Federal student loan repayment plans after July 1, 2026
Four plans matter now: the Repayment Assistance Plan, Income-Based Repayment, the 10-year Standard plan and the Tiered Standard plan. Which ones you can use depends on when your loans were paid out.
The Repayment Assistance Plan, explained in full
Who can use RAP, the payment formula and table, the interest waiver and match, forgiveness, PSLF, and how it compares with IBR and Tiered Standard.
Tools
- RAP vs IBR vs Standard calculatorMonthly payment, total paid and forgiveness date for each plan you can use.
- RAP payment by income and householdWorked examples for common incomes and family sizes.
- Consolidation under the 2026 rulesWhat a new consolidation loan can and can’t do, with a rate and payment-count calculator.
- Student loan calculatorMonthly payment, total interest and a yearly schedule for a fixed term.
- Payoff calculatorHow much sooner and how much cheaper with extra payments or a lump sum.
- Refinance mathA rate you were offered against your federal fixed plan, and what a private loan doesn’t carry.
- Parent PLUS calculatorTiered Standard, Standard, ICR with the 2026 factors, and the IBR route.
- Student loan interest deduction calculatorWhat you can deduct for 2026, the phase-out worked line by line, and the tax it saves.
Guides
- How RAP calculates your monthly payment, step by stepRAP applies one percentage to your whole AGI, divides by 12 and subtracts $50 per dependent. The bands are fixed dollar amounts, so one extra dollar of income can raise the payment.
- RAP vs IBR: how the two income-driven plans differIBR charges a share of income above 150% of the poverty line and forgives after 20 or 25 years. RAP charges a share of all income and forgives after 30. Who can use each, and where the numbers part ways.
- The Tiered Standard Plan explainedFixed payments over 10, 15, 20 or 25 years, set by your total balance when you enter repayment. It is the default for newer loans, and its payments do not count for PSLF.
- RAP's interest waiver: why your balance shouldn't growIn months you pay on time and in full, RAP waives any interest your payment doesn't cover. What counts, what doesn't, and why paying extra can reduce it.
- The RAP principal match: how the government helps cut your balanceIf your on-time payment lowers your principal by less than $50, the government adds the difference, up to the amount you paid. Here is the calculation.
- How dependents lower your RAP paymentRAP subtracts $50 a month for each dependent claimed on your federal tax return. Who counts, who doesn't, and how it differs from IBR's family size.
- Married? How filing jointly or separately changes RAP and IBRFiling jointly adds your spouse's income; if your spouse has federal loans too, the payment is split by each person's share of the debt. Filing separately counts only your income.
- IBR after the 2025 law: what changed and who can still use itIBR no longer requires a partial financial hardship. It stays open for loans paid out before July 1, 2026, and becomes the fallback for some ICR and PAYE borrowers in 2028.
- Deferment and forbearance changes for loans made from July 1, 2027Loans made on or after July 1, 2027 can't use unemployment or economic hardship deferment, and forbearance is capped at 9 months in any 24.
- The 1% auto pay interest rate cut: who gets it and until whenBorrowers enrolled in auto pay by Dec. 31, 2026 get a 1 percentage point interest rate reduction through June 30, 2028. The details.
- FFEL and Perkins loans: getting into RAP means consolidatingRAP and Tiered Standard are Direct Loan plans. FFEL and Perkins loans become eligible only after consolidation into a Direct Consolidation Loan, which counts as a new loan.
- Recertifying RAP each year, and what happens if you don'tRAP recalculates your payment every year from IRS data if you consent. If the Department can't get your information, your payment jumps to the 10-year standard amount.
- The student loan interest deduction for 2026, explainedUp to $2,500 of interest comes off your income. For 2026 it phases out between $85,000 and $100,000 of MAGI, or $175,000 and $205,000 on a joint return. Who qualifies and how the math works.
- Form 1098-E: the student loan interest statementYour servicer sends Form 1098-E if you paid $600 or more of interest in the year. What it shows, what to do with several, and when you can deduct interest it doesn’t list.
- Employer student loan help: up to $5,250 a year tax-free, now permanentThe 2025 law made permanent the rule that employer payments on your student loans, up to $5,250 a year, aren’t taxable income. What that means for your interest deduction.
- How federal student loan interest worksInterest builds up every day on what you owe. How it is charged, when unpaid interest is added to your balance, and how each plan treats interest your payment does not cover.
- Paying extra on federal student loans: what happens to the moneyThere is no prepayment penalty, but a big extra payment can push your next due date forward instead of shortening the loan. And on RAP, paying extra can cost you the interest waiver.
- Refinancing federal student loans: what changesA private refinance can lower the rate, but the new loan is a private loan. Which federal features it does not carry, and why it cannot be reversed.