Do I need to fill out FAFSA now if my daughter is taking a gap year after high school?

You only need to complete the FAFSA when your daughter is actually planning to enroll in college. The FAFSA applies for one academic year at a time, so if she's taking a gap year, you'd want to complete it when she's preparing to start community college. The 2025-2026 FAFSA (which would be for Fall 2025 enrollment) opened in December 2024, and the 2026-2027 FAFSA (for Fall 2026) will open in December 2025. Since she's considering community college for Fall 2026, you'd complete the 2026-2027 FAFSA sometime after it opens in December 2025. There's no advantage to filling it out now when she's not planning to attend during the 2025-2026 academic year.

dont listen to what highschool counselors tell u...i made that mistake with my kid. they INSISTED we had to file even tho my son wasnt sure about college. waste of time and we had to do it all over again the next yr anyway when he actully went!

While it's correct that you only need to file the FAFSA for the year your daughter will attend college, there are a few important considerations: 1. Some state grants have early priority deadlines, so if your daughter changes her mind and decides to attend this fall (2025), filing late could mean missing out on state aid. 2. Some selective scholarships require FAFSA completion during senior year. 3. The new SAI calculation from the FAFSA affects aid eligibility more significantly than the old EFC system. If there's any possibility she might attend this fall, I'd recommend filing. Otherwise, wait until the 2026-2027 FAFSA opens in December 2025.

I've been calling the Federal Student Aid number for THREE DAYS trying to get a straight answer about this exact question for my son!!! Every time I get disconnected after waiting 1-2 hours. The whole system is a joke.

When my daughter took a gap year, we didn't file FAFSA during her senior year because we got the same conflicting advice. Turned out to be the right choice - we only filed for the year she actually enrolled. However, we DID research the SAI formula and ran calculations to estimate what aid she might qualify for, which helped with planning. The new FAFSA has different contribution formulas than the old one, so it's worth understanding the basics even if you're not filing yet.

WAIT...dosent the FASFA expire?? I thought u have to fill it out every single year anyway? My nephew did his senior yr and then again sophomore year of college. Im so confused now

One more thing I'd recommend - even though you're not filing the FAFSA yet, make sure both you and your daughter create FSA IDs now while you have all her high school information readily available. The IDs don't expire, and having them set up in advance will make the process much smoother when you do file next year. Just go to studentaid.gov to create them.

Based on your original question and follow-ups, here's a summary of what you should do: 1. Skip the 2025-2026 FAFSA since your daughter is taking a gap year 2. Create FSA IDs now for both of you at studentaid.gov 3. Mark your calendar for December 2025 when the 2026-2027 FAFSA opens 4. File that FAFSA as early as possible (ideally December/January) for her Fall 2026 enrollment 5. Check community college-specific deadlines for priority aid consideration During the gap year, having her save money from working can help with expenses, and researching scholarship opportunities specific to the community college she's considering would be worthwhile.

As someone who works in financial aid at a community college, I can confirm what others have said - you absolutely do not need to file FAFSA during your daughter's senior year if she's taking a gap year. We see this situation frequently, and students who file "just in case" often end up confused when their aid doesn't carry over. One thing I'd add is that community colleges typically have very generous filing deadlines compared to 4-year schools, so even if she decides in summer 2026 that she wants to start that fall, you'll likely still have time to complete the FAFSA and receive aid. Most of our students qualify for significant Pell Grant funding, and community college tuition is low enough that aid often covers most or all costs. The FSA ID suggestion is spot-on though - definitely get those set up now while you're thinking about it!