2026 federal student loan borrowing limits
For periods of enrollment beginning on or after July 1, 2026, the 2025 tax-and-spending law (P.L. 119-21 § 81001, which the U.S. Department of Education now calls the "Working Families Tax Cuts Act", previously the One Big Beautiful Bill Act) rewrote the federal student loan borrowing caps. This table lists every new annual and aggregate limit — graduate, professional, Parent PLUS, and the new $257,500 lifetime cap — alongside the undergraduate limits that did not change. Figures are transcribed from 20 U.S.C. § 1087e(a) and the Department's RISE final rule (34 CFR § 685.203).
The full table of 2026 caps
Tap a column header to sort; search to filter. "Aggregate" is the lifetime total you can owe in that category. All figures are for Direct Loans; the caps apply to loans made for enrollment periods starting on or after July 1, 2026.
| Borrower / loan type | Annual limit | Aggregate limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graduate (Direct Unsubsidized) | $20,500 | $100,000 | Grad PLUS ended for new borrowers. Applies to a student who is not (and has not been) a professional student. |
| Professional (Direct Unsubsidized) | $50,000 | $200,000 | Shares one $200,000 aggregate pool with graduate borrowing. "Professional degree" classification is in active litigation. |
| Parent PLUS (per dependent student) | $20,000 | $65,000 | New caps, combined across all parents per dependent student. Excluded from the $257,500 lifetime cap; its own odometer. |
| Undergraduate — dependent | $5,500–$7,500 | $31,000 | Unchanged by the 2025 law. Annual limit rises by year in school; max subsidized $23,000 of the aggregate. |
| Undergraduate — independent | $9,500–$12,500 | $57,500 | Unchanged by the 2025 law. Higher limits than dependent undergraduates; annual limit rises by year in school. |
| Federal lifetime cap (all student borrowing) | — | $257,500 | New. Counts every federal loan ever made to the borrower, without regard to amounts repaid, forgiven, or discharged. Excludes Parent PLUS. |
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About these limits
- What changed on July 1, 2026
- P.L. 119-21 § 81001 ended Grad PLUS for new borrowers, set fixed annual and aggregate caps for graduate, professional, and Parent PLUS loans, and created a first-ever $257,500 aggregate lifetime cap on federal student borrowing. It did not change the annual or aggregate limits for loans made directly to undergraduate students.
- Graduate vs. professional
- Graduate and professional students share one $200,000 aggregate pool; borrowing in one status reduces what is left in the other. Whether a program counts as "professional" (higher $50,000/$200,000 caps) or "graduate" ($20,500/$100,000) is the subject of active litigation — see the note above and check the current Department of Education list before relying on a classification.
- The lifetime cap is an odometer
- The $257,500 lifetime cap counts every federal loan ever made to the borrower (undergraduate, graduate, professional, and old Grad PLUS) "without regard to any amounts repaid, forgiven, canceled, or otherwise discharged." Parent PLUS is excluded from this cap and has its own separate $65,000-per-dependent-student odometer.
- Source of record
- Figures are transcribed from the codified statute 20 U.S.C. § 1087e(a) (HEA § 455(a), as amended by P.L. 119-21 § 81001) and the Department of Education's RISE final rule, 91 FR 23768 (May 1, 2026), amending 34 CFR §§ 685.102 / 685.200 / 685.203. This is general information about student aid policy, not financial or legal advice.
Cite this data
Free to use and republish with attribution. Suggested citation:
Tools Berry, "2026 Federal Student Loan Borrowing Limits", tools-berry.com/data/2026-student-loan-limits/ (updated July 13, 2026), from 20 U.S.C. § 1087e(a) and 34 CFR § 685.203.
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