The Senate’s “Big Beautiful Bill” isn’t so beautiful for Parent PLUS loan borrowers.
I’m going to keep this super short, sweet, and to the point: Parent PLUS loan borrowers should consider taking action as soon as possible to help protect themselves. This is very time-sensitive!
Impacts of the bill
As it’s currently written, the bill blocks Parent PLUS loan borrowers from all income-driven repayment plans, even borrowers who have 1) consolidated their Parent PLUS loans once or twice and 2) are already enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan, such as IBR, PAYE, or the SAVE forbearance.
One caveat
The one exception to this can be found in the middle of page 36 of the bill. It reads that if a Parent PLUS loan borrower is enrolled in the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan on the day before the bill is signed, they’ll be eligible for the bill’s Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan. By enrolling in the ICR plan, they’ll preserve these important and affordable future repayment options.
How to apply for ICR
Based on the current language in the bill, if you want to preserve your access to income-driven repayment (IDR) plans in the future, it’s imperative to apply for the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan as soon as possible. Keep reading for instructions and application tips & tricks.
If you’ve already consolidated or recently applied to consolidate your Parent PLUS loans:
AND you’re already enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan (PAYE, IBR, or SAVE): Apply for the ICR Plan online using the application in the “Returning IDR Borrowers” section on this page
AND you’re not yet enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan: Apply for the ICR Plan online using the application in the “New IDR Applicants” section on this page
If you haven’t yet consolidated or applied to consolidate your Parent PLUS loans:
You need to submit a consolidation & ICR application as soon as possible via this link. You’ll be prompted to apply for the ICR plan during the application process as long as you indicate that you’d like to repay your loans based on income when asked.
Application tips and tricks for all borrowers who apply:
Submit ASAP!
You may be asked whether you’d like to be taken out of forbearance as soon as possible. Indicate that you’d like your application to be processed immediately and to be taken out of forbearance.
If you provide consent for the Department of Education to access your IRS information, your application will likely be processed faster.
What to expect after applying (my timestamps included!)
I recently went through this exact process myself and applied for the ICR plan on Thursday, June 19th.
Within an hour of submitting my application on studentaid.gov, I received the confirmation email below from Federal Student Aid (donotreply@studentaid.gov):
On Friday, June 20th (the very next day!), I received a confirmation email from my student loan servicer, Nelnet, letting me know they’d being processing the application shortly:
On Tuesday, June 24th, I received an email from Nelnet informing me that a new monthly statement was available, which included my updated due date of July 20th and monthly payment amount.
The statement did not list the repayment plan. I had to log into my Nelnet account to find that information, which listed the ICR plan on my homepage:
All in all, it was much less painful—AND a lot faster!— than I thought it’d be. I hope the same happens for you!
I know this sucks, and I’m here for you
You don’t have to go through this alone. If you need help and want to work together, always feel free to book a meeting with me!
