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ScholarNet. FY 2026 draft CDRs have financial aid offices on alert – and with millions of borrowers exiting the SAVE Plan, more at-risk borrowers are entering your portfolio. Now is the time to get ahead of delinquency and default, not to react to them. Portfolio Navigator, included at no additional cost with ScholarNet, provides NSLDS-powered borrower outreach you can execute in under one hour per month. Schedule your demo today.

In recent weeks, a reported data error has prompted the Department of Education (ED) to update its messaging for certain Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) borrowers, indicating that “payment counts may shift or appear incomplete.” According to POLITICO, ED has said it discovered “coding errors” during implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBA) and is in the process of rolling back some PSLF credit the Biden administration gave to borrowers who had their records mishandled by their servicers and were steered into forbearance instead of being enrolled into an affordable repayment program. This is a developing story, stay tuned to Today’s News for more details.

A coalition of four labor unions filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education (ED) last week, adding a third legal challenge to the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee’s final rule definition of “professional degree,” setting up yet another court fight over which graduate programs qualify for the higher federal loan caps.

NASFAA is pleased to share a draft of its response to the Department of Education's (ED) request for comments on its information collection for the Direct PLUS Loan Request for Supplemental Information. The department has revised the form to reflect the One Big Beautiful Bill Act's (OBBBA) changes to Direct PLUS Loan eligibility and loan limits, which took effect July 1, 2026. NASFAA's comments address the form's treatment of the "limited exception" that preserves prior eligibility and loan limits for certain borrowers, including a recommendation that ED add a self-attestation checkbox and notice of consequences for inaccurate attestations. NASFAA hopes our members will use these comments to inform their own comments, which are due August 24, 2026.

Scenario: The student's parent has borrowed $64,000 in parent PLUS Loans on behalf of their dependent undergraduate fourth-year student under 34 CFR 685.203(g)(2) and then is denied another PLUS due to adverse credit. Answer: The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA/OB3) did not change the additional Direct Unsubsidized Loan limits under 685.203(c), available to independent students and to a dependent undergraduate student whose parent has been denied a parent PLUS. This is an additional $4,000 or $5,000 depending on the dependent student's year in school on top of the $2,000 the student could borrow in unsubsidized loan funds if their parent could borrow PLUS; it is not limited to an amount equal to the parent's remaining aggregate PLUS limit. View the full answer to this question to learn more.

This eight-week interactive online course, starting October 19, will review the types of higher education loan programs. It will cover the Direct Loan application and origination process, eligibility criteria, annual and aggregate limits, expected time to credential, schedule of reductions, loan periods, loan repayment plans, deferments, forbearance, discharges, and counseling requirements. It will also cover private education loans, institutional loans, and loan disclosures and practices. Reserve your seat today!

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