Changes to Financial Aid Beginning in Fall 2026
Updated 3/25/26
- The One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law on July 5, 2025, resulting in changes to financial aid. Federal student loans are mainly impacted.
- The Office of Student Financial Aid is closely monitoring the impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and awaiting final guidance from the U.S. Department of Education.
- The information below reflects current understanding and is subject to change. This page will be updated as more information is available.
Beginning Fall 2026 and Impacting All Borrowers: Reduced loan eligibility for students enrolled less than full time.
Students who enroll less than full time will have reduced annual loan eligibility. For undergraduate students, full time enrollment is defined as 12 credit hours in any term. For graduate students, full time enrollment is defined as 9 credit hours in fall or spring, and 6 credit hours in summer.
This means that if you enroll less than full time, the Financial Aid Office will determine the maximum amount of loans that you can borrow for the year based on your actual enrollment and may be required to reduce your loan. Withdrawing from courses may also result in reduced loan eligibility for the year.
This rule applies to Direct Subsidized Loans, Direct Unsubsidized Loans, and Graduate PLUS loans. It is still required that students must be enrolled in a minimum of half time to receive a loan.
Beginning Fall 2026 and Impacting Graduate Students: The Graduate PLUS loan program is ending.
Most students will no longer be able to borrow Graduate PLUS loans.
There is an exception for some previous borrowers to continue borrowing Graduate PLUS loans if they have not yet been enrolled for the length of their program, up to a maximum of three years. This exception is limited, and the Office of Student Financial Aid is awaiting official guidance to determine which students will be eligible for the exception.
Beginning Fall 2026 and Impacting Undergraduate Students and Parent Borrowers: New Loan Limits for Parent PLUS loans
Parents may borrow up to a limit of $20,000 per academic year and per student. The total amount borrowed cannot exceed $65,000. There is an exception for some previous borrowers to continue borrowing Parent PLUS loans under the previous limits if the student has not yet been enrolled for the length of their program, up to a maximum of three years. This exception is limited, and the Office of Student Financial Aid is awaiting official guidance to determine which students will be eligible for the exception.
Beginning Fall 2026 and Impacting Undergraduate Students: Pell Grant Ineligibility for Full Cost of Attendance Scholarship Recipients
Students who receive grants or scholarships from non-federal sources covering their entire cost of attendance will be ineligible to receive a Pell grant, even if they are otherwise eligible for the Pell grant. "Non-federal sources" means any grants or scholarships from FAU, external organizations, or the state. The "entire cost of attendance" means all of the student's tuition charges and living expenses for the year. For example, an undergraduate student who is a Florida resident and enrolled full time has a cost of attendance of $31,030 for the academic year (including all living expenses). If the student receives scholarships and grants from non-federal sources that equal or exceed $31,030, they are not eligible for a Federal Pell grant. Visit our cost of attendance page for more details about how cost of attendance is estimated.
Additional Resources:
Federal Student Aid's One Big Beautiful Bill Act Updates
What Graduate Students Need to Know