Do we need 2024 tax returns for January 2025 FAFSA filing or will 2023 taxes work?
So confused about the tax year needed for FAFSA filing! My husband and I have planned to sit down and complete our daughter's 2025-2026 FAFSA during the first two weeks of January 2025 (that's when our schedules finally match up). But I'm worried about the tax information - do we need to have our 2024 taxes already filed by then? That seems impossible since most W-2s don't even arrive until late January. Or does the FAFSA still use our 2023 tax info that we already filed? I've heard mixed things about the prior-prior year system with the new FAFSA changes. Don't want to waste our dedicated time slot if we won't have the right documents!
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Jamal Harris
You'll need to use your 2023 tax information (from the taxes you filed in 2024) for the 2025-2026 FAFSA. This is what's called the prior-prior year system. The FAFSA uses tax information from two years before the academic year in question. So for a 2025-2026 FAFSA, that means 2023 tax data. You definitely do NOT need to have your 2024 taxes completed when you file in January 2025. The FAFSA will directly import your 2023 tax information from the IRS using the Data Retrieval Tool, so make sure you have your tax return handy just in case you need to reference any specific line items.
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Zoe Stavros
•Thank you so much! That's a huge relief. I was stressing about how we'd complete taxes so early. So to be 100% clear, when we sit down in January 2025, we'll be using our 2023 taxes that we filed back in 2024, not the 2024 taxes we haven't filed yet. Is that correct?
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GalaxyGlider
its the taxes from 2 years ago they always use... i did my sons fafsa last month and it pulled our 2022 taxes even tho we already filed 2023 ones
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Mei Wong
•Wait, that doesn't sound right... I thought they changed the year used with the new FAFSA system??? My financial aid advisor told me something completely different. Now I'm confused too.
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Liam Sullivan
The prior-prior year system has been in place for several years and will still be used with the new FAFSA. For your 2025-2026 FAFSA submission in January 2025, you will indeed use your 2023 tax information (filed in 2024). The FAFSA Simplification Act made many changes to the form and formula, but it did not change the tax year used. This system allows families to use tax information that's already been filed and processed by the IRS, making it easier to complete the application earlier in the cycle. Just make sure both you and your husband have your FSA IDs ready in January, as you'll both need to provide authorization for the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to import your tax information.
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Zoe Stavros
•Thank you for confirming! Does that mean we should bring our 2023 tax returns with us when we sit down to fill it out? Or will the online system just pull that information automatically?
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Liam Sullivan
The FAFSA's IRS Data Retrieval Tool will automatically import most of your 2023 tax information, but I always recommend having physical copies of your tax returns handy just in case: 1. You need to reference specific information that doesn't import 2. The Data Retrieval Tool experiences technical issues (which happened frequently during the 2024-2025 rollout) 3. You need to verify that the imported information matches what you filed Also bring: - Social Security numbers for everyone in the household - Records of untaxed income - Asset information (bank statements, investment records) - List of colleges your daughter is applying to (including their school codes) Having everything ready will make your January session much more productive.
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Amara Okafor
•omg the irs tool is THE WORST sometimes!!! when i did mine it kept saying "error" for like 2 days straight and i almost missed my school's priority deadline!! definitely have backup copies of everything!!!!
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Mei Wong
I tried doing the FAFSA for my son last year and the whole system crashed halfway through. Then when I tried calling the Federal Student Aid helpline, I was on hold for over 2 HOURS before getting disconnected!!! The entire process is so frustrating. Has anyone found a better way to actually reach a human being when you need help?
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Giovanni Colombo
•I had the same problem trying to reach FSA - it was a nightmare. Someone on another forum recommended Claimyr and it actually worked for me. Their system calls Federal Student Aid and when they reach an agent, they connect you - took about 15 minutes instead of hours. I think their website is claimyr.com and they have a demo video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Might be worth looking into if you run into FAFSA issues during your January filing session, especially since you have a specific time window to complete it.
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Zoe Stavros
Thank you all SO MUCH for the helpful information! We'll definitely have our 2023 tax returns handy when we sit down in January, along with all the other documents mentioned. I feel much more prepared now. And thanks for the tip about Claimyr - I'm bookmarking that just in case we run into issues. With how glitchy the system has been lately, it's good to have a backup plan for getting help!
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GalaxyGlider
•good luck!! make sure u submit it early cuz some schools have those priority deadlines for more $$$ in february. we missed ours last year and got way less aid :
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Fatima Al-Qasimi
I AM SO CONFUSED ABOUT THIS WHOLE SYSTEM!! 😫 My daughter is a junior in high school and I'm already stressing about next year's FAFSA. If we file in October 2025 for her freshman year 2026-2027, which tax year will they use?? Will it be our 2024 taxes or our 2025 taxes??? The whole prior-prior thing is making my head spin!!!!
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Jamal Harris
•For your 2026-2027 FAFSA (filed in October 2025), you'll use your 2024 tax information. The pattern is always: Academic year minus 2 = tax year needed So: 2026-2027 academic year → 2024 tax information No need to stress! The system is actually designed to make it easier since you'll have already filed those 2024 taxes long before October 2025.
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Liam Sullivan
One important note for the original poster: Since you mentioned filing in January 2025, be aware that some colleges have priority financial aid deadlines as early as February 1st. The FAFSA processing time has been taking 3-4 weeks with the new system, so filing in early January is a good plan to ensure you meet those priority deadlines. Also, when using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, make sure the names and addresses match EXACTLY between your tax return and FAFSA. Even minor differences (like using "Street" vs "St") can cause the system to fail to match your records.
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Zoe Stavros
•That's a great tip about the exact matching! I wouldn't have thought of that. Our daughter is applying to 7 schools and I've already checked their priority deadlines - earliest one is February 15th, so I think our early January timeline should work. Really appreciate all this help!
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Khalil Urso
Just wanted to add one more helpful tip for your January FAFSA session! Since you mentioned having a specific time window when your schedules align, I'd recommend creating your FSA IDs ahead of time if you haven't already. Both you and your husband will need separate FSA IDs, and the verification process can take a few days. You can create them at studentaid.gov well before your January filing date. This way when you sit down to actually complete the FAFSA, you won't waste any of your precious time together waiting for account verification emails or dealing with ID setup issues. The last thing you want is to finally have that dedicated time blocked out only to get stuck on account setup! Also, if your daughter doesn't have her FSA ID yet, she'll need one too (even though you'll be filling it out as her parent, she still needs her own ID for the process).
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