You don't need a specific minimum credit score for a Parent PLUS Loan, but you must not have an adverse credit history, which the U.S. Department of Education defines by recent delinquencies (over $2,085 past due 90+ days) or major negative events like bankruptcy, foreclosure, or tax liens within the past five years. The loan process focuses on these specific credit issues rather than your overall score, though you can still qualify if you have an endorser or prove extenuating circumstances.
There is no minimum credit score required for a Parent PLUS Loan. However, borrowers cannot have an adverse credit history as defined by the U.S. Department of Education.
Direct loans made to undergraduate students, as well as unsubsidized and subsidized federal Direct Loans, do not require a credit check. As long as the student qualifies for these loans under the FAFSA, they can borrow even with bad credit.
Parent PLUS loan borrowers will be limited to $20,000 a year per student. Parent PLUS loan borrowers' lifetime aggregate limit will be $65,000 per student. Direct student loan offers will be prorated for students who are enrolled less than full time.
How Much Do You Get if Denied Parent PLUS Loan? If a Parent PLUS Loan is denied, the student may qualify for additional Direct Unsubsidized Loan funds. The amount they can receive depends on their academic year: Freshmen and Sophomores may borrow up to $4,000 in additional unsubsidized loans.
In general, you will be denied if you have adverse credit consisting of any of the following: Bankruptcy discharge within the past five years. Voluntary surrender of personal property to avoid repossession within the last five years. Collateral repossession within the past five years.
However, Parent PLUS Loans will be capped at $20,000 per student per year and a $65,000 lifetime limit beginning July 1, 2026. Parents who borrowed before that date can continue borrowing under the current limits for up to three additional years or until their student completes their program. Good news.
A parent PLUS loan enables your parents or stepparents to borrow money that can be applied to your educational expenses. PLUS loans are loaned directly from the federal government to the borrower. This loan is not based on your family's income or asset information provided on the FAFSA.
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).
For most people, increasing a credit score by 100 points in a month isn't going to happen. But if you pay your bills on time, eliminate your consumer debt, don't run large balances on your cards and maintain a mix of both consumer and secured borrowing, an increase in your credit could happen within months.
The government doesn't forgive Parent PLUS Loans when you retire or draw Social Security benefits, but it has programs that will wipe out your remaining balance after you've made a number of student loan payments under an income-driven repayment plan.
The Chase 5/24 rule is an unofficial but strict guideline by Chase bank that denies applications for most of their popular credit cards if you've opened five or more new personal credit cards (from any bank) within the last 24 months, including authorized user accounts. To get approved, you generally need to be under this 5/24 limit, meaning you've opened four or fewer new cards across all issuers in the past two years, and you must wait for older accounts to age off your report.
A Parent PLUS loan is typically denied due to an "adverse credit history," meaning specific negative credit events like having debts over $2,008 that are 90+ days delinquent, recent charge-offs, collections, tax liens, foreclosures, wage garnishments, or bankruptcy discharges within the last five years. Other reasons can include failing general federal aid requirements or incorrect application information, but the primary hurdle is the credit check for adverse conditions.
Federal parent PLUS loans
With a parent PLUS loan, you can borrow up to your child's cost of attendance minus any other financial aid they've received. Parent PLUS loans do require a credit check, but you don't need to meet a minimum credit score to qualify.
Parent Plus loans are federal loans that allow parents to borrow money to help pay for their child's undergraduate education expenses. In the event that the parent borrower passes away, the government will discharge and forgive the remaining Parent PLUS loan debt.
The "7-year rule" for student loans generally refers to when negative marks, like defaults, are removed from your credit report (around 7 years after the first missed payment or default date for federal loans, 7.5 years for private loans), but the debt itself doesn't disappear and must be paid off; it's also a benchmark in bankruptcy proceedings where federal loans can become dischargeable after 7 years from when payments were due, though proving "undue hardship" is required and difficult.