Documents needed for 2025-2026 FAFSA - Is exact AGI required?

Yes, you'll definitely need your exact AGI from your 2023 tax return for the 2025-2026 FAFSA application. The FAFSA uses prior-prior year tax info, so that means 2023 taxes for the 2025-2026 academic year. Don't estimate - the Department of Education will verify this info with the IRS using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT), and discrepancies can flag your application for verification, which is a huge headache. Other documents to have ready: - Social Security numbers for you and your student - Driver's license numbers (if applicable) - W-2 forms from 2023 for you and your spouse if married - Records of untaxed income (child support, interest income, veterans benefits) - Bank statements showing current balances - Investment records (if you have any - excluding retirement accounts and your primary home) The good news is that the FAFSA has been simplified, so it should be less painful than in previous years. But having everything ready before you start will save you a lot of time!

lol dont stress too much about it!!! i did mine in like 30 mins last yr. just grab ur tax stuff and social security #s and ur good. they just want the big numbers not every little thing

The prior poster provided excellent information, but I want to add that the FAFSA does now offer direct IRS data transfer for most applicants through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. This automatically imports your tax information, including your AGI, directly from the IRS into your FAFSA form. It's much more accurate than manual entry and can help prevent verification flags. If you have a complex financial situation - like owning a business, having farm income, or having undergone significant financial changes since 2023 - you might want to contact your daughter's prospective schools' financial aid offices after you submit. They have the ability to perform a "professional judgment review" in cases where your 2023 income doesn't reflect your current situation. One other document many people forget: if you have other children in college, have their college information handy. The number of family members in college simultaneously significantly impacts your Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation.

Your friend is partially correct. The 2024-2025 FAFSA and beyond did eliminate the automatic adjustment for multiple children in college that used to substantially lower each student's Expected Family Contribution (now called the Student Aid Index or SAI). However, colleges still collect this information and many institutions use it in their own financial aid formulas when determining institutional aid packages. So while the federal calculation no longer automatically divides family contribution among siblings, many colleges still consider this factor when awarding their own funds. That's why it's still important to include this information and to contact financial aid offices directly to discuss your family's specific situation.

I'm on year 5 of FAFSA applications and I STILL get confused every year. I swear they change something just to make us crazy. Last year I spent THREE DAYS trying to get through on the phone because the site kept giving me an error about my AGI not matching. Turns out I was off by $12 because I typed it wrong. But could I get a human to help me? Nope!!!

One thing nobody mentioned - make sure u have a working FSA ID for BOTH u and ur student before u start!!! My son and I both had to create FSA IDs and then wait 3 days for them to verify before we could even start the application. Total waste of time. Set those up NOW not when ur ready to submit.

Just your social security numbers and emails (separate emails for each person - can't use the same email for different FSA IDs). They'll ask some basic identity verification questions too. It's pretty simple but the verification can take a few days which is why I suggest doing it early.

I just want to warn you about something that RUINED us last year. When they ask about assets, DO NOT include your retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc) or the value of your primary home. I made this mistake and it MASSIVELY inflated our SAI score. My son lost out on like $8000 in grants because of my mistake!!!! By the time I realized and tried to correct it, they said it was too late for that academic year. The instructions are confusing but trust me - ONLY include checking/savings accounts, secondary properties, investments, and business assets if you own more than 50% of a business with over 100 employees.

To answer your follow-up question about W-2s: While the total from your tax return is most important, it's good to have all individual W-2s available just in case. Sometimes the verification process requires them, especially if you or your spouse had multiple employers. Also, the IRS Data Retrieval Tool doesn't transfer all information - just the main tax return data. For any income not reported on your federal tax return (like child support received), you'll need to enter that manually. One final tip - take screenshots of your confirmation page and save/print the confirmation email. I've had instances where students' FAFSAs were claimed to be "not received" despite confirmation numbers. Having that documentation saved me weeks of headaches.