NYC Medallion Relief Program (MRP+): How It Works

In short: The Medallion Relief Program (MRP) helped small medallion owners shrink loans taken out when medallions cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. The City paid a $20,000 grant (MRP) or a $30,000 grant plus a loan guaranty (MRP+) toward a restructured loan, and free lawyers negotiated with the lender. Owners with an interest in six or fewer medallions qualified. The program is closed: TLC accepted no grant applications after April 30, 2024. By TLC's count it provided about $470+ million in debt relief. Free legal help for small owners still exists.

This guide explains how the program worked, what it changed on a loan, and where owners can get help now. It is not legal or financial advice.

What MRP did

A medallion owner with a big loan met with a free lawyer. The lawyer negotiated with the lender to lower the principal, the interest rate and the monthly payment. The City's grant was used as a down payment on that restructured or settled loan (TLC MRP page). TLC described it as "not a bailout for banks": lenders had to reduce the debt and payments to take part.

The two options

Minimum cuts for an MRP grant (rule 58-51(b)(6)). The restructured loan had to:

• cut principal by at least 40% with a monthly payment under $2,000; or
• cut principal by at least 30% with a payment under $1,750; or
• cut principal by at least 20% with a payment under $1,500; or
• cut principal by at least 10% with other terms the program administrator found favorable, such as longer terms, waived penalties or no confession of judgment.

What that meant on a real loan (illustration)

These numbers are only an example of how the rule's tests work, not anyone's actual deal. Say an owner owed $400,000 and paid $3,000 a month. To pass the first MRP test, the lender would have to cut the principal by at least 40%, to $240,000 or less, and the new payment would have to be under $2,000 a month. For MRP+, the restructured loan had to end up at $170,000 or less, at a fixed rate no higher than 7.3%, paid off over 10 to 25 years, with a level payment no higher than $1,235 a month and no personal guaranty. The grant ($20,000 or $30,000) was paid toward that new deal; it was not cash in the owner's pocket.

Supplemental grants (58-51(c)) could help an owner who had received a grant and then hit a temporary hardship, for example having no vehicle on the medallion or being unable to drive.

Who qualified

From rule 58-51(b) and TLC's FAQ:

• You had to be a medallion owner with an interest in no more than six medallions. "Interest" meant being listed in TLC's records as an owner, officer, partner or shareholder when the program was announced in March 2021.
• You had to have acquired the interest no later than March 9, 2021.
• If anyone with an interest in your medallion also had an interest in more than six medallions, the medallion was not eligible.
• One grant per medallion, and one applicant per medallion.
• You did not have to be a driver.

How the process ran

Results

Most of the relief came through MRP+: 2,064 medallions and $400,171,323 forgiven, against 311 medallions and $72,780,461 under the original MRP 1. Even in 2024, the last application year, 94 more medallions were approved (OFS Annual Report 2024).

Different TLC documents round the total differently: "$472 million … for the owners of 2,376 medallions" (Strategic Plan 2025), "$472 million in debt relief for over 2,000 medallion owners" (O/DRC FAQ), and "over $476 million in debt relief for the owners of over 2,300 medallions" since March 2021 (2025 Annual Report). The safe summary: about $470+ million, as of the end of 2025.

Status in 2026

The program no longer takes applications. If your loan was restructured under MRP+, the guaranty stays with you and does not transfer if you sell the medallion. Keep your restructured loan current: a default can bar you from medallion ownership for five years, and ATLAS requires an MRP loan to be current and not in default. Short answer page: is the Medallion Relief Program still open?

Lenders that took part

TLC's Office of Financial Stability says over 25 lenders participated in MRP 1. For MRP+, it lists participating lenders including New York Community Bank, PenFed Credit Union, Yellow Funding Corp. and others (OFS 2024). TLC's FAQ said lenders had to reduce the debt and monthly payments to participate.

If your loan was restructured: what to watch now

• Stay current. Under MRP+, a default bars you from acquiring a medallion interest for five years.
• Report it. Your yearly medallion owner financial disclosure asks for the number and balances of your medallion loans.
• Selling? The guaranty doesn't go to the buyer, so the sale price has to settle or carry your loan. Get legal advice before you list the medallion; see buying a medallion for how transfers and liens work.
• Keep the medallion working. Storage over 60 days risks revocation; see medallion storage.

Help you can still get

• Free legal services for owners of six or fewer medallions: loan and contract review, debt and credit cards, bankruptcy basics, estate planning, setting up an LLC or corporation. Appointments Tuesdays and Wednesdays, walk-in Thursdays, at TLC's Long Island City office (O/DRC FAQ). Not for TLC or OATH summonses.
• Financial counseling referrals to NYC Financial Empowerment Centers (free; they don't give grants or loans).
• Book at portal.driverresourcecenter.tlc.nyc.gov, or call 718-391-5511. MRP questions: MRP@tlc.nyc.gov.
• Accessible taxi money is a separate program: ATLAS and TIF grants.

Background on why so many owners needed relief is in the history of the NYC taxi medallion. Foreclosure counts are on medallion transfers and foreclosures, and the term is defined in the glossary. More on the medallions hub.