
In a troubling trend for senior citizens, American pensioners are seeing a portion of their Social Security benefits withheld to repay outstanding student loans.
The figures are worrisome as nearly 114,000 Americans aged 62 and older saw their Social Security benefits reduced due to outstanding student loan debt, over 450,000 individuals had their benefits reduced and the total outstanding federal student loan debt surpassed $1.7 trillion (£1.25 trillion) as of 2025.