A federal appeals court stopped the introduction president Joe Bidens Student Loan Forgiveness Program Friday, just days after the government began accepting applications from borrowers for forgiveness of up to $20,000 in student loan debt.

The US 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has granted an emergency motion to stay the loan forgiveness plan, Reuters said in a report.

The federal appeals court’s decision comes in a case by six Republican-run states that sought an injunction to stop the policy after a district court dismissed the case.

According to the White House press secretary, the district court order does not prevent borrowers from applying for student debt relief or prevent the Biden administration from reviewing applications Karine Jean Pierre.

“We encourage eligible borrowers to join the nearly 22 million Americans whose information the Department of Education already has,” said Jean-Pierre.

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“It is important to note that the order does not reverse the court’s dismissal of the case or suggest that the case has merit,” she added. “It merely prevents the debt from being settled until the Court of Appeals has made a decision.”

Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina claim Biden’s plan eluded Congressional authority and threatened states’ future tax revenues.

The appeals court has given the administration until Monday to respond to the state’s request, and states have until Tuesday to respond to that response.

Biden has said the Department of Education will see to that Up to $10,000 in federal student debt relief for individuals with annual incomes of less than $125,000 or for married couples with combined incomes of $250,000 or less.

Up to $20,000 in debt relief is available to Pell Grant recipients.

He previously announced that the pause in federal student loan repayments would be extended one final time…