US federal loans

How much can I borrow?

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into US law in July 2025, and this will result in changes to federal student aid for those studying in the 2026/27 academic year. The information below is subject to change based on any further updates from the US Department of Education Federal Student Aid website.

The type of loan and the amount you may be able to borrow is dependent on when you enrolled in your course at Oxford, and whether you are a graduate or undergraduate student. You must complete the federal Cost of Attendance (COA) form to determine the exact amounts you are eligible to borrow in the relevant academic year. The COAs are available in the How to apply section of this page.

If you are enrolled in a course at Oxford before 1 July 2026, and received a federal loan for that course before this date

Students who are enrolled in a course at Oxford before 1 July 2026, and who have received a federal loan for that course before this date, will be eligible to borrow the loan types below for the 2025-26 academic year, and then up to a further three academic years or until the end of your course, whichever comes earlier.

Loan types for graduate students

Loan types for undergraduate students

Before completing a federal loan application, you will need to determine whether you are a dependent or an independent student and this will establish which loan types and amounts you are eligible to borrow. Definitions on how to determine this can be found on the Federal Student Aid website, but if your circumstances are unusual and you need advice, please email the US loans team. 

*Some courses are not eligible for federal loans. More information is available in the above Eligibility section of this page.

**Origination fees, default fees and interest rates are subject to change, the rates for 2025-26 are as shown at the time of publication. For the latest information on interest rates and fees, please see the Federal Student Aid website.

If you will be starting a new course at Oxford for the 2026-27 academic year, or are a current student who didn't receive a federal loan for your course before 1 July 2026 

The exact details for federal loan types available in the 2026/27 academic year will be added here when confirmed. 

Receiving and managing your US federal loan

Payment of federal loans are made in equal termly instalments by bank transfer to your college. The US Department of Education stipulates that loans must be paid in equal instalments. Although it is standard practice to invoice students for all fees at the beginning of the academic year, special dispensation is made for federal loan takers and your college will normally arrange for your fees to be paid in termly instalments that correlate with your US loan payments.

You must be fully enrolled before your funds can be requested from the US.  If you have not completed your enrolment in time at the start of term your loan payment will be postponed to the next scheduled adhoc disbursement date. Further information on enrolment can be found on the Guide to registration webpage.

What are the disbursement dates for the 2025/26 academic year?

The main disbursement dates are at the start of term in October, January and April, with an additional payment in July for those on courses with 11 or 12 month loan periods. Any changes requested after the deadline for amendments may cause your loan payment to be delayed to the next disbursement date.

Adhoc disbursements

Alongside the main disbursements, a small number of adhoc disbursements are scheduled each term to process any loan increases, applications during the term or exceptional circumstances when students can't be paid on the main disbursements. 

When will I receive the living costs portion of my federal loan? 

The disbursement dates are when your college will receive the loan funds, not the date that you will receive any funds remaining for living costs. Within three working days of receiving the funds, your college will deduct a proportion for fees and battels (room and board). They will then pay the balance to you within 14 calendar days for living costs. For students on some courses, the central University and/or your department will perform these functions instead.

You should ensure that you have sufficient funds from an alternative source to cover any costs until you receive your first disbursement.

Will the exchange rate effect my loan?

Your funds will be converted to £GBP on receipt and currency conversion costs will apply. Although the Cost of Attendance (COA) form uses a static exchange rate to calculate costs, the actual amount your college will receive for each disbursement will vary, as it will depend on the exchange rate on the date the funds are received. Please note the University has no control over exchange rate fluctuations, and we strongly recommend that students monitor rates during the academic year.

Can I increase my loan?

To increase your loan within the limits of your COA, email the US loans team stating the new gross $USD amounts you would like to borrow in the current academic year. We will return an updated version of your COA to you for your approval. Any approved additional funds will be spread across the remaining scheduled disbursements.

If you have an endorser on your PLUS loan, you can only increase the loan up to the endorsed amount, unless your endorser is willing to increase the endorsed amount. Please email the US loans team in the first instance if your PLUS loan is endorsed and you wish to increase the amount. 

If you are currently taking only a Subsidized and/or Unsubsidized loan but your increase includes a PLUS loan, you will need to complete a PLUS loan agreement (MPN), PLUS entrance counselling and a PLUS loan application. More information on this is on the How to Apply section of this page.

How do I decrease my loan?

To decrease your loan, email the US loans team stating the new gross $USD amounts you would like to borrow in the current academic year. The reduction will be spread across your remaining disbursements. You cannot decrease your loan below the amounts already released for each type of loan in the current academic year. 

How can I cancel my loan?

We will email you prior to each disbursement with the deadline for cancelling/returning loan funds through the University. To cancel your loan you must notify us by the specified deadline, as well as informing your college of your requested cancellation. You may need to pay fees and bank charges associated with returning any funds if payment has already been requested from the US.

If you would like to cancel your federal loan and the deadline for doing so through the University has passed (if it is more than 120 days past the disbursement date), you can make a repayment directly to your lender; details on this can be located on the Federal Student Aid webpage. If you make a repayment within 120 days of the loan disbursement date, your lender may be able to treat this as a partial or full cancellation with the appropriate adjustment of the loan fee and interest.

Changes affecting your loan

You must contact us if any of the below occur or may occur. Contact us immediately and in advance of the change where possible.

Other funding received

If you are provided with a financial award, such as a scholarship or grant, your COA will be adjusted accordingly. This may change the amounts you are able to borrow.

Change of college

Your loan will be transferred to new records on Oxford and US systems. We will be unable to release funds unless your record is against the correct college.

Change of course

We will reassess your eligibility and amend your COA, which could change the amounts you are able to borrow. 

Change of mode of study

If you change from full- to part-time study or vice versa, we will reassess your eligibility and amend your COA, which could change the amounts you are able to borrow.

Change of location of study

If you change where you are living during the academic year (except vacations) we will reassess your eligibility. More information can be found in the Eligibility section above. 

Change or potential change in enrolment status

You must contact us immediately if you are considering changing enrolment status, so that we can prevent your disbursement being released if this has not already been done. We are required to report any enrolment changes within tight timescales and may need to complete a Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation, which can lead to ‘unearned’ funds being returned to the US Department of Education (see our Consumer information and policies page for the full R2T4 policy). Please contact us with any questions as we can provide information tailored to your individual circumstances. The requirements for Title IV program funds when you change status are separate from the University's refund policy, therefore you should also discuss any enrolment change with your college and department.

Return to study from a suspension

You need to complete a loan application for the year in which you will be returning to study, should you wish to borrow funds for this period. Information on applying is in the How to Apply section on this page. It is advisable to submit your application prior to the term you are due to return, for example in November if you are returning in Hilary term.

Upcoming submission or viva

If you are a DPhil student and are intending to submit your thesis during the current academic year, please let us know as soon as possible as this may affect the amount you are eligible to borrow.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

To be eligible for US federal student loans, a student must make satisfactory academic progress (SAP). To assess SAP you will be sent a form for your supervisor to complete confirming you have made satisfactory academic progress for your course. For courses lasting 12 months or less SAP will be evaluated once per term; for those on programmes lasting more than 12 months SAP will be evaluated in Trinity term. Please note that your form must be returned by the deadline given, otherwise it may cause any upcoming disbursements to be postponed until such time as your SAP form has been completed. More information on SAP can be found on our consumer information and policies page.