The 2024-2025 FAFSA will become available in late December 2023, most likely by the 31st. The US Department of Education is expected to make the FAFSAs available to colleges and universities by the end of January.

Some of the changes to the FAFSA include:

• a streamlined form intended to reduce the amount of questions you have to answer and how long it takes you to complete the application. 
   
• the use of consent for the US Department of Education to import your (or your spouse's or parents') tax information instead of you having to manual import it.
   
• the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is being replaced by the Student Aid Index (SAI) for a clearer explanation of your financial aid eligibility.

Some of the steps you can take now to ensure a smooth filing experience are:

• Make sure your contact information is up to date with the US Department of Education. Log into your studentaid.gov with your FSA ID to make sure the correct email is on your account.
  • Now is a great time to make sure you know your ID and password!
     
• Follow Federal Student Aid on their social media:
  • X (formerly known as Twitter)
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

No, you should use the FSA ID you created previously. If you have any difficulty remembering or accessing that ID, please see the studentaid.gov website to retrieve your ID or reset your password.

The 'parent' that should be included on the FAFSA is the parent(s) who provided the majority of the student's support over the 12 months prior to filing the FAFSA, even if the student does not live with that parent.

The 2024-25 FAFSA is now role-based and requires a student and/or parent complete their own sections using their own unique FSA IDs. The student should complete their section, then invite their parent as a contributor.

The Student Aid Index (SAI) is a replacement for Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and is a calculation of the amount of need-based financial aid a student is eligible to receive. SAI is simply a rebranding of EFC in an effort to more accurately reflect what the figure represents, which is the amount of financial aid a student is eligible to receive. In the past, EFC created confusion and led students to believe it was a calculation of what they were expected to pay.