Should my son fill out FAFSA during his gap year before Air Force? Timing confusion

My daughter did a gap yr to. Most FAFSA only good for like 1 yr so prob no point filling it now if he's 100% not in school next yr. But def do it if he picks comm college! Air force has own $$ stuff not FAFSA related

Financial aid counselor here. Each FAFSA application covers a specific academic year. The 2025-2026 FAFSA would be for students attending school from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. If your son will take his gap year during that time, there's no benefit to completing it now. However, I recommend having him complete a FAFSA just before he plans to enroll, whether that's community college or using military education benefits. The Air Force has its own educational benefits like Tuition Assistance and the GI Bill, but having a FAFSA on file can help him access additional aid options that stack with military benefits. Also worth noting: the FAFSA now allows you to send your information to 20 schools (up from 10), so if he's considering multiple community colleges, he can list them all.

Everyone's missing something important - many scholarships require FAFSA even if you don't need federal aid!! My kid did gap year too and some private scholarships asked for FAFSA info when he applied for community college after. I WISH someone had told us to just do it his senior year because it would've saved us scrambling!!! The FAFSA info changes every year anyway so you'll need to update it when he actually enrolls but at least you'll be in the system!!!!!

my sons in the airforce and they dont use FAFSA at all they have there own education benefits called tuition assistance and the gi bill but he had to serve for like 3 years to get the good gi bill benefits but everyones situation is diffrent

If your son is truly set on the Air Force, he shouldn't need to complete the FAFSA now. The military has comprehensive education benefits that function separately from the federal financial aid system. However, plans do change, and I've seen many students with gap year intentions end up enrolling in college earlier than expected. Here's what I suggest: wait until your son has more concrete plans. If he decides to attend community college instead of joining the military, he should complete the FAFSA for the academic year he plans to enroll. FAFSA applications for each academic year typically open on October 1 of the prior year. You might also consider having him apply to community college during his senior year (with plans to defer enrollment) just to keep his options open. Many community colleges have very flexible deferment policies and minimal application fees.

Have u guys tried calling FAFSA direct to ask? I did that for my complicated situation & got great advice but took HOURS of waiting on hold. I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got through to an agent in minutes instead of waiting all day. They have video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ - was totally worth it to talk to actual FAFSA person who could see our specific situation.

To directly answer your question: No, your son should not complete the FAFSA during his senior year if he's definitely taking a gap year and considering military service. Rationale: 1. FAFSA applications are year-specific. The current application would be for the 2025-2026 academic year. 2. Each year's FAFSA uses different financial information based on specific tax years. 3. The Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation from this year's FAFSA would be irrelevant when he eventually enrolls. 4. Military education benefits operate independently from FAFSA-based aid. If he later decides to attend community college instead of joining the Air Force, he should complete the FAFSA for the academic year he plans to enroll. Financial aid offices at community colleges typically work efficiently with late FAFSA submissions, especially for spring or summer term starts.

what ever u do dont PAY anyone to fill out fasfa its FREE thats what the first F stands for lol. lot of scams out there charging $$$$ to fill out forms

As a newcomer here, I really appreciate all the detailed advice everyone has shared! This conversation has been super helpful in understanding the timing issues with FAFSA and gap years. It sounds like the consensus is to wait until your son has more concrete plans rather than filling it out now. The point about military benefits being separate from FAFSA really clarifies things too. Good luck with whatever path he chooses - both the Air Force and community college are great options!

As someone new to this community, I wanted to add that it's also worth considering that if your son does end up going the Air Force route, many service members complete their degree while active duty using Tuition Assistance, then save their GI Bill benefits for after service (maybe for a higher degree or to transfer to dependents). This could actually work out better financially than the traditional college path! The military education counselors are really good at helping map out these strategies once he's in. But like everyone said, definitely no need to do FAFSA now if he's taking the gap year.