What's New?
Changes to Federal Student Aid for 2026-2027
Regulatory changes were signed into law on July 4, 2025 through Public Law 119-21, better known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act - (OBBBA).
Note: Several details regarding this bill are still being finalized. Please plan to visit this page or www.studentaid.gov regularly as updates will be provided when they become available.
Summary of changes to take effect on July 1, 2026 are as follows:
Undergraduate Students
- Reduced eligibility when grants & scholarships cover the Cost of Attendance.
Current annual borrowing limits for undergraduate dependent and independent students remain the same, they can be viewed here.
YEAR IN COLLEGE |
DEPENDENT STUDENTS |
INDEPENDENT STUDENTS(and Dependent Undergraduate students whose parents are unable to obtain PLUS loans) |
| Freshman | $5,500 - No more than $3,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. | $9,500 - No more than $3,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. |
| Sophomore | $6,500 - No more than $4,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. | $10,500 - No more than $4,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. |
| Junior/Senior | $7,500 - No more than $5,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. | $12,500 - No more than $5,500 of this amount may be in subsidized loans. |
Effective July 1, 2026, Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans will be prorated based on the number of credits a student is taking per semester.
- If students are enrolled full time per Fall & Spring semester (F/S), they will be eligible for 50% of the annual amount for each semester.
- If students are enrolled less than full time, loans will be prorated and reduced based on the number of credits being taken per semester.
- The total annual percentage used will vary based on fall and spring enrollment.
ENROLLMENT STATUS |
# OF CREDITS |
FALL |
SPRING |
TOTAL |
| Full-Time |
12+ |
50% | 50% | 100% |
| Three-Quarter Time |
11 |
46% | 46% | 92% |
| 10 | 42% | 42% | 83% | |
| 9 | 38% | 38% | 75% | |
| 8 | 34% | 34% | 67% | |
| 7 | 29% | 29% | 58% | |
| Half-Time | 6 | 25% | 25% | 50% |
| Less Than Half-Time | <5 | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Current aggregate borrowing limits for undergraduate dependent and independent students remain the same, they can be viewed here.
LOAN TYPE |
CURRENT LIMITS |
AS AMENDED BY P.L. 119-21 |
| Subsidized Loan | $23,000 - (dependent or independent) | Unchanged |
| Unsubsidized Loan |
$31,000 minus Subsidized Loans (dependent) $57,500 minus Subsidized Loans (independent) |
Unchanged |
| Parent PLUS Loan | Not Limited | $65,000 |
- Federal Parent Plus Loans will have an annual cap of $20,000 per dependent student with an aggregate limit of $65,000.
Graduate Students
- Public Law 119-21 defines a “professional student” as a student enrolled in a program of study that awards a degree that signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor’s degree.
- Professional licensure is also generally required.
- A list of professional degrees can be found in the Public Law 119-21 link provided (See page 6 on Loan Limits from Contents page).
New Borrowing limits for the Federal Direct Unsubsidized loan program:
PROGRAM TYPE |
LOAN TYPE |
CURRENT LIMITS |
AS AMENDED BY PL 119-21 |
| Graduate | Unsubsidized Loan | $20,500 | $20,500 |
| Professional |
Unsubsidized Loan |
$20,500 | $50,000 |
New Lifetime Aggregate limits for the Federal Direct Loans programs:
PROGRAM TYPE |
LOAN TYPE |
CURRENT LIMITS |
AS AMENDED BY PL 119-21 |
| Graduate | Unsubsidized Loan | Limit Unspecified |
$100,000 or $200,000 minus amounts borrowed as a professional student. |
| Professional |
Unsubsidized Loan |
Limit Unspecified |
$200,000 or $200,000 minus amounts borrowed as a graduate student. |
| Combined |
Undergraduate (Subsidized & Unsubsidized Loans) + Graduate or Professional (Unsubsidized Loans) |
$138,500 | $257,500 |
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Options will be eliminated if you are not a professional student and/or you haven’t borrowed a Federal Graduate PLUS loan through your program prior to July 1, 2026.
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If you have previously borrowed Federal Graduate Plus loans, you will be grandfathered into future borrowing for 3 years or until you finish your current program, whichever comes first (borrowing amounts could be limited). Updates will be provided as they are disclosed.
Additional Funding Options
- Assistance with additional funding options through alternative/private lenders can be found on our Alternative Loans page at FastChoice.
Standard Loan Repayment Plans for New Borrowers
- 10 years for a total principal balance of less than $25,000
- 15 years for a total principal balance of at least $25,000 and less than $50,000
- 20 years for a total principal balance of at least $50,000 and less than $100,000; and
- 25 years for a total principal balance of $100,000 or more.
Additional information regarding Income Driven Repayment plans (IDR) can be found in Public Law 119-21