The Ministry of Education and four other departments recently issued a notice to adjust and improve the policy of student loans. The maximum annual loan amount for national student loans has been increased by 4000 yuan per student, and the interest rate has been reduced by 30 basis points. The adjustment and improvement of this student loan policy mainly involves three aspects: firstly, the annual loan amount applied for by full-time ordinary undergraduate and college students (including second bachelor's degree, vocational students, and preparatory students) has been increased from no more than 12000 yuan to no more than 16000 yuan, and full-time graduate students have been increased from no more than 16000 yuan to no more than 20000 yuan. At the same time, corresponding increases will be made in the compensation for tuition fees for military service higher education students, the national student loan reimbursement and tuition fee reduction standards for tuition fees, as well as the compensation for grassroots employment tuition fees and the national student loan reimbursement standards for tuition fees. The second is to reduce the national student loan interest rate by 30 basis points from the market quoted interest rate (LPR) for loans of the same period and grade, and adjust it to a decrease of 60 basis points. The third is to carry out commercial graduate student loans, encourage banking and financial institutions to develop and improve targeted graduate credit student loan products with convenient procedures and controllable risks, and provide certain discounts in terms of loan amount, interest rate, term, repayment method, etc. It is understood that students who apply for loans after the new policy is introduced can directly apply for loans in accordance with the latest policy; For students who have already submitted loan applications or signed loan contracts in 2023 before the policy was introduced, they can apply to the national student loan handling bank to increase the loan amount within the new limit according to their actual needs. It is reported that the national student loan policy has been continuously improving since its implementation in 1999. As of the end of 2022, a total of over 400 billion yuan in student loans have been issued nationwide, benefiting over 20 million students, effectively supporting students from financially disadvantaged families to successfully complete their studies and promoting educational equity. (New News Agency)