debt relief can choose to opt out." All borrowers have until December 2023 to apply, and those eligible for automatic relief can also choose to submit a form now if they want it to be processed sooner than mid-November.