ISTANBUL

US President Joe Biden announced Thursday his administration is canceling an additional $1.2 billion student debt for another 35,000 borrowers.

The latest action brings the total loan forgiveness amount approved by the Biden administration to more than $168 billion for approximately 4.8 million Americans.

"These 35,000 borrowers approved for forgiveness today are public service workers – teachers, nurses, law enforcement officials, and first responders who have dedicated their lives to strengthening their communities, and because of the fixes we made to Public Service Loan Forgiveness, they will now have more breathing room to support themselves and their families," Biden said in a statement released by the White House.

The president stressed that higher education is "a ticket" to the middle class, not a barrier to opportunity. "I will never stop working to make higher education affordable – no matter how many times Republican elected officials try to stop us," he added.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2007, aims to provide indebted professionals a way out of their federal student loan debt burden by working full-time in public service.

The program allows direct loan borrowers who make 120 qualifying monthly payments, or 10 years, under a qualifying repayment plan, while working full-time for a qualifying employer, in order to have the remainder of their student loan balance forgiven.