Section 1: borrower information
Social Security number, name, mailing address, telephone and an optional email, with a box to check if any of it has changed.
IDR Plan Request
Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan Request
- Agency
- Federal Student Aid
- Revision
- OMB No. 1845-0102, expires 08/31/2029
- Fillable fields
- 52
- Pages
- 19
- Official source
- Federal Student Aid form page
- Checked
- October 20, 2026
Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan Request
The Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan Request is the U.S. Department of Education's Federal Student Aid form for asking a loan holder to base federal student loan payments on income. It covers four plans: the Repayment Assistance Plan, Income-Based Repayment (IBR), Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) and Pay As You Earn (PAYE), for loans in the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program and the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program.
The same form is used to enter an income-driven plan, to send the yearly recertification of income and family size, to have a payment recalculated early, and to change to a different income-driven plan. The form says you never need to pay for help completing it, and that your loan holder or servicer gives help for free.
The form has 19 pages. Pages 1 to 9 are the request you sign, and pages 10 to 19 hold definitions, a plan comparison table and notices, which the form says to leave out when mailing or faxing. You can fill it out free in your browser on this page and download the result without an account.
What's on the IDR Plan Request
Section 2: request and plan
Item 1 is the reason for the request, Item 2 the plan choice, Item 3 whether you have more than one loan holder or servicer, and Item 4 whether you are in deferment or forbearance and when payments should start.
Section 3: family size
Item 5 counts dependents claimed on your federal tax return who get more than half their support from you. Item 6 counts other people, including unborn children, who live with you and get that support. You and your spouse are not entered.
Sections 4A to 4C: marital status and income
Marital status, whether you filed jointly, whether your spouse has federal student loans and the spouse's SSN, name and date of birth, then whether your income, or your spouse's, has dropped and whether either of you has taxable income.
Sections 5A and 5B: how income is shown
Section 5A, for Direct Loans only, asks whether you approve the Department getting your federal tax information from the IRS each year. Section 5B explains the documents to send instead, such as a recent pay stub or a letter from your employer.
Section 6: requests, certification and signature
What you are asking the loan holder to do, an optional one-month general forbearance when moving from IBR, the certification under penalty of perjury, and your signature and date.
How to send the IDR Plan Request
- 1
Pick your reason and plan
Check one reason in Item 1. If you are entering or changing plans, pick a plan in Item 2. The form points to StudentAid.gov/repayment-calculator for payment estimates.
- 2
Follow the skip instructions
Many answers in Sections 2 and 4 say which item or section comes next, so some questions are skipped depending on your answers.
- 3
Choose how to show income
Approve IRS retrieval in Section 5A, or gather your latest federal tax return or transcript, or current income documents as Section 5B describes. The form says documents must be dated no more than 90 days before you sign.
- 4
Sign and date the form
Type or print in dark ink, sign Section 6 and enter the date as mm/dd/yyyy. Put your name and account number on any documents you attach.
- 5
Send it to each loan holder
Return the form and documents to the address in Section 7, or to your loan holder if none is shown. With more than one holder or servicer, the form says to send a request to each.
Why fill Form IDR Plan Request on indox
You get the real form, filled in a browser tab, with nothing standing between you and the finished PDF.
- Fill the form right in your browser, no software to install
- Free to fill and free to download, with no account
- The official blank straight from the Federal Student Aid, not a copy someone retyped
- Works on a phone, tablet or computer
Where to send it, help and taxes
Where to send it
To the address shown in Section 7. If no address is shown, the form says to return it to your loan holder. Pages 10 to 19 are left out when mailing or faxing.
Online option
The form says it is faster and easier to complete online at StudentAid.gov, and that you can find your loan holder or servicer at StudentAid.gov/login.
Help is free
The form says you never need to pay for help completing it. Call the number in Section 8, or your loan holder if no number is shown.
While it is processed
The form says your loan holder may grant a forbearance while it processes your application, or to cover any period of delinquency when you submit it.
Discharged balances and taxes
The form says you may have to report any loan amount discharged under an income-driven plan as taxable income on your federal or state tax returns.
Related forms
Repayment Plan Request
Repayment Plan Request
19 fields, 7 pages
PSLF
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Application
30 fields, 16 pages
General Forbearance
General Forbearance Request
24 fields, 8 pages
Joint Consolidation Separation
Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Application and Promissory Note
58 fields, 38 pages
1098-E
Student Loan Interest Statement
43 fields, 4 pages
1040
U.S. Individual Income Tax Return
199 fields, 2 pages
Who uses the IDR Plan Request?
Item 1 of the form lists four reasons for sending it, and it says to check only one.
Official sources and the blank
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Questions about Form IDR Plan Request
Which plans can I choose on the IDR Plan Request?
The Repayment Assistance Plan, IBR, PAYE and ICR. The form says that if you have any loan disbursed on or after July 1, 2026, you may only select the Repayment Assistance Plan, that FFEL Program loans are only eligible for IBR, and that Direct Consolidation Loans that repaid Parent PLUS loans are only eligible for ICR.
Do I have to let the Department get my tax information from the IRS?
No. Section 5A says the approval is not a condition of eligibility for an IDR plan, but without it you send other income documentation as Section 5B describes. Section 5A is for Direct Loans only, and the form says approval can be revoked in your StudentAid.gov account settings.
What income documents does the form accept?
Documentation of all taxable income, usually a pay stub or a letter from your employer listing gross pay, dated no more than 90 days before you sign. Copies are acceptable. The form says not to document untaxed income such as Supplemental Security Income, child support or public assistance.
What if I have more than one loan servicer?
Item 3 says to submit a request to each loan holder or servicer.
What happens if I don't qualify for the plan I chose?
The form says your loan holder will reject the application and keep you on your current plan. If you have not yet entered repayment, it says you are placed on the 10-year Standard Plan, or on the Tiered Standard Plan if you have any loan disbursed on or after July 1, 2026.
Do I need to send all 19 pages?
No. The form says to leave out pages 10 to 19 when mailing or faxing it back. Those pages hold the definitions, the plan table and the notices.
Is a forgiven balance taxable?
The form says you may have to report any loan amount discharged under an income-driven plan as taxable income when you file your federal or state tax returns.