From H.R.1, 2025, Big Beautiful Bill.
This section on loan limits refers to an earlier, 1990s, Dept of Education regulation.
34 CFR 668.2
Professional degree: A degree that signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor's degree. Professional licensure is also generally required.
Examples of a professional degree include but are not limited to Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), Dentistry (D.D.S. or D.M.D.), Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.), Chiropractic (D.C. or D.C.M.), Law (L.L.B. or J.D.), Medicine (M.D.), Optometry (O.D.), Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.), Podiatry (D.P.M., D.P., or Pod.D.), and Theology (M.Div., or M.H.L.).
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Subtitle B—Loan Limits
SEC. 81001. Effective dates.
ESTABLISHMENT OF LOAN LIMITS FOR GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL STUDENTS AND PARENT BORROWERS; TERMINATION OF GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL PLUS LOANS. Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ([20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)]) is amended—(1) in paragraph (3)—(A) in the paragraph heading, by inserting “and federal direct plus loans” after “loans”;(B) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the following:“(A) Termination of authority to make interest subsidized loans to graduate and professional students.—Subject to subparagraph (B), and notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B—“(i) for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2012, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct Stafford loan under this part; and“(ii) Time period.
for any period of instruction beginning on July 1, 2012, and ending on June 30, 2026, the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans such a student may borrow in any academic year (as defined in section 481(a)(2)) or its equivalent shall be the maximum annual amount for such student determined under section 428H, plus an amount equal to the amount of Federal Direct Stafford loans the student would have received in the absence of this subparagraph.”; and(C) by adding at the end the following:“(C) Termination of authority to make federal direct plus loans to graduate and professional students.—Subject to paragraph (8) and notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2026, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan under this part.”; and(2) by adding at the end the following:“(4) Graduate and professional annual and aggregate limits for federal direct unsubsidized stafford loans beginning july 1, 2026.—“(A) Annual limits beginning july 1, 2026.—Subject to paragraphs (7)(A) and (8), beginning on July 1, 2026, the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans—“(i) a graduate student, who is not a professional student, may borrow in any academic year or its equivalent shall be $20,500; and“(ii) a professional student may borrow in any academic year or its equivalent shall be $50,000.139 STAT. 335“(B) Aggregate limits.—Subject to paragraphs (6), (7)(A), and (8), beginning on July 1, 2026, the maximum aggregate amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans, in addition to the amount borrowed for undergraduate education, that—“(i) a graduate student—“(I) who is not (and has not been) a professional student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(i) shall be $100,000; or“(II) who is (or has been) a professional student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(i) shall be an amount equal to—- “(aa) $200,000; minus
- “(bb) the amount such student borrowed for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(ii); and
“(ii) a professional student—“(I) who is not (and has not been) a graduate student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(ii) shall be $200,000; or“(II) who is (or has been) a graduate student, may borrow for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(ii) shall be an amount equal to—- “(aa) $200,000; minus
- “(bb) the amount such student borrowed for programs of study described in subparagraph (C)(i).
“(C) Definitions.—“(i) Graduate student.—The term ‘graduate student’ means a student enrolled in a program of study that awards a graduate credential (other than a professional degree) upon completion of the program.“(ii) Professional student.—In this paragraph, the term ‘professional student’ means a student enrolled in a program of study that awards a professional degree, as defined under [section 668.2 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations] (as in effect on the date of enactment of this paragraph), upon completion of the program.“(5) Parent borrower annual and aggregate limits for federal direct plus loans beginning july 1, 2026.—“(A) Annual limits.—Subject to paragraph (8) and notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, beginning on July 1, 2026, for each dependent student, the total maximum annual amount of Federal Direct PLUS loans that may be borrowed on behalf of that dependent student by all parents of that dependent student shall be $20,000.“(B) Aggregate limits.—Subject to paragraph (8) and notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, beginning on July 1, 2026, for each dependent student, the total maximum aggregate amount of Federal Direct PLUS loans that may be borrowed on behalf of that dependent student by all parents of that dependent student shall139 STAT. 336be $65,000, without regard to any amounts repaid, forgiven, canceled, or otherwise discharged on any such loan.“(6) Lifetime maximum aggregate amount for all students.—Subject to paragraph (8) and notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, beginning on July 1, 2026, the maximum aggregate amount of loans made, insured, or guaranteed under this title that a student may borrow (other than a Federal Direct PLUS loan, or loan under section 428B, made to the student as a parent borrower on behalf of a dependent student) shall be $257,500, without regard to any amounts repaid, forgiven, canceled, or otherwise discharged on any such loan.“(7) Additional rules regarding annual loan limits.—“(A) Reduction.
Publication.
Less than full-time enrollment.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, in any case in which a student is enrolled in a program of study of an institution of higher education on less than a full-time basis during any academic year, the amount of a loan that student may borrow for an academic year or its equivalent shall be reduced in direct proportion to the degree to which that student is not so enrolled on a full-time basis, rounded to the nearest whole percentage point, as provided in a schedule of reductions published by the Secretary computed for purposes of this subparagraph.“(B) Institutionally determined limits.—Notwithstanding the annual loan limits established under this section and, for undergraduate students, under this part and part B, beginning on July 1, 2026, an institution of higher education (at the discretion of a financial aid administrator at the institution) may limit the total amount of loans made under this part for a program of study for an academic year that a student may borrow, and that a parent may borrow on behalf of such student, as long as any such limit is applied consistently to all students enrolled in such program of study.“(8) Interim exception for certain students.—“(A) Deadline.
Application of prior limits.—Paragraphs (3)(C), (4), (5), and (6) shall not apply, and paragraph (3)(A)(ii) shall apply as such paragraph was in effect for periods of instruction ending before June 30, 2026, during the expected time to credential described in subparagraph (B), with respect to an individual who, as of June 30, 2026—“(i) is enrolled in a program of study at an institution of higher education; and“(ii) has received a loan (or on whose behalf a loan was made) under this part for such program of study.“(B) Expected time to credential.—For purposes of this paragraph, the expected time to credential of an individual shall be equal to the lesser of—“(i) three academic years; or“(ii) the period determined by calculating the difference between—“(I) the program length for the program of study in which the individual is enrolled; and139 STAT. 337“(II) the period of such program of study that such individual has completed as of the date of the determination under this subparagraph.“(C) Definition of program length.—In this paragraph, the term ‘program length’ means the minimum amount of time in weeks, months, or years that is specified in the catalog, marketing materials, or other official publications of an institution of higher education for a full-time student to complete the requirements for a specific program of study.”
###PROFESSIONAL
34 CFR 668.2
Professional degree: A degree that signifies both completion of the academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession and a level of professional skill beyond that normally required for a bachelor's degree. Professional licensure is also generally required.
Examples of a professional degree include but are not limited to Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), Dentistry (D.D.S. or D.M.D.), Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.), Chiropractic (D.C. or D.C.M.), Law (L.L.B. or J.D.), Medicine (M.D.), Optometry (O.D.), Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.), Podiatry (D.P.M., D.P., or Pod.D.), and Theology (M.Div., or M.H.L.).
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Credential level: The level of the academic credential awarded by an institution to students who complete the program. For the purposes of this part, the undergraduate credential levels are: undergraduate certificate or diploma, associate degree, bachelor's degree, and post-baccalaureate certificate; and the graduate credential levels are master's degree, doctoral degree, first-professional degree (e.g., MD, DDS, JD), and graduate certificate (including a postgraduate certificate).
Graduate or professional student: A student who—
(1) Is not receiving title IV aid as an undergraduate student for the same period of enrollment;
(2) Is enrolled in a program or course above the baccalaureate level or is enrolled in a program leading to a professional degree; and
(3) Has completed the equivalent of at least three years of full-time study either prior to entrance into the program or as part of the program itself.
