You tied the knot, but you still have one more item to address on your newlywed to-do list: Tackling your student loan debt.

The first thing you and your spouse should each do is visit your StudentAid.gov account Dashboard to find out the loan type, loan balance, monthly payment amount, and payment status for your federal student loans. Then follow these steps to make sure you understand the ways that marriage can affect your student loans:

1. Explore all your repayment options.
2. Understand how your tax filing status affects your payments.
3. Evaluate how your spouse’s student loan debt affects your payments.
4. Consider meeting with a tax or financial advisor.

1

Explore All Your Repayment Options

Even if you’ve previously selected a repayment plan, you can change your plan at any time to meet your family’s needs. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) offers different repayment plan options, including

• fixed payment repayment plans that base your monthly payment on how much you owe, your interest rate, and how long you’ll be paying off your loans and
• income-driven repayment (IDR) plans that base your monthly payment on your income and family size.

The exact repayment plans that are available to you and your spouse will depend on the type of federal student loans you have and their disbursement dates (the date each loan was paid out). For details on the different IDR plans and their pros and cons, check out our article: “Top FAQs About Income-Driven Repayment Plans.”

Try our Repayment Calculator to compare repayment plans, find out which plans you might be eligible for, and see estimates of your monthly student loan payments on different plans. Keep in mind, your spouse doesn’t need to repay their federal student loans under the same repayment plan as you.

Tip: Log in to your StudentAid.gov account when you’re using Repayment Calculator, so your federal student loan information automatically populates in the tool. Your spouse will need to do the same to see their information. You’ll also have the option to import federal tax information from the IRS to get the most accurate monthly payment estimates.

2

Understand How Your Tax Filing Status Affects Your Payments

When you file your U.S. income taxes, you’ll need to decide whether to file jointly with your spouse or separately.

This decision will affect more than just your income taxes. If you apply for an IDR plan, it will also affect how your monthly payment amount is calculated. Under most IDR plans, ED will generally either

• use your joint income and reduce your payments to account for your spouse’s student loan debt if you and your spouse file a joint tax return, or
• use only your income if you file taxes separately from your spouse.

The table below shows whose income is used to calculate payments on each IDR plan, depending on your tax filing status. It also provides some general information about borrower eligibility for each plan. For details on IDR eligibility for all types of federal student loans, including loans made to parents, visit our page on eligible loan types.

^*In order to be eligible for the IBR, PAYE, or ICR Plans, your loans must have been disbursed before July 1, 2026. If you receive a new loan disbursed on or after July 1, 2026, then RAP is the only IDR plan available to you. Additionally, all borrowers on the PAYE or ICR Plans must select a new repayment plan by July 1, 2028.

^**If you and your spouse have eligible Direct Loans, you may choose to repay your loans jointly under the ICR Plan until you’re required to select a new repayment plan by July 1, 2028.

Recertifying Your IDR Plan

Regardless of whether you file your taxes jointly or individually, you must recertify (update) your income and family size each year to remain on an IDR plan. Your loan servicer will calculate your payments based on your family size and income.

If you were already on an IDR plan when you got married, you don’t have to wait until your next recertification date. You can recertify early to update your family size and/or change in income. Learn how to check your recertification date and turn on autorecertification (if you’re eligible) to have ED use your federal tax information to automatically recertify your IDR plan for you.

3

Evaluate How Your Spouse’s Student Loan Debt Affects Your Payments

Generally, whenever we use joint income to calculate your payment amount, we consider your spouse’s federal student loan debt and will calculate your payment based on your share of the combined debt. Here’s an example: Let’s say you file a joint income tax return with your spouse. You don’t have kids, and you live in the contiguous 48 states. Your combined adjusted gross income is $100,000. Under the IBR Plan, payments are 10% or 15% of your discretionary income depending on when you first borrowed the loan—15% for loans borrowed before July 1, 2014, and 10% for loans borrowed on or after July 1, 2014. For our example, we’ll calculate your payment based on 10% of your discretionary income. That works out to $562.83 per month.

Now, let’s say that you owe $60,000 and your spouse owes $40,000 in federal student loans for a combined total debt of $100,000. Stated differently, you owe 60% and your spouse owes 40% of the combined federal student loan debt. Now divide your IBR Plan monthly payment amount proportionally to get your payment amount. In this case, 60% of $562.83 would give you a monthly payment of $337.70.

If your spouse independently applies for the IBR Plan (which they’d have to do in order to enroll), your spouse will pay $225.13 per month. If your spouse chooses a different repayment plan, their payment amount might differ, but it will not affect your calculated payment of $337.70.

You might be wondering: What happens if your spouse doesn’t have federal student loans but you still have a total debt of $100,000? Under the combined income example, that $562.83 would be your payment amount, because you owe 100% of the student loan debt.

However, if you file a separate income tax return from your spouse, your payment would only consider your income of $60,000. Under the IBR Plan, you would pay $229.50 per month.

4

Consider Meeting With a Tax or Financial Advisor

If it seems like using your combined income is a disadvantage, you can file your income taxes separately from your spouse to ensure that only your income is used when determining your monthly student loan payment. However, before you choose that option, you might want to consult a tax professional and consider your total financial situation.

That’s because even though filing taxes separately can make your monthly payments on some IDR plans more affordable, filing separately also can lead to you paying more income tax and potentially losing benefits, including

• student loan interest deduction,
• childcare tax credit, and the
• Earned Income Tax Credit.

If your or your spouse’s loans get discharged under an IDR plan, make sure you understand that the discharged amount may be considered taxable income.

Marriage will change your life in many ways, including your financial future. As you combine and plan your finances, make sure to have a conversation about debt. Student loan debt can affect money matters like your credit history, credit score, monthly budget, and future goals.

If you have questions about how marriage affects IDR plans, check out these resources:

• “Questions and Answers About IDR Plans” page
• “Top FAQs About Income-Driven Repayment Plans” article
• “Compare Student Loan Repayment Plans With Our Student Loan Calculator” article

Published: July 2026