The 2025-26 FAFSA Is Open. Experts Say Not to Wait to Apply for Financial Aid for School | Global News Avenue

The 2025-26 FAFSA Is Open. Experts Say Not to Wait to Apply for Financial Aid for School
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid for the 2025-26 academic year is online in November, so if you haven’t applied for financial aid yet, do so as soon as possible.This year’s FAFSA includes various improvements and fixes, such as correcting a bug that required parents filing joint tax returns to complete separate forms, the Department of Education said. said in a press release. These changes occurred in Last year’s disastrous launch This leaves some students without the aid they need to attend school.Despite past challenges, experts say it’s vital Fill out the FAFSA Before going to college. This free form gives you access to various types of federal financial aid, including grants, work-study, and student loans. Here are some steps you can take to successfully apply for the FAFSA. 1. Submit your FAFSA form as soon as possibleWhen seeking financial aid, one of the best moves you can make is to fill out the FAFSA as early as possible. Typically, this form is provided on October 1 of each year. The 2025-26 FAFSA will only be open to a limited number of students in October as the Department of Education gathers feedback and addresses the issue technical glitch. The department originally targeted a December 1 release, but completed testing ahead of schedule. Smart financial advice on topics you care about CNET Money delivers financial insights, trends and news to your inbox every Wednesday. If you’re already thinking about applying next year, a senior official with the Department of Education said they expect the 2026-27 FAFSA to start on time again on October 1, 2025. It is important to submit your application as soon as possible because some financial aid is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. If you wait too long, you may end up receiving much less financial aid than if you applied early. Smart financial advice on topics you care about CNET Money delivers financial insights, trends and news to your inbox every Wednesday. It’s also important to get your FAFSA before college and state deadlines. Each school has its own FAFSA deadline, but it’s usually somewhere between January and March. You can check your state’s deadlines at Federal Student Aid Website. 2. Register for FSA IDBefore you start filling out the FAFSA, you need Create your account On the StudentAid.gov website. This includes setting up an FSA ID, which is your unique username and password. “Students and donors should obtain an FSA ID as soon as possible,” said financial aid expert Mark Kantrowitz.Anyone who contributes to the FAFSA needs to have their own FSA ID. If you are a dependent student, this means you and at least one parent need to have your own FSA ID. A senior education official noted that one of the problems often encountered during the FAFSA testing process is that parents do not create their own FSA ID, which takes time to get approved and can delay the application process. Unless you are a citizen of a freely associated state, you must enter your Social Security number to create your StudentAid.gov account. Parents are not required to have an SSN, but if they have one, their SSN must be entered. Cathy Mueller, executive director of Mapping Your Future, a financial aid literacy organization, said entering information correctly the first time is critical.”Unfortunately, some of the issues encountered in the past have occurred due to incorrect entry of Social Security numbers and dates of birth,” she added.3. Understand your dependencies Dependent students must complete the FAFSA with at least one parent, while independent students can complete the FAFSA on their own. There are many questions you can ask yourself Determine your dependency statusFor example: Are you over 24? Are you studying for a master’s degree or PhD? Are you a veteran or active duty member of the United States Armed Forces? Were you an orphan, a ward of the state, or a foster child before the age of 13? Are you married? If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you may be considered an independent student. If your answer is no, then you are a dependent student. Dependent students must complete the FAFSA with the help of at least one parent. For example, if your parents are married and file their taxes jointly, only one parent will need to fill out the form (although they will need to report information from both parents). If your parents are married and file taxes separately, both parents are required to contribute to the FAFSA. Please note that students and parents complete different sections of the FAFSA. Make sure you are working on the correct parts to avoid mistakes. The federal student aid website recommends having students complete and save their sections before parents start theirs. 4. Organize it before you start filling out the form Having all of your important documents organized in advance can help make your FAFSA application go more smoothly. The FAFSA will ask for your and your contributor’s contact information as well as your financial details. Information you may need includes: Tax returns from two years ago The current balance of any bank account Net worth of investments, businesses and farms child support records In the new version of the FAFSA, you must agree to have your federal tax information transferred directly to the form using: Financial Aid Direct Data Exchange. Declining this automatic transfer will disqualify you from receiving federal student aid, even if the donor manually enters tax information on the form. 5. Check and double-check accuracy The old FAFSA asked 108 questions, but the new FAFSA asks significantly fewer questions. The form is shorter, but you don’t want to rush through it. The student aid website says you should take less than an hour Complete, but allow extra time to ensure you understand each question and provide accurate answers. Filling it out all at once, rather than spread out over several days, can help prevent technical glitches and reduce inconsistencies in responses, Kantrowitz said. Please check everything to make sure all your answers are correct before hitting submit. Errors may cause delays, which may affect your financial aid award. After you submit your FAFSA, you will receive your student aid report, which will summarize your FAFSA details and estimate your eligibility for financial aid. If you find any errors at this time, you can fix them by logging into your StudentAid.gov account or contacting your college or trade school. What to do if you have questions about the FAFSAFilling out the FAFSA can be daunting, especially if you’ve never filled it out before. Fortunately, there are some resources to help you along the way. On your FAFSA form, you will see various question mark icons that, when clicked, provide tips on how to answer the questions. You can also find answers to frequently asked questions at Federal Food Safety Authority Helpand by chatting with Aidan, a virtual assistant for Federal Student Aid. If you’d like to chat with someone, you can access live chat by sending an email to Federal Student Aid Information Center Or call 800-433-3243. Contact centers increase staffing this year Extended evening and Saturday opening hours Until March 2, 2025. Finally, you can seek help from your high school counselor or your college’s financial aid office. By taking these steps and seeking help along the way, you can ensure a smooth FAFSA application and maximize your chances of receiving financial aid.
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