Another school year has come to a close for most of us, but there’s still money you can claim to help cover any lingering costs by filling out the 2024-25 FAFSA.

Is it even worth submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid — especially for an academic year that’s already passed? The answer is yes, you should still submit the FAFSA. You could still be eligible for financial aid that helps cover bills from this current school year. 

“Even if you’re a latecomer, you can still be eligible to receive federal student aid — including a Federal Pell Grant,” the Federal Student Aid website says.

But the deadline to apply is June 30, so there’s no time to wait.

Financial aid has had its own rough year, with the Department of Education has been gutted and borrowers in default being sent to collections. A proposed overhaul of student loans could reduce access to Pell Grants and the total amount a student can borrow. 

The FAFSA is designed to help students shoulder the cost of college by determining their family’s eligibility for financial aid, including Pell Grants, scholarships, work-study programs and student loans. Most experts agree that even with all the turmoil, filling out the FAFSA is still a good idea in most circumstances. 

Here’s what you need to know if you need help paying for the college and want to fill out the FAFSA.

Is this year’s FAFSA affected by the GOP plan to overhaul financial aid?

The Republican proposal for overhauling federal financial aid, the Student Success and Taxpayer Savings Plan, is in its early stages and would need to approved by both Congress and the President before it becomes law. In its current form, many of the rules would affect financial aid awarded on or after July 1, 2026. Among the proposed changes are a maximum limit on how much a student can borrow each year and in total, restrictions on eligibility for Pell Grants and a restructuring of the student loan repayment program.   

The plan doesn’t impact the FAFSA application for the 2024-25 or 2025-26 academic years, but it could potentially affect those who plan to be in college after July 1, 2026, as well as current borrowers enrolled in income-contingent repayment plans. Experts say those who are just applying for their first year of college should start planning now with these potential changes in mind.

“Instead of just looking at what’s my loan amount this year, what’s my out of pocket and so on, they should be looking at the total timeline of the program,” said student loan expert Betsy Mayotte, president of the nonprofit Institute of Student Loan Advisors. “This is something people should be doing today.” 

What’s changed with the FAFSA in the past few years?

The 2024-25 and 2025-26 FAFSA forms are similar, drastically cutting the number of questions and applied a new formula to determine a family’s contributions. Delays and glitches caused widespread chaos during the 2024-25 rollout.

Although the 2025-26 rollout was smoother, the transition to a new administration has created questions about the FAFSA amid President Trump’s call to abolish the Department of Education. If the department’s duties are reassigned and another government agency takes over FAFSA processing, experts say any changes to the current year’s application process likely would be minor. 

“There might be changes to things like where to find the FAFSA online,” said Elaine Rubin, director of corporate communications for Edvisors. “If it is shifted, we’ll have plenty of time to determine how it’s going to be managed and processed.” 

How does FAFSA use my info to help me get federal student aid?

Based on the answers you provide to questions on the FAFSA, the financial aid office calculates your Student Aid Index. The SAI factors in the incomes and assets of the student and their “contributors” — parents or spouse — to determine the expected family contribution toward college costs, which can range from -1,500 up to 99,999. 

A lower number means there’s a higher likelihood you’ll receive need-based financial assistance. Schools use the SAI to calculate the amount of financial aid they offer you.

Should I fill out the FAFSA?

Unless you are prepared to pay for college without any assistance, it’s in your best interest to fill out the FAFSA, regardless of your financial status. The federal student aid site notes that multiple factors, including the size of your family and your year in school, are considered in addition to your family’s income.

“Not filing just screams, ‘I can pay full price,'” said Danilo Umali, founder of Game Theory College Planners. 

Even if you believe your family’s income is too high to qualify for need-based aid, filling out the form may still be worth your time. “Some schools require FAFSA to qualify for merit aid through their school,” Rubin said. 

Concerns about disclosing citizenship

While a student must be a US citizen or eligible non-citizen to complete the FAFSA, your parents or spouse may not be. Although the studentaid.gov site says your contributor’s citizenship or immigration status won’t affect your eligibility, there is concern that information submitted on the FAFSA might be shared with other government agencies. 

Nancy Goodman, founder of the nonprofit organization College Money Matters, said this is a valid fear for college students with undocumented parents. “Under the previous administration, sharing info between government departments was not allowed unless specified and approved,” she said. “Under this administration, it continues to be unclear where information sharing is possible and with whom.” 

If your family has concerns about citizenship and wishes to forgo the FAFSA, consider contacting colleges where you’re applying to find other options to secure aid. Some may offer alternative applications or other financing options. Also consider private, merit-based scholarships, which may not require information about your parents or spouse.

“Citizenship and legal permanent residency is a very complicated topic,” Rubin said. “It’s going to be a very personal decision on how to proceed.”

Here’s what you need to fill out the FAFSA

 Before you can fill out the FAFSA, you and your contributors must each create your own FSA ID. You’ll need the following:

• Your legal name 
• Date of birth
• An email address
• Social Security number — contributors who do not have a Social Security number will need to be able to answer questions about themselves to verify their identity

If you have a mobile phone number, you can also add it to your account for two-step verification.

Note that verifying your Social Security number for your FSA ID may take one to three days. If you plan to submit your FAFSA application by a particular deadline, make sure everyone gets their FSA IDs at least a few days before.

Filling out the FAFSA: Step-by-step guide

Preparation is key when filling out the FAFSA. You’ll want to gather relevant financial and legal documents before you start. This will save you time during the application process.

There are five sections in the FAFSA form: 

• Student 
• Student’s spouse 
• Parent 
• Parent’s spouse or partner 
• Preparer (if someone other than the student, student’s spouse, parent, or parent’s spouse or partner completed this form on the applicant’s behalf)

The Federal Student Aid office recommends that students log in to studentaid.gov to fill out their portion of the FAFSA first, then invite your contributors. You can pause the application at any time and return to complete it.

You’ll each need the following information to complete your sections of the form: 

• Personal information: name, contact info, Social Security number and birth date 
• Bank statements (for checking and savings account balances) 
• Investment records 
• Income statements, including W-2s 
• Tax returns 
• Records of any child support received

You’ll also be asked which schools you want your FAFSA information shared with so keep your college list handy. You must list at least one college but you can add more colleges later. 

If you and/or your contributors filed a US tax return, you may be eligible to transfer your tax information directly from the IRS into your online FAFSA application. Select “Proceed to the IRS” to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. 

Double-check your work throughout. All of your information for the student and contributors must match their StudentAid.gov account exactly. Don’t use nicknames or suffixes (such as Jr.). Most of the information you’ll need to provide about income, investments, tax credits and account balances will come from your tax returns or bank statements. 

Submitting the FAFSA

You and your contributors must each sign and submit your portion of the form when you’re finished. You can monitor the status of a FAFSA application with your studentaid.gov account (using your FSA ID) under the My Activity page. You’ll also be notified when contributors sign and complete sections.

After successfully submitting the FAFSA, you’ll receive a confirmation page that includes your estimated Pell Grant eligibility and estimated SAI. The schools you listed on the FAFSA will use the SAI to determine your financial aid package and send you an offer after you’ve been accepted.

What’s the deadline for submitting the FAFSA?

The opening date for the upcoming FAFSA and the deadline for the previous school year’s FAFSA overlap, which can make keeping track of all the dates difficult.

In general, the FAFSA application period opens on Oct. 1 before the following school year. So for high school students, you can submit FAFSA for your freshman year of college on Oct. 1 of your senior year. (The 2024-25 and 2025-26 openings were delayed because of glitches with the new form.)

The federal deadline for FAFSA applications is June 30 at 11:59 p.m. Central Time for that academic year. Here’s a chart for FAFSA deadlines to help:

Many states and schools have their own deadlines for accepting the FAFSA, often earlier than the federal deadline. You can find your state’s deadline on the federal student loan site. Check your college’s admissions site for their deadline.

Although it’s nearly the end of the 2024-25 academic year, it’s still worth submitting the FAFSA up until the federal deadline if you need help covering the cost of college.

Întrebări frecvente