Millions of student loan borrowers who are severely delinquent in their payments will see wage garnishments hit their paychecks in January, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Education confirmed to ABC News Tuesday.

The move is months in the making and comes as the Trump administration continues to revamp the nearly $1.7 trillion student loan system impacting more than 40 million Americans. Around 5 million Americans have defaulted on student loan payments, which means they haven’t paid their debts for at least nine months or 270 days. When the loan officially enters default, it becomes eligible for mandatory collections.

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