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Africa Studio/Shutterstock September 14, 2022 Heidi Rivera is a student loans writer for Bankrate. She began her journey in the personal finance space in 2018 and is passionate about collecting data and creating content around higher education and student loans. Chelsea has been with Bankrate since early 2020. She is invested in helping students navigate the high costs of college and breaking down the complexities of student loans. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for how we make money. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
Founded in 1976, Bankrate has a long track record of helping people make smart financial choices. We’ve maintained this reputation for over four decades by demystifying the financial decision-making process and giving people confidence in which actions to take next. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that we’re putting your interests first. All of our content is authored by and edited by , who ensure everything we publish is objective, accurate and trustworthy. Our loans reporters and editors focus on the points consumers care about most — the different types of lending options, the best rates, the best lenders, how to pay off debt and more — so you can feel confident when investing your money. Bankrate logo Editorial integrity
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You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for over four decades. We continually strive to provide consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life’s financial journey. Bankrate follows a strict , so you can trust that our content is honest and accurate. Our award-winning editors and reporters create honest and accurate content to help you make the right financial decisions. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We’re transparent about how we are able to bring quality content, competitive rates, and useful tools to you by explaining how we make money. Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and whether a product is offered in your area or at your self-selected credit score range can also impact how and where products appear on this site. While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. On Oct. 1, the opens for students seeking financial aid for the 2023-24 school year. Completing your FAFSA each year puts you in the running for , and opportunities that can help offset out-of-pocket college costs. If you’ll be heading to school for the first time or returning for another year of classes during the 2023-24 school year, here’s what you need to know about completing the FAFSA. When is the FAFSA deadline
The federal deadline for the 2023-24 FAFSA submission is 11:59 p.m. Central Time on June 30, 2024. But states and colleges may also have their own , some of which are as early as January 2023. Many states encourage you to fill out your FAFSA as soon as possible after Oct. 1. Should you file the FAFSA early
The sooner you complete the FAFSA, the better. Grants and are limited, and some are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis — so if you wait too long to apply, those funds could run out and your options for financial aid will be more limited. Getting in your application as soon as possible is also a good idea even if you’re undecided. “The earlier you complete the FAFSA, the earlier you’ll get your financial aid award letters so you’ll have more time to compare school offers and make an informed decision,” says Kat Tretina, a certified student loan counselor based in Florida. What happens if I don t file the FAFSA
If you miss the FAFSA deadline, you lose your chance to apply for federal student aid that year; there is no way to apply late. Once you miss the deadline, your only options for student aid are or . If you have questions about the FAFSA form — such as how to determine your dependency status and what assets to include in your net worth — you might want to wait and ask for help, since submitting the wrong information could impact your eligibility. There are “Help” buttons throughout the FAFSA application, or you can contact the or your school’s financial aid office to ask questions. Just don’t wait too long, or you risk missing out on more limited grant or scholarship funding. It’s worth noting that completing the FAFSA isn’t required to go to school. However, the application is free, and although answering the questions can be monotonous, investing the time may be worth a shot at getting aid to offset your out-of-pocket costs. Some people don’t apply because they don’t feel like they will receive any money, but don’t take yourself out of the running. Almost everyone who fills out the FAFSA receives some sort of financial aid. How to prepare for the FAFSA application
Before applying, brush up on the to make sure that you qualify. For instance, having defaulted on federal student loans might make you ineligible for aid. You should also gather all of the information and documents you need for the application. Here’s what to have on hand: Your Social Security number or Alien Registration Number. Federal income tax returns and W-2s to show how much money you earn. Records of nontaxable income, such as child support and veterans benefits. Financial statements, including bank statements and investment records. If you’re a dependent, you’ll need to provide the above information for your parents as well. Try to get all of the information together beforehand so you can finish the application in one sitting. Applying for the FAFSA
There are a few basic steps in filling out the FAFSA. 1 Set up your FSA ID
To start the application online, you need to set up an for yourself and have your parents set up their own if you’re a dependent student. The FSA ID is used to log in to your application and electronically sign the application when you’re ready to submit it. You’ll need your Social Security number, full name, date of birth and email address or phone number to create your FSA ID. Only one FSA ID can be tied to any given email, so you and your parents must use separate email addresses to create your individual IDs. If you’re a student returning to the application, you can put in the FSA ID from last year and hit “FAFSA renewal.” This will pull some of the information from last year’s application. 2 Add your personal information and schools
The personal information section will ask for your Social Security number, birthdate and driver’s license. There’s also a school section, where you can add up to 10 schools where you want the FAFSA information to be sent. If you’re unsure which schools you want to apply for, don’t worry; you can make changes to this list later. Also consider putting at least one state school on the list. “If you aren’t happy with your aid packages, state schools and community colleges are much cheaper with in-state tuition, so it’s always good to have that option,” says Charlie Javice, founder of Frank, a startup that helps students complete the FAFSA application process. Some states require that a state school be at the top of the list for you to be considered for state aid, so take the time to check your . 3 Enter the financials
Next on the application is inputting the financial information that will be used to determine your aid eligibility. For the 2023-24 year, you will input financial information for the 2021 tax year. To make your life a bit easier, you may be able to add financial information from your tax return to the FAFSA application using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. 4 Submit the FAFSA
You can apply by paper using the printable PDF version of the FAFSA, through the myStudentAid mobile app or on the Federal Student Aid website. After submitting the application online, look out for a confirmation screen to verify completion. What s new about the FAFSA for 2023-24
In December 2020, Congress passed the , which brought additional changes to the . These include the following: Reducing the number of questions in the FAFSA from 108 to a maximum of 36. The reduced number of questions will also make it easier for students in foster care or experiencing homelessness to fill out their application. The expected family contribution (EFC), which determines your eligibility to receive federal financial aid based on your household income and cost of attendance, will now be called the Student Aid Index (SAI). An applicant’s SAI can also now be as low as -$1,500. Incarcerated students and those with drug-related convictions will now be eligible to receive federal financial aid, including the Pell Grant. Male applicants won’t be required to register for Selective Service before the age of 26 in order to receive federal aid. Students who weren’t able to complete their degrees because their schools closed or who had to file for borrower defense due to being defrauded by their institutions will get their lifetime Pell Grant eligibility restored. Students will now be able to see if they qualify for the Pell Grant by providing details about their income and family size before they fill out the FAFSA. The department will revamp how income protection allowance is calculated, so that a bigger portion of students’ household income remains untouched. This, in turn, will benefit low- and middle-income households, as it will lower how much they’re expected to contribute toward college costs. When do you find out about the FAFSA
It takes three to five days to process your online application and seven to 10 days to process a paper application. After the application is processed, you’ll get a Student Aid Report (SAR), which outlines your expected family contribution (or Student Aid Index, with the most recent changes). This information is sent to the schools on your list, and they will then use this to calculate how much aid they will give you. Once they create your , they will send you an electronic or paper offer – usually sometime in the spring. What if you don t get enough aid
If you don’t get the amount of aid you were hoping for, you can file an appeal and negotiate your aid package, according to Javice. If there’s been a change to your finances since you filed taxes for 2021 — perhaps you or your parents lost a job because of the pandemic — you can request that the school to account for your current financial situation. If you got a better aid award at your “second choice” school, you could even ask your top choice to match it. Besides negotiating your aid, you can apply for other scholarships and grants. Javice also recommends considering community college to obtain credits that you can transfer to a four-year school if you don’t get enough award money. These credits could cost a fraction of the price and put you on the path to obtaining the same degree. However, if these options are not viable, you can also consider taking out . Although these loans lack access federal benefits like plans and , they could be an option to bridge the financial gap. Just keep in mind that to qualify, you’ll need excellent credit and a stable source of income or a co-signer who meets these requirements. The bottom line
There are a lot of decisions to make when it comes to college. Where should you go? And, most importantly, ? Submitting your FAFSA application right away can get you financial aid offers sooner than later so you can compare options and figure out how to bridge the financial gap if the award money isn’t enough to cover the cost. SHARE: Heidi Rivera is a student loans writer for Bankrate. She began her journey in the personal finance space in 2018 and is passionate about collecting data and creating content around higher education and student loans. Chelsea has been with Bankrate since early 2020. She is invested in helping students navigate the high costs of college and breaking down the complexities of student loans.