Updated September 28, 2026

What changed for 2027–28.

What's new on this year's form, plus the loan and grant rules that changed in 2026 and still apply. In plain English, with sources.

The short version

  • The 2027–28 FAFSA opened September 23, 2026 and uses 2025 taxes
  • Parents can be invited by text with a QR code
  • Parent PLUS is capped at $20,000 a year and $65,000 per student
  • Grad PLUS is gone for new borrowers, and grad loans have new caps
  • Part-time students get smaller federal loans
  • No Pell Grant if your SAI is at least twice the maximum Pell
  • Family businesses, farms, and fishing businesses aren’t counted as assets
Timeline·Opened September 23, 2026Helpful

The 2027–28 FAFSA is open

The 2027–28 FAFSA went live to everyone on September 23, 2026, a week before the usual October 1 start. It covers school from July 1, 2027 to June 30, 2028, and it uses your 2025 tax information.

Key details

  • Federal deadline: June 30, 2028. Most state deadlines come much sooner.
  • Tax year: 2025 (the “prior-prior year”).
  • If you already submitted during the beta test in August or September, you don’t need to submit again.
Source: FSA: 2027–28 FAFSA beta testing plan (updated Sept. 23, 2026)Source: StudentAid.gov: 2027–28 FAFSA form (PDF)
The form·2027–28Helpful

What’s different on the 2027–28 form

The form itself changed only a little this year. Most changes make it easier to bring in a parent or spouse and to finish the last steps.

Key details

  • Students can scan a QR code to send their parent or spouse a text message inviting them to their FAFSA.
  • The “Signature” section is now called “Review & Sign,” and signing happens on one page.
  • The “Personal Circumstances” section is now called “Background.”
  • Questions about college plans, homelessness, and finishing high school were reworded to be clearer.
  • The question about filing a non-U.S. tax return is gone. A new question asks whether a contributor filed a 2025 return in Puerto Rico or another U.S. territory.
  • Most online forms are now processed in real time, a change that started in June 2026.
Source: Financial Aid Toolkit: FAFSA updatesSource: FSA: 2027–28 FAFSA Specifications Guide, Vol. 1 (PDF)
Parent PLUS·Since July 1, 2026Big change

Parent PLUS loans now have caps

Parent PLUS loans still exist, but there are now limits. Parents can borrow up to $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total for each dependent student. The yearly amount still can’t be more than the school’s cost of attendance minus other aid.

Key details

  • $20,000 per year per dependent student, counting all parents together.
  • $65,000 total per dependent student, counting past Parent PLUS borrowing for that student.
  • Parent PLUS is not reduced for part-time enrollment.
  • Families who already borrowed for the same program before July 1, 2026 may keep the old limits for a while. Ask the school.
Source: 34 CFR 685.203 (loan limits)Source: FSA: Loan limits FAQ (PDF)
Graduate students·Since July 1, 2026Big change

Grad PLUS is gone for new borrowers, and grad loans have new caps

Graduate and professional students who are new to their program can no longer get Grad PLUS loans. Direct Unsubsidized Loans now have firm yearly and total limits.

Key details

  • Graduate students: $20,500 a year, $100,000 total.
  • Professional students (for example medicine, law, pharmacy): $50,000 a year, $200,000 total. Which programs count as “professional” is still being decided in court.
  • Lifetime limit on all federal student loans: $257,500 (Parent PLUS doesn’t count toward it).
  • If you were enrolled and had a Direct Loan for your program before July 1, 2026, you may keep the old rules, including Grad PLUS, for up to 3 more years or the rest of your program, whichever is shorter.
Source: FSA: Loan limits FAQ (PDF)Source: FSA: Professional degree program list update
Part-time students·Since 2026–27Good to know

Part-time students get smaller federal loans

Yearly limits for Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized, and Grad PLUS loans are now cut to match how much you’re enrolled. If you take half a full-time load, you can borrow about half.

Key details

  • Example from the Education Department: 12 of 24 credits means 50%, so a $5,500 limit becomes $2,750.
  • Clock-hour and non-term programs aren’t affected.
  • Parent PLUS loans aren’t reduced.
Source: FSA: Reducing loan limits for less-than-full-time enrollment (PDF)
Pell Grants·Since 2026–27Big change

New Pell Grant cutoffs

If your Student Aid Index (SAI) is at least twice the maximum Pell Grant, you can’t get a Pell Grant. For 2026–27 the maximum is $7,395, so the cutoff is an SAI of $14,790. The 2027–28 maximum hasn’t been set yet, because Congress hasn’t finished next year’s budget.

Key details

  • 2026–27: maximum Pell Grant $7,395, so an SAI of $14,790 or more means no Pell.
  • 2027–28: the cutoff will be twice whatever maximum Congress sets. The Education Department usually announces it in winter.
  • You also can’t get Pell if non-federal grants and scholarships already cover your full cost of attendance.
  • Foreign earned income now counts toward income when deciding Pell eligibility.
Source: FSA: 2026–27 Pell Grant maximum and minimum (GEN-26-01)Source: FSA: FAFSA form and Pell Grant eligibility updates
Workforce Pell·Since July 1, 2026Helpful

Pell Grants for short job-training programs

Workforce Pell lets eligible students use Pell Grants for short, approved job-training programs. It’s new, so only a small number of programs are approved so far.

Key details

  • Programs are 150 to 599 clock hours and last at least 8 weeks but less than 15.
  • Each program needs state and federal approval and has to show strong completion and job-placement results.
  • Students who already have a bachelor’s degree can qualify. Students with a graduate degree can’t.
Source: Federal Register: Workforce Pell final rule (May 19, 2026)
Assets·Since 2026–27Helpful

Family businesses, farms, and fishing businesses don’t count

You don’t report a business your family owns and controls with 100 or fewer full-time (or full-time-equivalent) employees, a farm where your family lives, or a family commercial fishing business. For some families this lowers the SAI a lot.

Key details

  • On the paper 2027–28 form, this is question 22 for students and question 40 for parents.
  • Retirement accounts and the home you live in were already left out.
  • This rule came from the 2025 law often called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which the Education Department now calls the Working Families Tax Cuts Act.
Source: StudentAid.gov: 2027–28 FAFSA form (PDF)
Repayment·Since July 1, 2026Good to know

New repayment rules for new loans

Loans made on or after July 1, 2026 have a new set of repayment options, including a new income-based plan called the Repayment Assistance Plan. If you already have federal loans, your options depend on your loans and when you got them.

Key details

  • Check StudentAid.gov or your loan servicer before you choose or switch plans.
  • Never pay anyone to enroll you in a federal repayment plan. It’s free.
Source: StudentAid.gov: Repayment plans