FAFSA 2027–28 and the new Parent PLUS limits: what parents need to know

Key dates for the 2027–28 aid year

The Department publishes the formal deadline notice for each aid year in the Federal Register partway through the cycle. The 2027–28 notice had not been published as of October 31, 2026. For 2026–27, the notice set June 30, 2027 as the last day to submit the form and September 11, 2027 for corrections.

What the 2027–28 FAFSA asks for

• 2025 tax information. The FAFSA uses tax data from two years before the school year starts. Each contributor (the student and the parent or parents whose information is required) logs in with their own StudentAid.gov account and gives consent to transfer federal tax information from the IRS. Without that consent, the student cannot get a Student Aid Index or federal aid.
• Current assets as of the day you file, such as savings and investments, where the form asks for them.
• The colleges that should get your results.

The Department’s September 23, 2026 announcement lists several changes for 2027–28: clearer questions, the option to invite a parent contributor by text message, and pre-filled forms for returning students later this fall. Parents with more than one child applying can reuse their information across applications.

Pell and the Student Aid Index, as they affect Parent PLUS

• The FAFSA produces a Student Aid Index (SAI). Schools use it, with the cost of attendance, to decide need-based aid such as the Pell Grant. You can see an estimate of Pell eligibility right after submitting.
• Parent PLUS is not need-based and does not depend on the SAI. But the student must have a FAFSA on file, and the school subtracts every grant and scholarship from the cost of attendance before setting the most you can borrow. More grant money means you need less PLUS.
• The 2027–28 maximum Pell Grant had not been announced as of October 31, 2026. For 2026–27 it is $7,395.
• Under the 2025 law, starting in 2026–27, a student whose SAI is at least twice the maximum Pell Grant cannot get Pell, and neither can a student whose non-federal grants and scholarships cover the full cost of attendance.

Parent PLUS is a separate application

1. The student files the FAFSA and lists the colleges. Schools need it on file before they can offer any federal loan, including Parent PLUS.
2. The school sends an aid offer. It may list Parent PLUS as an option. Under the new rules, the most you can borrow is the lowest of: cost of attendance minus other aid, $20,000 for the year, and what is left of the $65,000 total for that student.
3. The parent applies on StudentAid.gov for the 2027–28 award year and the school, or follows the school’s own steps. Schools generally say a credit approval is good for 180 days, so most parents apply in late spring or summer before the fall term.
4. Credit check. You are denied only for an adverse credit history: debts over $2,085 that are 90 or more days delinquent, or debts placed in collection or charged off in the past two years; or, in the past five years, a default, bankruptcy discharge, foreclosure, repossession, tax lien, wage garnishment, or write-off of federal student aid debt. Having no credit history is not adverse.
5. If you are denied, you have three choices. You can get an endorser (a creditworthy co-signer), or document extenuating circumstances; both require PLUS credit counseling. Or you can decline, and the student can get extra Direct Unsubsidized Loans: $4,000 more a year in the first two years and $5,000 after that.
6. Sign the Master Promissory Note for Parent PLUS if you haven’t already, then the school disburses the loan. The origination fee comes out of each disbursement.

Reaching the $65,000 cap is not the same as being denied. The Department has said hitting the cap does not give the student the extra Unsubsidized Loan amounts.

How the caps apply in 2027–28

The $20,000 annual and $65,000 total limits apply per dependent student and are shared by all parents who borrow for that student. The legacy provision keeps the old limits (cost of attendance minus aid, no total cap) for students who were enrolled in a program on June 30, 2026 and had a federal Direct Loan (theirs or a parent’s) disbursed for it before July 1, 2026. It lasts the lesser of three academic years or the time left in the program, counted from July 1, 2026.

The federal loan system flags legacy students and tells the school. Check your own case with the legacy checker, and see every rule in Parent PLUS loan limits.

Month-by-month timeline for the 2027–28 aid cycle

November 2026

• Make a StudentAid.gov account for the student and for each parent who must contribute information. New accounts can take time to verify, so do this first.
• Gather your 2025 federal tax return and current bank and investment balances.
• File the FAFSA and list every college the student is applying to. Returning students can wait for the pre-filled renewal form if their deadlines allow.
• Look up the FAFSA deadline for your state’s grants and each college’s priority date, and put them on your calendar.

December 2026 to February 2027

• Early decision and early action results, often with aid offers, arrive.
• Estimate the gap at each school: start with the college pages or the gap calculator. The gap study shows how the caps play out at 80 large colleges.
• Meet state and college priority deadlines. Answer any request for documents (verification) quickly.

March to April 2027

• Regular decision aid offers arrive. Compare net cost, not sticker price.
• If your income dropped or you have unusual expenses, ask each aid office for a professional judgment review.
• Decide how you will cover any gap beyond $20,000 a year. See options for covering the gap.

May 2027

• Many colleges ask for a deposit by May 1. Accept or decline each part of the aid offer.
• The 10-year Treasury auction in May sets the 2027–28 federal loan interest rates.

June to July 2027

• Apply for Parent PLUS on StudentAid.gov or through the school. If denied, decide on an endorser, an appeal, or extra Unsubsidized Loans for the student.
• Sign the Master Promissory Note. The student completes entrance counseling and their own MPN.
• July 1, 2027: the 2027–28 award year and new interest rate begin.

August to September 2027

• The first disbursement goes to the school, minus the origination fee. Pay any remaining balance by the school’s due date.

October 2027 to June 2028

• The 2028–29 FAFSA opens (by October 1, 2027 under federal law). File it for next year.
• Spring disbursements arrive around January 2028.
• June 30, 2028: last day to submit a 2027–28 FAFSA, for example if the student needs aid for a summer term.