This is one of the most common questions I get almost everyday - I can't afford my Parent PLUS Loans, what do I do?
I'm a firm believer that parents should NOT be taking out loans to pay for their children's' education. There are a lot of reasons why it's a bad idea, and I cover most of them in my Forbes column.
The fact is, though, if you're reading this article, it's too late. You've already borrowed and now you're struggling to pay it back. And the most common way that parents borrow money to pay for college is through Parent PLUS Loans.
They sound like a good idea - parents can get Federal loans with all the great benefits that students get. The trouble is, that's wrong. In fact, Parent PLUS Loans taken out after July 1, 2026 don't offer any type of income-based repayment plan nor do they qualify any type of student loan forgiveness programs (well, once again, this is nuanced as well and we discuss below).
In fact, the options are extremely limited with Parent PLUS Loans. You have a few workarounds, but typically student loan refinancing or working together as a family are your best bets. If you're considering refinancing, we recommend Credible. There are some lenders that will allow you to even refinance your Parent PLUS loan into your child's name. Check out Credible here, and if you do refinance, get up to a $1,000 bonus!
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The Myths Of Parent PLUS Loan Repayment Plans
First, there are a lot of nuances surrounding what you can or can't do with Parent PLUS Loans. The answer of what's possible depends on when you take out the loan.
If you borrow a Parent PLUS Loan prior to June 30, 2026 and NEVER borrow a student loan again, you can potentially access IBR and PSLF. You must consolidate your Parent PLUS loans and enroll in an income-driven repayment plan prior to that June 30 cutoff date.
If you take out Parent PLUS Loans after July 1, 2026, you cannot:
- Qualify for Income-Based Repayment (IBR)
- Qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness
The only option for repayment will be the Standard repayment plan.
Options To Lower Your Parent PLUS Loan Payments
The options to lower your payments depend again on when you borrow the loans.
The rules for borrowers with loans before June 30, 2026:
- IBR: If you consolidate your loan prior to June 30, 2026, and enroll in an income-driven repayment plan, you'll have access to IBR going forward.
- Graduated: Graduated repayment starts off with monthly payments at or slightly above an interest-only payment and increases the monthly payment every two years. The final payment is no more than three times the initial payment.
- Extended: Extended repayment extends your repayment term to 12, 15, 20, 25 or 30 years, depending on the amount owed. This will lower your monthly payments to be level across the new loan term.
Rules for borrowers after July 1, 2026:
If you borrow after July 1, 2026 (any federal student loan), you'll only be allowed to repay the Parent PLUS loan via the Standard Plan.
There are no additional options to lower your monthly payment with federal programs.
Refinance Your Loan
Second, you could refinance your Parent PLUS Loan into a private student loan. Private loans typically offer lower payments and lower interest rates, however, many of these low rates are variable and could rise over time. But, for many, the much lower payment makes up for any potential rise in the future.
We partner with Credible to help people refinance their student loans. Credible is a comparison tool that allows you to compare rates in less than 2 minutes, without a credit check! As a bonus, College Investor readers can get a $1,000 bonus when they refinance with Credible.
Get started now and see if you can save money refinancing your loan with Credible.
Parent PLUS Student Loan Refinancing
For borrowers with Parent PLUS Loans that have good credit, one of the best options (if you can afford it and don't qualify for student loan forgiveness) is to refinance your student loan. Refinancing allows you to potentially get a lower interest rate or lower payment than you currently have.
We break down the best places to refinance your student loans here, and we also recommend Credible as your first stop to refinance your loans.
Some lenders have a unique program where you can refinance your Parent PLUS Loan out of the parent's name, and into the student's name. It might still require the parent to cosign, but these programs also have cosigner release after a certain number of on-time payments. This is a great program to take the burden off the parents and put it on the student (who got the benefits to begin with).
The lenders that offer this include:
CU Select
CU Select is another lender (well, group of lenders) that allows you to refinance your Parent PLUS Loans into your student's name.
CU Select is a network of credit unions that all offer student loans through the CU Select platform. Since these are credit unions, they are a bit more flexible when it comes to the setup of various loans.
LendKey
LendKey is the third major lender that allows you to refinance your student loans from the parent's name to the student's name. They also have very competitive rates and terms for borrowers.
To start the process, the child/student should go to LendKey and select "Apply Now". They should have the loan information and documents that pertain to your Parent PLUS loan handy when doing the process.
Traditional Deferment, Forbearance, and Cancellation Still Apply
For Parent PLUS Loans, borrowers still have the option to apply for deferment, forbearance, and student loan cancellation.
Deferment and forbearance are temporary ways to stop making payments on your student loan. You can read more about deferment and forbearance here.
Parent PLUS Loans can also qualify for student loan cancellation, which is different from student loan forgiveness (we explain the difference here). If you are totally and permanently disabled, or the loan was taken out under fraudulent circumstances, you could have the loan cancelled.
Note: Deferment and forbearance options are changing in 2027.
Consider Getting Professional Help
In all my time working with student loan debt, dealing with Parent PLUS Loans is the absolute worst. They don't offer as many options as other loan types, and when parents are struggling with their debt, it can really hurt an entire family.
The best place to get help with your loans is by calling your lender and working with them. You can also go online to StudentLoans.gov and do many things with your loan, including changing your repayment plan.
If you're not quite sure where to start or what to do, consider hiring a CFA to help you with your student loans. We recommend The Student Loan Planner to help you put together a solid financial plan for your student loan debt. Check out The Student Loan Planner here.
Talking With Your Family
Finally, it never hurts to talk about your student loan debt situation with your family. Remember, you took out these parent student loans to help your child pay for their college education. After graduation, the hope is your child will earn more and be financially well-off.
We never recommend parents ask their children to repay the Parent PLUS loan because it's silly from an estate planning perspective and it's potentially detrimental to "steal" money from your kids in the prime of their lives when you likely don't need it. We see so many situations where parents make their kids struggle financially during their key years (22-40), only to give inheritances when the kid is 60... how is that helpful?
The exception, of course, is if you're going to be destitute without their assistance.
While no parent wants to burden their children, being buried by student loan debt can be detrimental. You might not be a burden to your children now, but if you can't afford retirement because your Social Security is being garnished to pay back the debt, you could end up needing even more support in the future.
Regardless, your children should know where you stand financially, especially if you can't afford to make your Parent PLUS Loan payments.
Final Thoughts
Parent PLUS Loans are the worst student loans, and we highly recommend avoiding them if at all possible. If you're already reading this, it's probably too late. As such, really focus on working together as a family to pay down the loans, and see if refinancing them makes sense.
Are you struggling with your Parent PLUS Loans?
Editor: Clint Proctor Reviewed by: Claire Tak
Robert Farrington is the founder of The College Investor and is widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading voices on student loan debt and saving for college. He holds an MBA from UC San Diego Rady School of Management and has spent over 15 years researching, writing, and advising on student loans, 529 plans, financial aid programs, and saving and investing for young professionals.
Robert has been featured in the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NBC News, and Forbes, where he has been a regular personal finance contributor for over a decade. His work combines both professional expertise and personal experience – he successfully navigated his own student loan repayment journey and has helped thousands of readers do the same.
He is committed to making the intersection of personal finance and education transparent and accessible. You can learn more about Robert on the About Page or on his personal site RobertFarrington.com.