Student must be under age 24, unmarried, and have no legal dependents at the time of submitting the FAFSA (exceptions apply). Student must be enrolled at least half time.
If you're a parent or graduate student seeking a Direct PLUS Loan, one of the requirements to qualify is that you must not have an adverse credit history. If your application is denied because of an adverse credit history, don't give up. You still have options.
Note: Grandparents (unless they have legally adopted the dependent student) and legal guardians are not eligible to receive parent PLUS loans, even if they have had primary responsibility for raising the student.
How to Use the Double Consolidation Loophole: The key to using the double consolidation loophole is to consolidate each of your Parent PLUS Loans twice. In this scenario, a borrower can have as few as two Parent PLUS Loans.
The Education Department doesn't forgive loan balances for parents when they retire. It will keep sending bills and adding interest until you pay off the debt, die or become totally and permanently disabled, or qualify for one of the department's student loan forgiveness programs.
The $100,000 Loophole.
With a larger below-market loan, the $100,000 loophole can save you from unwanted tax results. To qualify for this loophole, all outstanding loans between you and the borrower must aggregate to $100,000 or less.
What happens to my parent's PLUS loan if my parent dies or if I die? Your parent's PLUS loan will be discharged if your parent dies or if you (the student on whose behalf your parent obtained the loan) die.
Unlike all other federal student loans, there are no explicit borrowing limits for parent PLUS loans. Parents may borrow up to the full cost of attendance, which is determined by the institution, not the government, and includes books, travel and living expenses. There are no ability-to-repay standards for PLUS loans.
Your parent PLUS loan may be discharged if you (not the child) become totally and permanently disabled, die, or (in some cases) file for bankruptcy. Your parent PLUS loan also may be discharged if the student for whom you borrowed dies.
What Are Some Reasons to Avoid PLUS Loans? First, PLUS loans have no automatic grace period. Then there's the fact they aren't eligible for most IDR plans. Then, borrowing too much is easy to do, and finally, they're nearly impossible to get out of, even in bankruptcy.
You cannot have an “adverse credit history.” While there's no minimum credit score requirement, loan defaults, bankruptcies, tax liens and certain other negative marks on your credit report could disqualify you.
Can more than one parent borrow a PLUS Loan? If a student's parents are divorced, both the custodial and non-custodial parent may borrow a PLUS Loan for their dependent, undergraduate student.
To be eligible for a Direct PLUS Loan for parents, you must be a biological or adoptive parent (or in some cases a stepparent), not have an adverse credit history, and meet the general eligibility requirements for federal student aid (which the child must meet as well).
Parent PLUS Loan Repayment Terms
Only the parent borrower is required to pay back a Parent PLUS Loan, as only the parent signed the master promissory note for the Parent PLUS Loan. The student is not responsible for repaying a Parent PLUS Loan. They're under no legal obligation to do so.
PLUS loans don't require good credit, making them an ideal option for low-credit borrowers. However, you can't have an adverse credit history, such as bankruptcies or loan defaults within the past five years.
Parent PLUS loans can potentially be forgiven after 10 years under specific conditions, such as through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program after consolidation into a direct consolidation loan. Parent borrowers must enroll in the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan to qualify for PSLF.
The Parent PLUS loan application is based on the borrower's credit history; no loan officer will look at your income or other debt or otherwise evaluate whether you can afford to make the payments. It is your responsibility to make sure you aren't borrowing more than you can afford to pay back.
If a borrower dies, their federal student loans are discharged after the required proof of death is submitted. The borrower's family is not responsible for repaying the loans. A parent PLUS loan is discharged if the parent dies or if the student on whose behalf a parent obtained the loan dies.
Medical debt and hospital bills don't simply go away after death. In most states, they take priority in the probate process, meaning they usually are paid first, by selling off assets if need be.
Defaulting on a Parent PLUS Loan can lead to serious consequences, including wage garnishment, credit score damage, and the loss of federal benefits. But you can recover through loan rehabilitation or consolidation with the U.S. Department of Education.
For 2021, you can forgive up to $15,000 per borrower ($30,000 if your spouse joins in the gift) without paying gift taxes or using any of your lifetime exemption. (These amounts are the same as in 2020.) But you will still have interest income in the year of forgiveness. Forgive (don't forget).
There is no minimum interest rate you are required to charge, but you will be liable for taxes if you decide to give a below market interest loan to the IRS. This is because as a lender, you are expected to charge market interest and if you don't do so, you are in effect liable for the interest foregone on the loan.
Gift tax limit 2024
The gift tax limit, also known as the gift tax exclusion, is $18,000 for 2024. This amount is the maximum you can give a single person without having to report it to the IRS. For married couples, the limit is $18,000 each, for a total of $36,000.