Changes to Federal Student Aid

Beginning with the 2026-2027 award year:

Students with a Student Aid Index (SAI) equal to or greater than twice the maximum Federal Pell Grant award amount for the award year will be ineligible for the grant even if the minimum Pell criteria is met.

For example, if the max Pell amount for 2026–27 is $7,395, and a student has an SAI index of 14,790 or greater, the student will not be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant.

Students who receive non-federal grants or scholarships (such as state, institutional, or private aid) that are equal to the full Cost of Attendance, they will be ineligible for a Federal Pell Grant. The foreign earned income exclusion amount reported on the FAFSA will be added to the adjusted gross income when determining Federal Pell Grant eligibility.

Beginning with the 2026-2027 award year:

New Limits for *Parent PLUS Loans: New borrowers will have an annual limit of $20,000 and an aggregate limit of $65,000 per dependent student.

• Parents who borrowed a PLUS Loan in 2025-2026 or before can continue to borrow under current limits for 3 years (if the student remains continuously enrolled) or until the student graduates, whichever comes first.

Annual Loan Amount Proration for Less than Full-Time Enrollment: Students enrolled less than full-time must have their annual loan limit reduced proportionally.

Student Loan Repayment Options: Repayment options will be streamlined into two plans: a new tiered standard repayment plan and a new income-driven repayment plan called the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP).

*Note: Not all Maricopa Community Colleges offer Parent PLUS Loans.

Students must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 semester credit hours to be eligible for loan funds. Those enrolled less than full-time would only be eligible for a portion of the annual loan limit. Full-time status is defined as 12 or more semester credits per term.

The amount of Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans you’re eligible to receive can decrease based on changes in your academic year enrollment. Your institution will notify you of any changes in your eligibility.

Full-Time Enrollment Example: You are a student enrolled in 12 credits for the fall term and expect to also enroll in 12 credits for the spring term. At 12 credits each term, you are eligible for 100% of the annual loan limit of $3500 subsidized loan as a first-time, first-year student. This would be offered to you as: $1750 fall and $1750 spring ($3500 for the year).

Part-Time Enrollment Example: You are a student enrolled in 6 credits for the fall term and expect to also enroll in 6 credits for the spring term. At 6 credits each term, you would be eligible for 50% of the annual subsidized loan limit of $3500 as a first-time, first-year student. This would be offered to you as $875 fall and $875 spring ($1750 for the year).

Please note: Students can also request additional unsubsidized loans, which will also be subject to the new annual loan proration rules.

Plan ahead: Review your borrowing needs.

Budget carefully: Consider updated Loan limits when planning for future semesters.

Stay informed: Watch for official updates from the U.S. Department of Education.

For official updates, visit One Big Beautiful Bill Act Updates

If you successfully submitted your FAFSA with your college's school code and received a confirmation email from Federal Student Aid, your application has been received.

However, due to significant changes to the FAFSA process implemented by the U.S. Department of Education, your college's processing of your FAFSA has been delayed.

You can log in to your FAFSA account at studentaid.gov to review the status of your application. If your FAFSA shows processed and your college school code is listed, no additional action is needed at this time.

Maricopa Community Colleges will begin processing 2026–2027 FAFSA information as soon as system updates are complete. Students will receive an email when their FAFSA has loaded in our system, and should continue checking their school email and To-Do List items for updates.

Financial aid awards cannot be created until your college receives and processes your FAFSA information. Because of the nationwide delay, Maricopa Community Colleges will begin processing 2026–2027 FAFSA information as soon as system updates are complete. Students will receive an email when their FAFSA has loaded in our system, and should continue checking their school email and To-Do List items for updates.

No. If your FAFSA has already been successfully submitted, you should not submit a second application unless Federal Student Aid specifically instructs you to do so.

You must have your Social Security number, correct name, and birthdate in your official student record, and be admitted to the college you listed on your FAFSA. If you did not include your Social Security number on your admissions application, you’ll need to add it by following the steps below:

1. Log in to the Student Center using your MEID and password
2. Go to the Profile tab
3. Navigate to Citizenship Data
4. Click on the numbered hyperlink under the SSN row
5. A pop-up box will appear where you can view or change your SSN
6. Enter the correct SSN and click Save

If you have attempted to update your SSN once, you will not be able to do it again. You’ll need to follow these steps below:

1. Log in to the Student Center using your MEID and password
2. Access the Student Information Update in My Student Forms > Admissions and Records Forms > Student Update Form (tab on the left)
3. Students may use this form to update their Legal Name, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, and Legal Sex

If you have been instructed to contact your college’s Financial Aid Office to complete additional steps to determine your financial aid package, you must wait until the 2026–2027 FAFSA records have been loaded into our system. You will receive an email, and Task List Item(s) will populate in your Student Center with further instructions on how to complete your financial aid file.

No. Students do not need to wait for their financial aid award to enroll in classes.

Some students who have completed a 2026–2027 FAFSA may have a “No Enrollment Cancellation” hold placed on their account to prevent them from being dropped.

Students with a “No Enrollment Cancellation” hold placed on their account will not receive tuition-due communications from the college they are enrolled in.

It depends. If your financial aid award covers your entire amount due, your payment plan will no longer draw payments from your account. If it does not, your monthly payment will be adjusted to cover only the remaining balance.

You must complete a Consortium Agreement if you are taking courses at multiple colleges in the same semester and would like the courses to be considered in your financial aid award. Any courses listed on the agreement must be applicable to your program of study.

Once your college begins loading 2026–2027 FAFSA records, you can:

1. Log in to the Student Center using your MEID and password
2. Click on My Student Forms
3. Click on Financial Aid Forms to open the Financial Aid Forms page
4. From there, you will be able to view and complete the AY27 Consortium Agreement

The Student Aid Index (SAI) is the number calculated from information reported on the FAFSA and is used to determine a student's eligibility for federal student aid.

If additional information or documentation is required, your college will notify you through your official student email and/or Student Center task list.