U.S. Student Loans
U.S. Student Loans
Studying in Toronto doesn’t automatically exclude you from U.S. student loans. You could be eligible for U.S. financial aid while you’re at TMU.
If you’re a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, you may be eligible for financial aid. At Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), we participate in several U.S. student funding programs, including:
- U.S. William Ford Federal Direct Loans (external link) : This is the U.S. government’s primary federal student loan program. There are 4 types of direct loans available.
- Direct Subsidized Loans
- Direct Unsubsidized Loans
- Direct PLUS Loans
- Direct Consolidation Loans
- Private and Alternative Loan Providers: These are non-government loans and include options like Earnest and Sallie Mae loans.
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Education Benefits (external link) : These benefits help veterans, service members and qualified family members attend college or training programs.
U.S. citizens and permanent residents interested in applying for the Direct Loan program should submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (external link) application online. We'll take you through the application steps below.
Dual Citizenship:
If you're a citizen of both the U.S. and Canada, you can't receive government student funding from more than one country per year.
Exchanges/Internships:
Any part of a program taken at a partnering institution as an exchange is eligible for federal student aid.
If you're a Canadian citizen, check out our Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and Provincial & Territorial Financial Aid pages to explore if Canadian financial assistance might be the better option for you.
Ineligible Studies for Direct Loans
The following are ineligible for federal direct loans:
- Nursing students (all levels)
- Distance education courses (any course that doesn't include in-person classroom attendance)
One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA)
The U.S. Government enacted the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) in June 2025. When confirming your enrolment, TMU takes into consideration the One Big Beautiful Bill Act – Important Definitions (external link) . If you have questions about the OBBBA, please reach out directly to your lender.
Complete Your Application, Legal Documents and Entrance Counselling
- Complete the FAFSA application process (external link) through the Federal Student Aid website (school code: G10720). The FAFSA help guide (external link) has an FAQ and help section that you can use when filling out your application.
- As part of this process, you'll be required to complete an online Master Promissory Note (MPN) (external link) for each type of loan you wish to apply for. An MPN is a legal document where you promise to repay your loan and any accrued interest. It also outlines the terms and conditions of your loan.
- You must also complete Student Loan Entrance Counselling (external link) . The goal of entrance counselling is to make sure you understand all aspects of your loan, including the terms and your responsibilities as a borrower.
Let TMU Know You've Applied for FAFSA
Once your FAFSA application is submitted, you'll need to notify the TMU Student Financial Assistance office that you've applied for FAFSA by completing our internal Federal Student Aid Supporting Documents Google Form (external link) .
We won't be able to proceed with your FAFSA application until the Google Form is submitted.
Once TMU has confirmed your enrolment and academic year, your government loan will officially be certified. We'll email you your Direct Loan award letter for the year. Use this email as proof of funding for your Student Visa.
Activate Your MyServiceHub Account and Check Notifications
All official TMU communication will be sent to you through your TMU email address. As a new student, you'll need to activate your MyServiceHub account in order to create a university email address (after the first week of August).
Funds will be posted to your MyServiceHub account at the beginning of each term. All loan amounts issued are in U.S. dollars. The U.S. exchange rate is effective the day the funds are posted to your account.
To maintain U.S. Direct Loan eligibility:
- You must be enrolled full-time (4+ courses per semester)
- You may drop to half-time status (2-3 courses per semester) and still remain eligible
- If you drop below half-time status (one course or withdraw entirely) you'll lose eligibility
Academic progress is reviewed for all students at the end of each academic year. If you haven't fulfilled the SAP requirements, you won't be eligible for U.S. Direct Loan funds for the next academic year. Once your academic results are available (generally in early May, or at the end of August if you've registered for courses in the spring/summer term), your academic record will be verified to ensure you've met SAP.
SAP Policy Requirements
It's your responsibility as a student to read and understand the SAP Policy.
SAP is evaluated once each year, at the end of the winter term (early May). However, students taking spring/summer classes will be re-evaluated at the end of the spring/summer term (August).
Your requirements include:
- Maintaining a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 2.0 or higher
- Having an overall course completion rate of 67% or more and complete your program within the allowed timeframe
- Undergraduate students: You must complete your degree within 150% of the published length of your degree completion time (in credits or in years, as applicable)
- Graduate students: You must complete your program within the timeframe published by your program department
During the school year, if you're concerned about meeting or maintaining these requirements, there’s help available. Please connect with our Student Financial Assistance team for out-of-province and U.S. students via email at funding@torontomu.ca.
If you're in need of additional funding, you may consider alternative (non-government) loans. With alternative loans, you can borrow up to the cost of attendance, minus any financial aid you'll receive for that year. TMU will certify other alternative loans if the organization will lend to a student attending a university outside the U.S.
We’ve highlighted some well-known providers below. Earnest and Sallie Mae are good places to start if you’re thinking about alternative loans.
Earnest
Earnest is a private lender offering private student loans, student loan refinancing and scholarships.
Sallie Mae
With 50+ years of experience supporting students, Sallie Mae loans are available to U.S. students studying at TMU.
