Make sure you meet Sallie Mae’s criteria before you apply for cosigner release:
There are a couple of ways you can meet this requirement:
This doesn’t include the reduced repayments you made while you were in school or during your grace period.
Loans in hardship forbearance or on a modified repayment plan like income-driven or graduated repayments can’t qualify.
This requirement isn’t all or nothing: If only some of your Sallie Mae loans are ineligible, you can still apply for cosigner release on the others that qualify.
This means you have to show you have a steady income that can cover your repayments. In addition to this, Sallie Mae will ask for details on your monthly expenses in the application.
While Sallie Mae doesn’t disclose credit score requirements for cosigner release, you’ll have a better chance of getting approved if you have good to excellent credit.
If you have any negative marks on your credit report, you won’t qualify. This includes:
If you didn’t graduate, you can’t qualify for cosigner release. You must submit documentation to show that you finished your program along with the cosigner release application.
International students who became US citizens or permanent residents need to submit proof of their status change.
This is 18 in most states, with a few exceptions:
Only the primary borrower — in most cases, the student — can request a cosigner release. As long as they meet all the requirements, the primary borrower can take a cosigner off any Sallie Mae student loan, including parental loans.
However, there’s little a cosigner can do to take themselves off the loan, other than paying off the full balance.
Think you check off all the requirements? Follow these steps to apply for cosigner release:
You can find the cosigner release application on Sallie Mae’s website. You can either fill it out on your computer using a PDF reader or by hand.
Either way, you’ll eventually need to print out the application to date and sign it before submitting it to Sallie Mae.
Double-check the requirements listed on the cosigner release application to make sure you meet all criteria. If you aren’t sure, reach out to customer service by calling 800-472-5543.
Type or neatly print the following information about yourself on your application form:
Finished? Print out the application to sign and date it.
You need to provide documents to prove you finished your program, verify your income and confirm your citizenship status if it changed since you first took out the loan.
Depending on your program, you can submit a copy of one of these documents to prove you graduated:
You need to provide at least one of the following documents to verify your income:
Submit a copy of your certificate of naturalization or other proof of your new citizenship status along with your application.
There are three ways you can submit your application:
1. Mail
Mail in your application and copies of your documents to the following address:
Sallie Mae
PO Box 3319
Wilmington, DE 19804-4319
2. Fax
Fax your application and documents to Sallie Mae at 844-822-1121.
3. Online
Follow these steps to submit your application online:
Sallie Mae will review your application and send you a decision. If you qualify, the loan will be transferred into your name. Otherwise, you’ll continue to repay the loan with your cosigner still on it.
Sallie Mae has several contact numbers, depending on the nature of your inquiry.
Sallie Mae’s customer service lines are open during the following hours:
Another way to remove your cosigner from your student loan is to refinance with another lender. Some lenders have more flexible requirements than Sallie Mae — many don’t require you to have graduated, for example. And you can even bring on a different cosigner to help you qualify if your income or credit aren’t high enough.
Your chances of qualifying for cosigner release are high if you’ve made a year of on-time repayments and have strong credit and income. But you can’t qualify if you have debt from a college program you didn’t finish.
You can learn more about your options for removing your cosigner from your student loans with our guide to student loan refinancing.
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