How is the RAP payment calculated?

From total AGI in $10,000 bands: at or under $10,000 pays a $120-a-year base, $10,001 to $20,000 pays 1 percent of AGI a year, rising one point per band to 10 percent above $100,000. Divide the annual amount by 12, subtract $50 per dependent, and apply the $10 monthly minimum.

Does RAP stop my balance from growing?

Yes, on time payments guarantee it. Interest your payment does not cover is waived instead of capitalizing, and when your payment retires less than $50 of principal, the government covers the difference. Under this projection the balance falls by at least $50 every on-time month, even at the $10 minimum payment.

When is a RAP loan forgiven?

After 360 qualifying monthly payments, 30 years, counting qualifying payments you already made under other income-driven plans. The forgiven balance is taxable income under current federal law, which is a real cost to plan for. Forgiveness through PSLF at 120 qualifying employment months stays tax-free.

Is RAP better than IBR?

Often not for existing borrowers: IBR forgives in 20 or 25 years against RAP's 30, and months paid on RAP do not count toward IBR forgiveness, so the switch is one-way. RAP wins mainly at low incomes where its bands beat IBR's formula, or when the interest waiver and principal match matter most.

Why did my payment jump when my income barely changed?

RAP's schedule is a cliff, not a marginal ladder. The band's percentage applies to your whole AGI, so moving from $60,000 to $60,001 moves the annual charge from 5 percent of $60,000 to 6 percent of $60,001, about $50 more per month. Near a band edge, pre-tax contributions like a 401(k) can pull AGI back below the line.

RAP Student Loan Calculator

Estimate your Repayment Assistance Plan payment from AGI and dependents, then project the loan to payoff or forgiveness with RAP's waiver and match.

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RAP monthly payment

$250.00

How it was set: 5 percent of your AGI a year
First month's interest: $205.83
Interest waived (first month): $0.00
Principal match (first month): $5.83
Months to payoff: 320
Balance forgiven at 30 years: Paid off before the 30-year mark
Total you pay: $79,867.35
Total interest waived: $0.00
Total principal matched: $65.78

Compare as a fixed payment

Sends your balance, rate, and RAP payment to the student loan payoff calculator.

Balance under RAP by year

Quick answer: With the example inputs this page loads by default, the headline result (RAP monthly payment) comes to $250.00. Estimate your Repayment Assistance Plan payment from AGI and dependents, then project the loan to payoff or forgiveness with RAP's waiver and match. Change any input above and every figure updates instantly in your browser.

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Fact-check: results on this page are verified against an independently coded reference oracle that covers all 106 calculators on this site. See how we verify .

RAP, the income-driven plan that opened July 1, 2026, charges 1 to 10 percent of your adjusted gross income a year, paid monthly, minus $50 a month per dependent, with a $10 minimum. A $60,000 AGI pays $250 a month. This calculator computes your payment from the statutory schedule and projects your balance under RAP's interest waiver and $50 principal match, out to payoff or 360-payment forgiveness.

What this result means

Two numbers decide whether RAP helps you: the payment (a cliff schedule, so one extra dollar of AGI at a band edge can raise the annual charge) and the payoff-or-forgiveness line. If the loan pays off before 360 payments, RAP is just a payment plan; if forgiveness arrives first, the forgiven balance is taxable income under current law, unlike PSLF. The projection holds your income flat, while real RAP payments recertify annually, and prior qualifying IDR payments shorten the 360 clock. Compare against IBR before committing: RAP months do not count toward IBR forgiveness. This is an estimate for education, not financial or tax advice.

Assumptions

The payment follows 20 U.S.C. 1087e(q), verified against the statute text: AGI at or under $10,000 pays a $120-a-year base amount; AGI above that pays 1 to 10 percent of TOTAL adjusted gross income a year in $10,000 bands (a cliff schedule, so the rate applies to the whole AGI, not just the slice in the band); the monthly figure is the annual amount divided by 12, minus $50 per dependent, with a $10 monthly minimum.
The projection holds your AGI, dependents, and payment constant for up to 360 months. Real RAP payments recertify annually as income changes, so treat the payoff and forgiveness figures as the shape of the outcome at today's income, not a schedule.
Every payment is assumed on time, which is what triggers the statute's two subsidies each month: interest your payment does not cover is waived rather than added to the balance, and when your payment reduces principal by less than $50 the Department reduces principal by the difference (up to $50). The balance therefore never grows and falls by at least $50 every month in this projection.
Monthly interest is your balance times the annual rate divided by 12, rounded to the cent, the same convention as the site's amortization core. In the final month you pay the remaining interest plus whatever principal the match does not cover.
Forgiveness after 360 qualifying payments counts prior qualifying income-driven payments in reality; this projection starts the count at zero, so borrowers with existing IDR history reach forgiveness sooner than shown. Forgiven amounts are taxable income under current federal law (the pandemic-era exclusion expired at the end of 2025); PSLF forgiveness at 120 qualifying employment months remains tax-free and is not modeled here.
Parent PLUS loans and consolidations containing one are not eligible for RAP. Spousal income treatment follows your tax return's AGI; this tool does not model filing-status strategies. This is an estimate for educational purposes only, not financial or tax advice; get your official estimate inside your StudentAid.gov account.

Key terms

Definitions for the terms this calculator uses, in our finance glossary .

Income-Driven Repayment (IDR)

How it works

RAP’s payment schedule comes straight from the statute, 20 U.S.C. 1087e(q), added by P.L. 119-21 and implemented by the RISE final regulations. Adjusted gross income at or under $10,000 pays a $120-a-year base amount. Above that, the payment is a percentage of your WHOLE AGI, set by $10,000 bands: more than $10,000 and not more than $20,000 pays 1 percent a year, rising one point per band to 9 percent at $100,000, and 10 percent above $100,000. The monthly payment is the annual amount divided by 12, minus $50 per dependent, and never below $10. Because the rate applies to the entire AGI, the schedule is a cliff: one dollar over a band edge reprices the whole income at the next percentage.

The projection then walks the loan month by month at that payment, applying the statute’s two on-time-payment subsidies exactly: interest the payment does not cover is waived rather than added to the balance, and when the payment reduces principal by less than $50, the Department reduces principal by the difference, up to $50. Together they guarantee the balance never grows and falls by at least $50 every on-time month. The walk ends at payoff or at 360 payments, where the remainder is forgiven.

Worked example

The defaults: $60,000 AGI, no dependents, a $38,000 balance at 6.5 percent.

Payment: $60,000 sits in the more-than-$50,000, not-more-than-$60,000 band, so 5 percent = $3,000 a year = $250 a month.
First month: interest is $38,000 x 6.5% / 12 = $205.83, the payment retires $44.17 of principal, and the match adds $5.83 so the balance falls a full $50.
Outcome: the loan pays off in month 320, about $79,867 paid in total, before the 360-payment forgiveness line.

Drop the AGI to $18,000 with one dependent and the payment is 1 percent ($15 a month) minus $50, floored at $10. The $10 never touches principal, so the match alone moves the balance: down exactly $50 a month, $18,000 over 30 years, leaving $20,000 forgiven (taxable under current law) after $3,600 of total payments.

Scope and limitations

A constant-income estimate: real RAP payments recertify annually, and the 360-payment clock counts qualifying payments from prior income-driven plans, which this projection does not (it starts at zero, so existing borrowers reach forgiveness sooner than shown). All payments are assumed on time, which is the statutory condition for both the interest waiver and the principal match. Not modeled: PSLF’s separate 120-payment tax-free forgiveness, spousal or filing-status AGI strategies, and servicer-specific rounding. Parent PLUS loans and consolidations containing one are not eligible for RAP. This is an estimate for educational purposes only, not financial or tax advice; your official estimate lives in the StudentAid.gov Repayment Calculator.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

How is the RAP payment calculated?: From total AGI in $10,000 bands: at or under $10,000 pays a $120-a-year base, $10,001 to $20,000 pays 1 percent of AGI a year, rising one point per band to 10 percent above $100,000. Divide the annual amount by 12, subtract $50 per dependent, and apply the $10 monthly minimum.
Does RAP stop my balance from growing?: Yes, on time payments guarantee it. Interest your payment does not cover is waived instead of capitalizing, and when your payment retires less than $50 of principal, the government covers the difference. Under this projection the balance falls by at least $50 every on-time month, even at the $10 minimum payment.
When is a RAP loan forgiven?: After 360 qualifying monthly payments, 30 years, counting qualifying payments you already made under other income-driven plans. The forgiven balance is taxable income under current federal law, which is a real cost to plan for. Forgiveness through PSLF at 120 qualifying employment months stays tax-free.
Is RAP better than IBR?: Often not for existing borrowers: IBR forgives in 20 or 25 years against RAP's 30, and months paid on RAP do not count toward IBR forgiveness, so the switch is one-way. RAP wins mainly at low incomes where its bands beat IBR's formula, or when the interest waiver and principal match matter most.
Why did my payment jump when my income barely changed?: RAP's schedule is a cliff, not a marginal ladder. The band's percentage applies to your whole AGI, so moving from $60,000 to $60,001 moves the annual charge from 5 percent of $60,000 to 6 percent of $60,001, about $50 more per month. Near a band edge, pre-tax contributions like a 401(k) can pull AGI back below the line.

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Learn how this works

New to this topic? Our companion guide explains it in plain language: The SAVE Plan Is Gone: How to Pick Your Next Student Loan Plan in 90 Days

By Sam Sage Last reviewed July 2026.