Establishment of Loan Limits for Graduate and Professional Students and Parent Borrowers; Termination of Graduate and Professional Plus Loans
Section 81001 · Sec. 81001 ·
What this chapter is about
This part caps federal loans for graduate and parent borrowers. Grad PLUS loans end after July 1, 2026. A grad student may borrow $20,500 a year and a professional student $50,000. A lifetime cap of $257,500 applies to students.
The document says “shall not”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2026, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan under this part.”
The section adds a new subparagraph (C) to section 455(a)(3) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) making a graduate or professional student ineligible for a Federal Direct PLUS Loan for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2026, subject to the interim exception. It also caps the earlier unsubsidized borrowing rule at periods ending June 30, 2026.
What the document actually says
“for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2026, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan under this part.”
That sentence, in plain words
A grad or pro student may not get this loan. That covers study starting on or after July 1, 2026.
What this is about
The loan is the Federal Direct PLUS Loan. One exception covers students already enrolled. Their old limits carry on for a time.
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The document says “shall”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“a graduate student, who is not a professional student, may borrow in any academic year or its equivalent shall be $20,500; and”
The section adds a new paragraph (4) to section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 setting, from July 1, 2026, an annual cap on Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans of $20,500 for a graduate student who is not a professional student and $50,000 for a professional student. A graduate student is one in a program awarding a graduate credential other than a professional degree, and a professional student is one in a program awarding a professional degree as defined in section 668.2 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations.
What the document actually says
“a graduate student, who is not a professional student, may borrow in any academic year or its equivalent shall be $20,500; and”
That sentence, in plain words
A grad student may borrow up to $20,500 in a year. That is a grad student who is not a pro student.
What this is about
A pro student may borrow up to $50,000. The rule starts on July 1, 2026. The section says what each term means.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
The document says “shall”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“who is not (and has not been) a professional student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(i) shall be $100,000; or”
The section caps, from July 1, 2026 and on top of undergraduate borrowing, total Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans at $100,000 for a graduate student who has never been a professional student, and $200,000 for a professional student who has never been a graduate student. A student who has been both is capped at $200,000 less what they borrowed for the other kind of program.
What the document actually says
“who is not (and has not been) a professional student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(i) shall be $100,000; or”
That sentence, in plain words
A grad student may borrow up to $100,000 in all. That is for grad study.
What this is about
That holds for a student who was never a pro student. A pro student's cap is $200,000. A student who was both shares the higher cap.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
The document says “shall”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“the total maximum annual amount of Federal Direct PLUS loans that may be borrowed on behalf of that dependent student by all parents of that dependent student shall be $20,000.”
The section adds a new paragraph (5) to section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 capping, from July 1, 2026, PLUS borrowing by all parents of a dependent student at $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total for that student, without regard to any amount repaid, forgiven, canceled or otherwise discharged.
What the document actually says
“the total maximum annual amount of Federal Direct PLUS loans that may be borrowed on behalf of that dependent student by all parents of that dependent student shall be $20,000.”
That sentence, in plain words
All parents together may borrow up to $20,000 a year. That is for one dependent child.
What this is about
The total cap for that child is $65,000. Money paid back does not free up room. Nor does money forgiven or canceled.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
The document says “shall”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“the maximum aggregate amount of loans made, insured, or guaranteed under this title that a student may borrow”
The section adds a new paragraph (6) to section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 capping, from July 1, 2026, at $257,500 the total a student may borrow under title IV, other than a PLUS or section 428B loan the student takes as a parent for a dependent, without regard to any amount repaid, forgiven, canceled or otherwise discharged.
What the document actually says
“the maximum aggregate amount of loans made, insured, or guaranteed under this title that a student may borrow”
That sentence, in plain words
There is a cap on what one student may borrow in all. It covers loans under this title of the law.
What this is about
The cap is $257,500. It starts on July 1, 2026. Loans a person takes as a parent are left out.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
The document says “shall”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“the amount of a loan that student may borrow for an academic year or its equivalent shall be reduced in direct proportion to the degree to which that student is not so enrolled on a full-time basis, rounded to the nearest whole percentage point”
The section cuts a part-time student's annual loan in direct proportion to how far short of full-time they are, rounded to the nearest whole percentage point, under a schedule the Secretary publishes. It also lets a school, at the discretion of a financial aid administrator and from July 1, 2026, cap what students and their parents may borrow for a program of study, so long as the cap applies to every student in that program.
What the document actually says
“the amount of a loan that student may borrow for an academic year or its equivalent shall be reduced in direct proportion to the degree to which that student is not so enrolled on a full-time basis, rounded to the nearest whole percentage point”
That sentence, in plain words
A part-time student may borrow less. The cut tracks how far short of full time they are.
What this is about
It is rounded to the nearest whole point. The Secretary publishes the table. A school may also set its own lower cap.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
The document says “shall not”Who acts: Secretary of EducationHow: statuteSec. 81001 in the PDF
What the document says
“Paragraphs (3)(C), (4), (5), and (6) shall not apply, and paragraph (3)(A)(ii) shall apply as such paragraph was in effect for periods of instruction ending before June 30, 2026, during the expected time to credential described in subparagraph (B), with respect to an individual who, as of June 30, 2026--”
The section keeps the old rules in place, and the new caps out, for the expected time to credential of a person who as of June 30, 2026 is enrolled in a program and has received or benefited from a loan for it. The expected time to credential is the lesser of three academic years or the program length minus the part already completed, program length being the shortest time an institution's own catalog or materials gives for a full-time student to finish.
What the document actually says
“Paragraphs (3)(C), (4), (5), and (6) shall not apply, and paragraph (3)(A)(ii) shall apply as such paragraph was in effect for periods of instruction ending before June 30, 2026, during the expected time to credential described in subparagraph (B), with respect to an individual who, as of June 30, 2026--”
That sentence, in plain words
The new caps do not reach a student already enrolled. The old rule carries on instead. That lasts for their expected time to finish.
What this is about
The student must have been enrolled on June 30, 2026. They must already have a loan for that program. The pass lasts three years at most.
No action is recorded against this proposal. That is not evidence that none has been taken, and nobody has yet read it against the record. See what the tracker does not yet cover.
Each distinct thing the section does: end graduate PLUS loans from July 1, 2026, set annual and total caps for graduate and professional students, define those two terms, cap parent PLUS borrowing, set a lifetime student cap, cut loans for part-time study and let schools set lower limits, and give students already enrolled an interim exception.
The heading and punctuation edits that carry the new paragraphs into the surrounding text.
The section works by amending section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and points to sections 428B, 428H and 481 of that Act and to title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, none of which is indexed here.
