A graduating student waits for the start of the Commencement ceremony at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., May 27, 2022. /REUTERS
The United States government has stopped taking applications for student debt relief, after a federal judge blocked President Joe Biden's loan forgiveness plan, according to a notice on a government website.
"Courts have issued orders blocking our student debt relief program. As a result, at this time, we are not accepting applications. We are seeking to overturn those orders. If you've already applied, we'll hold your application," the notice says.
About 26 million Americans have applied for student loan forgiveness, and the U.S. Department of Education has already approved requests from 16 million.
The appeal would be heard initially by a three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a court dominated by conservative judges who have stymied other Biden policies.
(With input from Reuters)