The Repayment Assistance Plan: 1-10% of your income, $10 floor, unpaid interest waived, forgiveness at 30 years
RAP, the income-based federal plan that went live July 1, 2026, sets your payment as a percentage of total AGI on a sliding scale: $10 flat up to $10,000 of income, then 1% rising to 10% at $100,000 and above. Divide by 12, subtract $50 per dependent, and the payment never drops below $10. Worked example: $65,000 AGI with one dependent pays 6% × $65,000 ÷ 12 = $325, minus $50, so $275 a month. At $30,000 of income with no dependents it's $50; at $80,000 it's $466.67. Whatever's left after 360 qualifying payments (30 years) is forgiven. RAP also waives any interest your payment doesn't cover and guarantees your principal drops every month, so the balance can't balloon.
| AGI | Rate | Monthly Payment |
|---|---|---|
| Up to $10,000 | flat | $10.00 |
| $10,001 – $20,000 | 1% | $10.00 – $16.67 |
| $20,001 – $30,000 | 2% | $33.34 – $50.00 |
| $30,001 – $40,000 | 3% | $75.00 – $100.00 |
| $40,001 – $50,000 | 4% | $133.34 – $166.67 |
| $50,001 – $60,000 | 5% | $208.34 – $250.00 |
| $60,001 – $70,000 | 6% | $300.00 – $350.00 |
| $70,001 – $80,000 | 7% | $408.34 – $466.67 |
| $80,001 – $90,000 | 8% | $533.34 – $600.00 |
| $90,001 – $100,000 | 9% | $675.01 – $750.00 |
| Over $100,000 | 10% | $833.34 and up |
Subtract $50 per dependent from any figure, floored at $10. Scale per P.L. 119-21 and Department of Education RAP guidance; sources: StudentAid.gov servicer pages, Mass.gov's official RAP chart, Edfinancial. Bracket edges: $30,000 exactly sits in the 2% band; $30,001 starts the 3% band. In the 1% row the $10 floor bites until AGI reaches $12,000, which is why that row starts at $10.00 rather than $8.33.
| AGI | Rate | Payment (no deps) | Payment (1 dep) | Payment (2 deps) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | 2% | $50.00 | $10.00 | $10.00 |
| $50,000 | 4% | $166.67 | $116.67 | $66.67 |
| $80,000 | 7% | $466.67 | $416.67 | $366.67 |
The dependent credit is a flat $50, so it matters most at low incomes: at $30,000 with one dependent, the raw $50 payment hits the $10 floor. At $80,000 it barely dents the bill.
RAP ditched the old discretionary-income formula. There's no poverty-line subtraction and no $0 payment; the scale applies to your total AGI. The math is one line: percentage × AGI ÷ 12 − $50 × dependents, floored at $10.
Income up to $10,000 pays the $10 flat minimum. From there, each $10,000 band of AGI adds a percentage point, starting at 1% and stopping at 10% above $100,000. The percentage applies to your whole AGI, not just the band's slice, which is why payments jump at band edges: $80,000 of income pays 7% ($466.67), while $80,001 pays 8% ($533.34). Landing just under a band edge at year-end is one of the few RAP levers you control.
$65,000 AGI, one dependent. The scale puts that in the $60,001-$70,000 band at 6%. Payment: 0.06 × 65,000 = $3,900 a year, ÷ 12 = $325.00, minus $50 for the dependent = $275 a month. Over the 30-year forgiveness window that's $99,000 of payments if income never changes; in practice income usually rises, dragging the payment up the scale each annual recertification.
Second example, at the bottom: $15,000 AGI, no dependents. 1% × 15,000 = $150 ÷ 12 = $12.50 a month. Not $0. That's the biggest behavioral change from the old SAVE plan, which zeroed out payments below 225% of the poverty line.
Make 360 qualifying monthly payments, which is 30 years, and the remaining balance is forgiven. There is no undergrad/grad split under RAP: everyone on the plan runs the same 360-payment clock. That is longer than the 20 and 25-year timelines of the IBR-era plans RAP replaced, and it is the plan's biggest trade-off. Periods of economic hardship deferment and payments made on earlier income-driven plans can count toward the 360. One tax warning: the ARPA exclusion that made forgiveness federally tax-free expires after 2025, so a balance forgiven later may generate a tax bill. If you're 15+ years from forgiveness with a large balance, model the "tax bomb" before assuming forgiveness beats payoff.
RAP's 4% at $50k income is cheap money, but the forgiveness clock is long: 30 years. If your income is high and stable and your rates are ugly, refinancing to a fixed private rate can beat three decades of payments; the refinance calculator prices that path. And if what you actually have is a pile of separate federal loans, consolidation bundles them first, though it usually resets the forgiveness count.
The Repayment Assistance Plan is the federal income-based plan that took effect July 1, 2026, created under P.L. 119-21. Payments are a percentage of your adjusted gross income on a sliding scale from 1% to 10%, divided by 12, reduced by $50 per dependent, with a $10 monthly minimum. Unlike the old IDR plans it replaced, there are no $0 payments and no poverty-line subtraction: the scale applies to total AGI, so even $15,000 of income owes 1% ($12.50 a month). Remaining balances are forgiven after 360 qualifying monthly payments, which is 30 years, with no undergraduate/graduate split.
Find your AGI bracket in the scale (up to $10,000 is $10 flat; then 1% at $10,001-$20,000 rising to 9% at $90,001-$100,000), multiply that percentage by AGI, divide by 12, subtract $50 per dependent, and apply the $10 floor. Example: $65,000 AGI with one dependent is 6% × $65,000 / 12 = $325.00, minus $50 = $275 a month.
With no dependents: $30,000 AGI pays $50.00 (2%), $50,000 pays $166.67 (4%), $80,000 pays $466.67 (7%), and $100,000 pays $750.00 (9%). Above $100,000 the rate caps at 10%, which is $833.34 a month at $100,001 and rises from there. Each dependent knocks $50 off, and the payment never drops below $10.
For low incomes, RAP is generally worse than SAVE was: SAVE payments could be $0 below 225% of the poverty line, while RAP's $10 floor applies from the first dollar of income. For middle and upper incomes, RAP compares well because the old plans took 10-20% of discretionary income above a poverty deduction. RAP also pays down principal differently: full on-time payments under RAP credit toward payoff, and unpaid interest is subsidized so the balance doesn't balloon. SAVE and several older IDR plans closed to new enrollment as of July 1, 2026, so for new repayment choices RAP is the income-based option.
Yes, after 360 qualifying monthly payments, which is 30 years on schedule. RAP uses one clock for everyone; the old 20-year undergraduate and 25-year graduate timelines belonged to the IBR-era plans RAP replaced. Economic hardship deferment months and qualifying payments made under earlier income-driven plans can count toward the 360. Forgiveness was not taxed as income through 2025 under ARPA, but Congress has not extended that exclusion, so forgiveness after that date may be federally taxable; budget for the possibility.
Yes, through your servicer or StudentAid.gov, and you'll recertify income annually. RAP started July 1, 2026 with loans entering repayment then, with older borrowers able to switch as the Department phases the plan in. Switching plans can change which payments count toward forgiveness, so check how your payment history carries over before you make the jump, especially if you're chasing PSLF.