FAFSA 2027–28 Is Open Early: The New $20,000 Parent PLUS Cap, State Deadlines That Hit First and Your 15-Minute Checklist

If you have a high school senior, or a college student heading into another year, the 2027–28 FAFSA is already open, and waiting until the new year is one of the most expensive mistakes a family can make. The U.S. Department of Education launched the form on September 23, 2026, the earliest start in the program's history for the second year in a row. Several states hand out grant money first-come, first-served, Texas wants your form by January 15 for priority consideration, and the CSS Profile that many private colleges require opened October 1. This is also the first full application year under the new federal Parent PLUS caps of $20,000 a year and $65,000 per student, which quietly change the math for families who planned to borrow their way through the gap. Here is what is new, what it costs, and a checklist you can finish this week.

Young woman at a laptop biting a pencil while filling out the 2027-28 FAFSA college financial aid application

Illustrative photo: Jan Vašek via Pixabay / Wikimedia Commons (CC0).

What happened: the 2027–28 FAFSA opened a week early

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the one form that unlocks federal Pell Grants, federal student loans and work-study. Most states and many colleges also use it to hand out their own grants and scholarships. By law, the Department of Education has to launch each year's form by October 1. This year it went live on September 23, 2026, one day earlier than last year's launch, which had itself been a record.

The 2027–28 form covers classes from July 1, 2027 through June 30, 2028. In plain English, that means it's the form for a student starting college in fall 2027 or a current student continuing next school year. It pulls income from your 2025 federal tax return, the one most families filed this past spring. The Department says many families can finish it in as little as 15 minutes, and most forms are now processed right away, though some take one to three days.

Two other things make this cycle different. First, it's the first full application year under federal borrowing limits that took effect July 1, 2026. Second, the record completion rate from last cycle (the National College Attainment Network says the Class of 2026 hit a 59.1% completion rate by its June tracking date) shows more of your student's classmates are filing, and filing earlier. When state grant money is limited, that competition matters.

The key dates and numbers at a glance

Bookmark this table. Every number comes from Federal Student Aid, the Department of Education or the official 2027–28 FAFSA form.

Item	What to know
FAFSA opened	September 23, 2026 at StudentAid.gov (free)
School year covered	July 1, 2027 – June 30, 2028
Tax year used	2025 federal tax return
Federal deadline	June 30, 2028 (state and college deadlines are much earlier)
Schools you can list	Up to 20 on the online form
Parent PLUS cap (new borrowers)	$20,000 a year and $65,000 total per dependent student, combined for both parents
Current Parent PLUS rate	9.07% fixed for loans first disbursed July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2027
Current undergrad Direct Loan rate	6.52% fixed (same period)
Origination fees	4.228% on PLUS loans, 1.057% on undergrad Direct Loans (first disbursed Oct. 1, 2026 – Sept. 30, 2027)
Maximum Pell Grant	$7,395 for 2026–27; the 2027–28 maximum hasn't been finalized yet

One important detail: the 9.07% and 6.52% rates apply to loans first paid out before July 1, 2027. Loans for the 2027–28 school year will get a new fixed rate. It's set each spring based on the 10-year Treasury auction held in May, so treat today's rates as a planning estimate, not a promise.

Why filing in October can mean more free money

The federal deadline of June 30, 2028 sounds relaxed. It isn't the deadline that matters. Many state grant programs either set early priority dates or simply award money until it runs out. The official 2027–28 FAFSA lists, for example:

State	2027–28 state aid deadline (per the official FAFSA form)
Illinois	As soon as possible after Oct. 1, 2026; MAP grants awarded while funds exist
Kentucky, Vermont, North Dakota	As soon as possible after Oct. 1, 2026; awards made while funds exist
Texas	Priority consideration by Jan. 15, 2027
Missouri	Priority by Feb. 1, 2027 (accepted through April 1, 2027)
Connecticut	Priority by Feb. 15, 2027
California	March 2, 2027 for many state programs, including Cal Grant (school-certified GPA also due)
Maryland, Idaho, West Virginia	March 1, 2027 for key programs (EEA, Opportunity Scholarship, Promise Scholarship)
Tennessee	Tennessee Promise by April 1, 2027; other state grant awards first-come, first-served
Indiana	April 15, 2027 for Frank O'Bannon, 21st Century Scholars and other state grants
Pennsylvania	May 1, 2027 for most applicants
Florida	May 15, 2027 (date processed)

Colleges set their own priority dates too, and they are often earlier than the state's. If your student is applying Early Decision or Early Action, many private colleges also want the CSS Profile, which opened October 1, 2026. Their early financial aid deadlines often fall on November 1 or November 15. Check each school's financial aid page, because there's no national CSS deadline.

There's also a practical upside. Filing early gets you your FAFSA Submission Summary sooner, so you can compare aid offers side by side before the May 1 decision day most colleges use. You won't be scrambling in April.

The new Parent PLUS cap: $20,000 a year, $65,000 per student

For years, Parent PLUS loans worked as the backstop. Whatever grants and the student's own loans didn't cover, a parent with no adverse credit history could usually borrow up to the full cost of attendance. That changed on July 1, 2026, under the federal law Congress passed in 2025 (often called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act).

Annual cap: all parents combined can borrow up to $20,000 per year for each dependent student. Each parent doesn't get a separate allowance.
Lifetime cap: $65,000 per dependent student, no matter how much was repaid or forgiven.
Still limited by cost: you can't borrow more than the school's cost of attendance minus other aid, so your real limit may be lower.
Legacy exception: if a parent already had a Direct Loan for that student before July 1, 2026, while the student was enrolled in the program, the old rules can continue for up to three academic years or the rest of the student's expected time to finish, whichever is shorter. The exception follows that student, so a younger sibling starting in fall 2027 falls under the new caps.
Graduate students: Grad PLUS is no longer available to new graduate borrowers, and new caps apply. If your student is aiming for law or medical school, plan for that years ahead.

Bar chart showing how the new $20,000 annual and $65,000 lifetime Parent PLUS caps leave a family with a $30,000 yearly college gap short by $10,000 a year and $25,000 in year four

Chart: Dollar Lane, based on the federal Parent PLUS limits in effect since July 1, 2026. Hypothetical example.

The chart shows the trap. Picture a family whose gap is $30,000 a year after grants, scholarships and the student's own federal loans. Under the old rules, Parent PLUS could cover all of it. Under the new caps, they can borrow $20,000 in each of the first three years. That uses $60,000 of the $65,000 lifetime limit, which leaves only $5,000 for senior year. The family needs $10,000 a year from somewhere else for three years, then $25,000 in year four. That's $55,000 over four years. Better to find this out before your student commits to a school than in the spring of junior year.

What Parent PLUS really costs at today's rates

Even inside the caps, Parent PLUS is expensive federal money. Loans first paid out between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027 carry a 9.07% fixed rate. A 4.228% origination fee also comes off each disbursement, so on a $20,000 loan about $846 never reaches the school. The undergraduate Direct Loan in the student's name is much cheaper, at 6.52% with a 1.057% fee.

Balance (10-year standard repayment)	Rate	Monthly payment	Total interest
$10,000 Parent PLUS	9.07%	about $127	about $5,250
$20,000 Parent PLUS	9.07%	about $254	about $10,490
$65,000 Parent PLUS (full lifetime cap)	9.07%	about $826	about $34,100
$27,000 student Direct Loans (4-year dependent max)	6.52%	about $307	about $9,820

Dollar Lane calculations using a standard 10-year amortization. They ignore interest that builds while the student is in school and any rate change for loans made after June 30, 2027, so real costs can be higher.

A rule of thumb many planners use: don't let total parent borrowing go past what you could repay within 10 years without delaying your own retirement. Your student can borrow for college. You can't borrow for retirement. And remember that dependent undergraduates can borrow federal Direct Loans in their own name: $5,500 in year one, $6,500 in year two and $7,500 in years three and four. Those usually make sense before any parent debt, since they're cheaper and come with income-driven repayment options. If you're already repaying federal loans, our guide to leaving SAVE and choosing RAP or IBR covers the new repayment landscape.

Pell Grants: who can still qualify

Pell Grants are free money that doesn't have to be repaid, and the only way to get one is to file the FAFSA. The maximum award for 2026–27 is $7,395. The 2027–28 figure depends on federal appropriations and hasn't been finalized. Some proposals in Congress would keep it flat and one would raise it slightly, but none is law yet.

Two newer rules affect eligibility:

New SAI ceiling. Starting with the 2026–27 award year, a student whose Student Aid Index (SAI) is equal to or more than twice the maximum Pell Grant is generally ineligible, with a narrow exception. For 2026–27 that threshold works out to $14,790. Use the 2027–28 maximum once it's announced.
Workforce Pell. Since July 1, 2026, Pell can help pay for approved short-term workforce training programs, some as short as eight weeks. A course doesn't qualify automatically, so confirm that the specific program is approved before you enroll.

Don't rule yourself out because of income. There's no single income cutoff for all federal aid, and many colleges require a FAFSA before they'll even consider a student for their own need-based grants or some merit scholarships.

High school students listening during a FAFSA financial aid information session in a classroom

Students at a FAFSA outreach event at Banneker High School (2010). Photo: U.S. Department of Education, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

What changed on the form this year

The Department and Federal Student Aid point to several improvements for 2027–28:

Clearer questions. Questions about year in school, housing and state of residence were reworded to cut confusing jargon.
Text-message invitations. Students can now invite a required parent or spouse ("contributor") by text as well as email.
Easier renewals coming later this fall. Returning students' information is supposed to be pre-filled from their previous FAFSA. Don't hold off waiting for it. File now if you're ready.
Small-business and farm exclusion. Since 2026–27, the aid formula leaves out the net worth of qualifying family-owned businesses with 100 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees, family farms you live on and qualifying family fishing businesses. That covers asset value only. Business and farm income still count.

Your 15-minute FAFSA checklist

The form really can be quick if you prepare. Work through this list first:

Create or recover StudentAid.gov accounts for the student and every required contributor (usually a parent, or both parents if married and living together). Do it a few days early, because identity checks can take time. Don't create a duplicate account if you already have one.
Find your 2025 federal tax return. You'll consent to have the IRS transfer your tax data directly. Every contributor has to give consent, or the student can't get federal aid.
Write down current balances of cash, checking, savings and non-retirement investments as of the day you file. You don't report retirement accounts or the home you live in.
List up to 20 schools, including reach schools and ones your student hasn't applied to yet. You can add or swap schools later.
Check your state's deadline (see the table above) and each college's priority date. Put the earliest one on your calendar.
Submit, then confirm contributor sections are done. Sending an invitation doesn't complete the parent's part. The form isn't finished until every required section is signed.
Review the FAFSA Submission Summary for errors and "action required" notes, and watch school email and portals for requests for documents.
Ignore anyone who charges to file. The FAFSA is free at StudentAid.gov. Paid "FAFSA help" sites and calls asking for your account login are red flags.

After you file: SAI, aid offers, appeals and closing the gap

Your Submission Summary shows your Student Aid Index. It's an eligibility number schools use, not a bill and not the amount you'll actually pay. The real numbers come in each college's aid offer. When those arrive:

Compare net price, not sticker price. Subtract only grants and scholarships from the full cost of attendance (tuition, housing, food, books, transportation). Loans and work-study aren't discounts, even when an offer letter lumps them together.
Ask for a professional judgment review if your finances have changed since 2025, for example a job loss, a pay cut, divorce or big medical bills. Bring documents. Don't substitute a different tax year yourself; the school makes the adjustment.
Use a tuition payment plan. Many colleges let you split each term's bill into monthly payments for a small fee and no interest. A $10,000 yearly gap becomes about $1,000 a month over 10 months.
Put your college cash to work. Money you'll need for tuition in the next year or two belongs somewhere safe and liquid. After the Fed's September rate hike, the median high-yield savings account was paying about 3.35% APY as of October 11, according to ByTheMath's tracker. And 529 plan withdrawals for qualified expenses are tax-free.
Shop private loans last, and carefully. Borrowers with strong credit may find fixed rates below 9.07%, but private loans don't come with federal protections like income-driven repayment or federal discharge rules. Use soft-pull prequalification to compare several lenders.
Rethink the school list if you have to. If a school only works with $30,000 or more a year in parent borrowing, the new caps are telling you something. In-state public colleges and schools with strong merit aid can save six figures.

FAQ

Is it too late to file the 2027–28 FAFSA?
No. The federal deadline is June 30, 2028. But state and college money can run out or have priority dates as early as this fall and winter, so file as soon as you can.

Which tax year do I use?
The 2027–28 FAFSA uses 2025 tax information, the return most families filed in spring 2026.

Do I need to refile every year?
Yes. Current college students must file a new FAFSA for each school year. Last year's form doesn't carry over, though renewals are supposed to get easier with pre-filled data later this fall.

Do both parents each get $20,000 in Parent PLUS?
No. The $20,000 annual and $65,000 lifetime caps are combined for all parents borrowing for that dependent student.

My older child already has Parent PLUS loans. Do the caps apply?
If you had a Direct Loan for that student before July 1, 2026, you may keep the old limits for that student for up to three more academic years or until they finish, whichever comes first. A younger sibling starting in 2027 falls under the new caps. Confirm with the school's aid office.

Will the 9.07% Parent PLUS rate apply to my 2027–28 loan?
Not necessarily. That rate covers loans first disbursed through June 30, 2027. Loans for fall 2027 will get the new rate set in spring 2027.

Do I have to accept loans if I file?
No. Filing only shows what you're eligible for. You choose which grants, work-study and loans to accept.

Does the FAFSA cost anything?
No. It's free at StudentAid.gov. Never pay a website to submit it.

Disclaimer: This article is for general educational purposes only and isn't financial, tax or legal advice. Aid rules, award amounts and deadlines can change, and your eligibility depends on your situation. Check details with StudentAid.gov, your state aid agency and each college's financial aid office before you make decisions.

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