Meet a single dad with $200,000 in student debt who isn't eligible for Biden's loan forgiveness: The income cap 'is definitely an oversight.'

• Biden capped his student-loan forgiveness to only include borrowers making under $125,000 a year.
• Alex, a single dad with $200,000 in student debt, makes just over the income cap.

President Joe Biden's student-loan forgiveness was intended to target the borrowers who need it the most. But one borrower who didn't make the cut says he really could have benefitted from the relief.

Alex, who requested his last name be withheld for privacy but whose identity is known to Insider, is a single dad with a $200,000 student debt load from graduate school in the early 1990s. Currently working in the media industry, he makes just over $125,000 — which is the income cap for Biden's debt cancellation — meaning he does not qualify for federal relief. But he said his six-figure salary doesn't necessarily mean he's equipped to pay off his debt burden, and instituting that cap is "definitely an oversight."

"I'm a single, divorced dad, I still pay child support, and in the end my income on paper isn't necessarily what I get," Alex said. "I consider myself a responsible person, but I think all of us have made decisions that could have been better financially speaking and we should get some breathing room."

Biden's income cap was intended to counter the criticism that his student-loan forgiveness would benefit the highest earners, like doctors and lawyers. He ensured Pell Grant recipients, who come from low-income households, would be eligible for the highest amount of possible debt relief. It's undoubtedly a significant measure — 20 million federal borrowers are set to see their entire balances wiped out — and it was a long-awaited announcement, as well, given Biden promised $10,000 in loan forgiveness on the campaign trail.

While Alex acknowledged $10,000 in relief wouldn't make a huge dent in his balance, he's disappointed he can't get any help paying off his loans while he's still balancing a number of other expenses.

"I'm living with my sister to save some money, and I've had to utilize extra funds for necessities, like clothing for my kids, schooling, and food," Alex said. "I don't even know the last time I've taken a vacation. I was hoping for more from Biden."

'It's a burden that's always in the back of my mind'

Alex took on student loans to attend business school, but upon graduation he faced difficulty finding a job so his loans were placed on deferment for financial hardship, during which interest continued to accumulate. Once he got off deferment, he said he was placed on an income-driven repayment plan that allowed him to make $0 monthly payments. He hoped that once it came time to resume payments Biden would enact substantial student-loan forgiveness.

"One of the things he advocated for when he was looking to become president was that he would look strongly into addressing student debt," Alex said. "And that for me was one of the main reasons I voted for him, and that it's taken this long to even just get $10,000 and it's capped at $125,000 and doesn't help me in any way, is just disappointing."

In the months leading up to Biden's final decision, many Democratic lawmakers and advocates were urging the president to go as big as possible on relief without targeting it. Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, for example, led her colleagues in requesting information from the Education Department in June on how it planned to implement student-debt relief "should the administration not follow the strong advice of experts and academics against including an income cap or other means-testing."

Insider also previously reported that placing income caps on relief could be an administrative burden with the potential to block low-income borrowers out who may not have the resources they need to apply. "You're not making the policy more progressive because of how hard it's going to be for folks to demonstrate that they have a low enough income to benefit," Mike Pierce, executive director of nonprofit Student Borrower Protection Center, said.

Still, the White House maintains that it's equipped to roll out Biden's relief and will make available an application in early October for federal borrowers to self-certify their income. But for Alex, the only way he can see himself paying off his loans anytime soon is by getting a pay cut so he can qualify for relief, and he said he's facing a lot of financial uncertainty once it comes time for him to resume paying off his debt next year.

"It's a burden that's always in the back of my mind," he said. "It doesn't go away. It's unfortunate because it's caused stress and it's limited me to not be able to do some of the things I want to do, like purchase property and create a home for myself and my daughter. It's not the way I want to live."

How does student-loan forgiveness impact you? Share your story with Ayelet Sheffey at asheffey@insider.com.