Newsroom
Problems with Perkins Loans
January 03, 2019
A large number of Perkins Loans reported by schools or third-party servicers are in error, according to the Department of Education.
In a December 20 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education (ED) reminded schools to review all of its Perkins Loan data currently reported in NSLDS and to make updates as necessary.
According to ED, some of the most common Perkins Loan reporting errors include:
- Loans reported with a graduate level academic code and loan date (date of first disbursement) after the program expiration date of 09/30/2016 for graduate borrowers.
- Loans reported as an undergraduate loan with a loan date (date of first disbursement) after the program expiration date of 09/30/2017 for undergraduate borrowers.
- Loans reported with a disbursement date after 6/30/2018.
Schools that participate in the Perkins Loan Program must review their Perkins Loans information on NSLDS and ensure the information is reported accurately. To complete the review, schools should request a Perkins Loan Reconciliation Report (REC005) from the NSLDS Professional Access website.
Detailed instructions for requesting and formatting the REC005 extract file can be found in Appendix J: NSLDS Perkins Report File Layout of the Federal Perkins Data Provider Instructions on the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website.