Tools to Determine if Your Employer Qualifies for PSLF

If you are asking what tools are available to help you determine if your employer qualifies for PSLF, the short answer is the Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool and its built-in Employer Database. This article explains how those tools work, which employers qualify, and how to certify your employment with the PSLF form.

It is written for public service workers with federal student loans — including the many service members, teachers, and government employees here in Colorado Springs who are working toward loan forgiveness.

What tools are available to help me determine if my employer qualifies for PSLF?

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, borrowers pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness have two main paths, both built around the PSLF form.

• The PSLF Help Tool — the Department of Education’s online tool for checking employer eligibility and submitting the PSLF form electronically.
• The Employer Database — built into the PSLF Help Tool, it determines whether your employer qualifies for PSLF and prepopulates employer information from the database.
• The manual PSLF form — a blank application you can download directly from the U.S. Department of Education for you and your employer to fill out.

How the PSLF Help Tool works

The PSLF Help Tool lets you search the Employer Database for your employer. If your employer appears as qualifying, the tool prepopulates the employer information on the PSLF form for you.

You can then send the form through the website to your employer for employment verification. Once completed, you digitally sign the application and submit it electronically to your loan servicer.

The manual PSLF form option

If you prefer paper, you can download a blank PSLF form directly from the U.S. Department of Education. You and your employer fill it out together, and your employer signs to verify your qualifying employment.

Either route gets you to the same place: a certified record of qualifying employment. Next, let’s look at which employers actually qualify.

Which employers qualify for PSLF?

PSLF eligibility is based on who your employer is, not on your job title. The qualifying employer categories below come straight from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s guidance.

Government organizations

Qualifying employers include U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government agencies. That includes the Peace Corps and AmeriCorps, as well as military service.

Special governmental districts also count as qualifying employers under the PSLF program.

Public schools and public service agencies

Public elementary and secondary schools qualify, as do public colleges and universities. Public child and family service agencies are also on the list of qualifying employers.

Not-for-profit organizations

Working for certain not-for-profit organizations also makes you eligible for PSLF. Organizations qualified under section 501(c)(3) of the IRS code are the most common example.

A not-for-profit that is not a 501(c)(3) can still be considered a qualifying employer if it devotes a majority of its full-time equivalent employees to working in certain areas. The Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool page explains which employers qualify in more detail.

Knowing the categories is step one. Confirming your specific employer is where the Employer Database earns its keep.

Who this applies to in Colorado

Colorado Springs is a heavily public-service town. Military service is a qualifying employment category for PSLF, which matters to the thousands of service members stationed in and around the Pikes Peak region.

Beyond the military, local public school teachers, employees of public colleges and universities, city and county government workers, and staff at qualifying not-for-profit organizations may all hold PSLF-eligible jobs.

If you carry federal student loans and work for any employer in these categories, certifying your employment is how you turn that job into documented progress toward loan forgiveness. Here is the certification process.

How do I certify my employment for PSLF?

If you believe you work for a qualifying employer, you need to fill out and submit a PSLF form to certify that your employment qualifies for PSLF. The form is also how you keep track of your eligible employment and qualifying payments.

Submitting electronically through the PSLF Help Tool

The electronic route runs through the PSLF Help Tool. You confirm your employer in the Employer Database, the tool prepopulates employer information, and you send the form through the website to your employer for employment verification.

Once your employer verifies the employment, you digitally sign and submit the application electronically to your loan servicer.

Submitting the manual PSLF form

Alternatively, you download the blank PSLF form from the U.S. Department of Education, complete your section, and have your employer complete and sign their section.

Whichever method you use, the PSLF form is the official record that your employment qualifies. Certifying regularly keeps your record of qualifying employment and qualifying payments current, which matters even more if you change jobs.

What the official sources say

The guidance in this article comes from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s answer to how to certify that you work for a qualified employer for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, last reviewed in May 2024.

For the tool itself, the authoritative resource is the Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool page, which covers which employers qualify and walks through the process for submitting the PSLF form.

Questions about your specific loans — which ones you hold, where they are serviced, and how your payments are being counted — go to your loan servicer. With the sources in hand, here is your next move.

What to do next

Start with the Employer Database inside the PSLF Help Tool and search for your employer. If the employer qualifies for PSLF, complete the PSLF form through the tool, send it to your employer for verification, then digitally sign and submit it to your loan servicer.

If your employer is a not-for-profit that is not a 501(c)(3), review the Department of Education’s guidance on organizations that devote a majority of full-time equivalent employees to qualifying work, and confirm your situation before counting on PSLF.

Repeat the certification whenever you change public service jobs — including after a PCS move — so your record of qualifying employment and qualifying payments stays complete.

Frequently asked questions

What is the fastest way to check if my employer qualifies for PSLF?

Use the Employer Database built into the Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool. It determines whether your employer qualifies for PSLF and prepopulates employer information on the PSLF form from the database.

Does military service count as qualifying employment for PSLF?

Yes. Qualifying employers include U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government agencies, and military service is specifically listed as qualifying employment — relevant to many borrowers stationed in Colorado Springs.

Can a nonprofit that is not a 501(c)(3) qualify for PSLF?

It can. A not-for-profit that is not qualified under section 501(c)(3) of the IRS code is still considered a qualifying employer if it devotes a majority of its full-time equivalent employees to working in certain areas. The Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool page has the details.

How do I submit the PSLF form?

You can submit it electronically through the PSLF Help Tool: the tool sends the form to your employer for employment verification, then you digitally sign and submit it to your loan servicer. Alternatively, you can download a blank manual PSLF form directly from the U.S. Department of Education.

Why should I certify my employment instead of waiting?

The PSLF form is how you certify that your employment qualifies for PSLF and how you keep track of your eligible employment and qualifying payments. Certifying as you go keeps that record current, especially if you change public service jobs.

719 Lending Inc., NMLS #1601989 · Equal Housing Opportunity

719 Lending Inc. is not affiliated with or endorsed by HUD, FHA, VA, USDA, CHFA, the CFPB, or any government agency.

Last updated: October 2026