FAFSA timing question for Fall 2025 freshman - which application year?
Super confused about which FAFSA to complete for my daughter who will be starting college in September 2025. Is it the 2024-2025 form or 2025-2026? The new FAFSA timeline has me totally mixed up. I've seen conflicting advice online and her high school counselor is out on medical leave. We want to make sure we're completing the right application since I know submitting early is important for maximum aid. Anyone have a clear answer on this? Thanks in advance for your help!
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Jeremiah Brown
Yes, you'll need to complete the 2025-2026 FAFSA for a freshman starting in Fall 2025. The FAFSA covers the full academic year (fall, spring, and summer terms). For the 2025-2026 form, you'll be using your 2023 tax information. Remember the FAFSA should open on December 1, 2024 for the 2025-2026 academic year (based on the new timeline), and you'll want to submit as soon as possible after it opens.
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JacksonHarris
•Thank you so much! That clears up my confusion. So we'll be using 2023 tax returns even though that will be 2 years old by then? Just want to double check since our income changed quite a bit in 2024.
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Royal_GM_Mark
The 2025-2026 for sure. The FAFSA always corresponds to the academic year when ur child will actually be ATTENDING the school, not when theyre applying. Its super confusing bc the college application process is in one year but the actual attendance is the next yr!!!
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JacksonHarris
•Thanks for confirming! Yes, the whole process is more confusing than I expected. Especially with all the changes to the FAFSA recently.
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Amelia Cartwright
To give you a complete answer: You'll need the 2025-2026 FAFSA for a student starting in Fall 2025. Here's a helpful way to remember: The FAFSA year always includes the year when the school year ends. So for attendance from Fall 2025 through Spring 2026, you need the 2025-2026 FAFSA. And yes, you'll use 2023 tax information on the 2025-2026 FAFSA. This is called the "prior-prior year" approach. If your financial situation changed significantly since 2023, you can contact each college's financial aid office after you apply to request a professional judgment review (sometimes called an appeal).
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Chris King
•Just adding that my daughter had to do this last year because my husband lost his job after the tax year that was reported on FAFSA. We had to submit additional paperwork to each school showing the job loss and income change. About half the schools adjusted her aid package, but some didn't. Definitely worth asking though!
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Rachel Clark
Everyone is right - its the 2025-2026 form. But just so u know, they completly changed the FAFSA recently and its been a DISASTER. Tons of glitches and delays. If I were you Id start preparing all your docs now (tax returns, bank statements, etc) so your ready to submit the minute it opens in December.
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Zachary Hughes
•FR they might delay opening FAFSA again like they did this year, complete joke how they rolled out these "improvements" 🙄
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JacksonHarris
•Oh wow, I didn't realize there were so many issues with the new system. We'll definitely get our documents ready early. I'm hoping they'll have the bugs worked out by December 2024!
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Mia Alvarez
I tried calling the Federal Student Aid office to ask this exact question last month and was on hold for literally 3 hours before giving up. I eventually used claimyr.com to get through to an agent in about 20 minutes. They confirmed it's the 2025-2026 FAFSA for Fall 2025 freshmen. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ saved me so much time!
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JacksonHarris
•Thank you for the tip! I might need that service when we're actually filling out the FAFSA if we run into problems. The hold times sound awful.
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Rachel Clark
•Omg the hold times are INSANE lately. I wish I'd known about this earlier. Spent 2 days trying to get someone on the phone about my son's SAI calculation.
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Carter Holmes
Make sure you create FSA IDs for both you and your daughter NOW, don't wait until December. That system has its own issues and sometimes verification takes weeks. Also recommend gathering these docs early: 2023 tax returns, W-2s, current bank statements, investment records if any.
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JacksonHarris
•That's great advice! I didn't realize we should set up the FSA IDs so far in advance. Will do that this weekend. Thanks for the document checklist too.
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Chris King
One thing I've learned after sending 3 kids to college - don't just rely on the FAFSA! Many private colleges also require the CSS Profile for institutional aid, and that usually opens in October, so earlier than FAFSA. Check if any schools on your daughter's list require both. CSS Profile is more detailed and asks about home equity and other assets that FAFSA doesn't consider.
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JacksonHarris
•Thank you for mentioning this! She's considering a few private schools so we'll definitely check if they require the CSS Profile as well.
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Jeremiah Brown
•Great point about the CSS Profile. Also worth noting that unlike the FAFSA, the CSS Profile isn't free - it costs $25 for the first school and $16 for each additional school. Fee waivers are available for families with financial need.
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Amelia Cartwright
Since your income changed significantly from 2023, make sure you understand how the SAI (Student Aid Index, formerly EFC) will be calculated. FAFSA will use your 2023 income, but if your 2024 or 2025 income is substantially lower, document everything carefully. You'll need to wait until after you receive aid offers to appeal, but having documentation ready will help tremendously with the professional judgment reviews.
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Royal_GM_Mark
•This!!! My brother had this EXACT situation and didn't know he could appeal. Lost out on like $8k in aid because he didnt know better. The system is so complicated!!!
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JacksonHarris
•Thank you, that's really helpful to know. I've started a folder with our financial documentation and I'll be sure to include information about the income changes since 2023.
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