In a Dec. 20, 2024 Electronic Announcement, the U.S. Department of Education’s office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced the transition of the Total and Permanent Disability (TPD) Discharge process to StudentAid.gov, and the initial impacts of that transition on loan holders. As a reminder, this transition is part of the new loan servicing environment known as the Unified Servicing and Data Solution (or USDS) for federal student loan borrowers.
As of March 23, 2025, the TPD Discharge process has fully transitioned to FSA. Borrowers will be able to submit their TPD forms and track their progress to forgiveness on StudentAid.gov
As noted in the December 2024 announcement, all TPD processing, including TPD loan assignments, were placed on hold while we completed the transition work. We are pleased to inform loan holders (i.e., guaranty agencies, lenders, and schools participating in the Federal Perkins Loan Program that are servicing their Perkins Loan portfolio) that TPD discharge processing has resumed.
In general, the regulations and overall process for TPD discharges have not changed. The key change in the transition is the TPD Federal Loan Servicer that will handle the processing of TPD assignments from loan holders. However, we are not yet ready to announce the servicer.
Schools and Guaranty Agencies (GAs) will not be able to transfer loans and should continue to hold them until the new servicer is ready to accept transfers. We expect more information in the next month or so. Loan holders should now be aware of the following:
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All TPD assignments held by GAs and schools since Dec. 20, 2024, should remain where they are until further notice. This includes a TPD assignment rejected by the previous TPD servicer (this would have occurred after Dec. 20, 2024, but before Feb. 9, 2025).
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The TPD Federal Loan Servicer will now send the TPD Loan Holder Notification (LHN) Files to loan holders; see more about the TPD LHN File in the next section. This means loan holders will receive (and should still process) all LHNs that would allow the borrower’s loans to be placed in forbearance.
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ACTION ITEM: Loan holders will need to communicate with borrowers who call in regarding TPD that there is no longer a pause on TPD processing. Loan holders should refer borrowers to StudentAid.gov/disabilitydischarge for more information about the TPD process or have them call the discharge line at 1-888-303-7818.
As noted earlier, while the servicing of the TPD discharge process has been transitioned to a new servicer, the overall TPD assignment process will not change in any significant way. We will continue to send information about a borrower’s TPD discharge status via the TPD LHN File.
The TPD LHN File layout (and associated field names and business rules) and reason codes have not changed. However, loan holders must adjust to two key changes to the TPD LHN File as of March 23, 2025:
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The Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) mailbox used to send the LHN File to loan holders is new. The TPD LHN File is now sent to loan holders from TGEE778.
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Loan holders must receive the TPD LHN File via the SAIG only. Previously, some loan holders were receiving the TPD LHN File via email. Email is no longer an option, so any loan holder not already enrolled for the TPD LHN service must do so as soon as possible. Instructions for enrolling for this service are provided in the “TPD Loan Holder Notification File” attachment below.
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For assistance with enrolling for the TPD LHN service to your SAIG mailbox, contact the FPS Help Desk at 1-800-330-5947or by email at support@fps.ed.gov
We appreciate your support and understanding as we completed the transition of TPD Discharge processing.
The U.S. Department of Education strives to make all content accessible to everyone. While this document does not currently meet the standards of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, Federal Student Aid is working to create an accessible version. If you need access to this document before the accessible version is available, please contact the Information Technology Accessibility Program Help Desk at ITAPSupport@ed.gov to help facilitate.