The Department of Education announced key details about the 2025 - 2026 FAFSA.
The Good News: the new FAFSA form is not changing from last year’s major revision.
The Bad News: it won't widely be available until December.
With that in mind, here's what you should be doing now to prepare, why you should do an estimated SAI now, and what you can do to be ready to file the FAFSA when it is available.
How We Got Here
On June 14, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education (“ED”) announced it was working toward an October 1 release date for the 2025-26 FAFSA cycle and “to ensure a smooth user experience … the form would remain consistent” with the prior year form.
On August 7, 2024, ED announced that the new form will be launched in a two-step process. On October 1, the form will be available to a limited test group of students and colleges. By December 1, ED plans to make the application available to all students.
We're also supposed to stay tuned for more information about the test group. ED promises details about how the test group will work including how applicants may sign-up to be included in the test group, which will initially start with “hundreds and expanding to tens of thousands of applicants.”
ED’s 2025-26 FAFSA updates are mostly behind-the-scenes tweaks to technical items in the charts, such as income protection allowance values as an example, that feed into the formulas for determining SAI. The inputs required from students and contributors are unchanged from last year.
How To Prepare Now To Be Ready To File The FAFSA Later
Even though the FAFSA won't be launched until later this year, it's essential you start to prepare now. Here's what you can do to be ready:
Who Should File The FAFSA For The 2025 - 2026 Academic Year?
The short answer: all students who will be enrolled in college and would like to be considered for any form of financial aid in Award Year 25-26. Even students in the most affluent households with high incomes and lots of assets could benefit from filing a FAFSA. Studentaid.gov offers excellent information about the many types of student aid offered including the Direct Student Loan Program, Work-Study Programs, and grants.
Some federal aid programs do not require students to be in low-earning households. For example, all students, regardless of their family’s financial situation or their SAI, are eligible for a Direct Student Loan. To get a Direct Student Loan, students must file the FAFSA. No FAFSA – no loan.
The Last Word
The process of planning and paying for college is stressful enough for families without the added pressure of a delayed FAFSA form. But this does not mean that you need to be paralyzed awaiting word of when the form will be available.
Today, you can prepare for the time the FAFSA form will be available by getting an estimated SAI, applying for an FSA ID and following the other tips to prepare. Time is on your side. Use it wisely.
Editor: Robert Farrington
John Hupalo is a nationally recognized expert in college financing and student loan planning. He is the founder and CEO of Invite Education, a platform that helps families and students make smarter decisions about paying for college. With more than 30 years of experience in education finance—including leadership roles at Salomon Smith Barney, UBS Securities, First Marblehead and Deutsche Bank—John has been featured in outlets like The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and U.S. News for his insights on student debt, financial aid, and college affordability.