The 2027–28 FAFSA Is Open: What Parents Need to Know Before Filing

If you have a high school senior heading to college in fall 2027, it’s time to add one more important item to your college-planning checklist: the FAFSA is open.

Yes, already.

The 2027–28 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is now available. This is the FAFSA students will use to apply for financial aid for the 2027–28 academic year, which runs from July 1, 2027, through June 30, 2028.

If you’re a parent who has been through the FAFSA process before, you may be thinking, Didn’t we just do this?

Pretty much. The FAFSA is something families generally complete every year a student wants to be considered for federal financial aid.

And if this is your first time, don’t panic. The process can feel intimidating, but getting organized before you begin can make it much easier.

What Is the FAFSA?

FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

It’s the form used by the federal government to determine a student’s eligibility for federal financial aid. Colleges, states and some other organizations also use FAFSA information when determining eligibility for their own financial aid programs.

That aid can include:

Federal Pell Grants
Federal Work-Study
Federal student loans
State financial aid
College-based financial aid

And here’s an important point for parents:

Filing the FAFSA does not mean you have to borrow money.

Completing the form simply allows your student to be considered for the aid for which they may qualify. You can decide later whether accepting a particular type of aid makes sense for your family.

Who Should File the 2027–28 FAFSA?

The 2027–28 FAFSA is for students who will attend an eligible college, university, career school or trade school between July 1, 2027, and June 30, 2028.

That includes:

High school seniors applying to college for fall 2027
Current college students who will continue into the 2027–28 academic year
Students attending eligible career or trade programs
Students who aren’t sure yet whether they will qualify for need-based aid

Don’t make the mistake of assuming your family earns too much to qualify.

The FAFSA considers a variety of information when determining federal student aid eligibility, and colleges use FAFSA information when awarding their own institutional aid.

When Should You File the FAFSA?

My advice to parents is simple: don’t wait until the deadline. File now.

While there is a federal deadline, your family shouldn’t use that date as its target.

States and colleges can have their own FAFSA deadlines, including earlier priority deadlines. Some state aid programs also have limited funding. Federal Student Aid specifically advises families to complete the FAFSA before their state and school deadlines to maximize their opportunity for aid.

And remember: the FAFSA deadline isn’t necessarily the same as your college’s financial aid deadline.

If your student is applying to several colleges, make a list of each school’s financial aid deadline and any priority deadline.

That’s one college-planning list worth keeping somewhere you can actually find it later!

What Information Do You Need to Complete the FAFSA?

Before you sit down to complete the FAFSA, gather the information you’ll need.

For the 2027–28 FAFSA, the form uses 2025 tax information. The FAFSA can automatically transfer federal tax information from the IRS after the required consent and approval are provided.

You may also need:

StudentAid.gov account information
Student and parent personal information
Social Security numbers, when applicable
2025 federal tax information
Information about certain assets and finances
Parent or spouse contributor information, when required
A list of colleges the student is considering

One thing parents sometimes discover the hard way is that everyone who needs to participate needs their own StudentAid.gov account.

A parent should not create or share an account with the student. Each required contributor uses their own account and login information.

A Tip for Parents of More Than One College Student

If you have more than one child in college, you’ll want to pay attention to the FAFSA process for each student.

Don’t assume you can simply copy everything from one FAFSA to another. Make sure each student has their own FAFSA and that the appropriate contributors complete their portions.

What Is a FAFSA Contributor?

The word contributor became an important part of the FAFSA process with the newer FAFSA.

A contributor is someone who is required to provide information on the FAFSA. Depending on the student’s circumstances, this can include a parent, stepparent or spouse.

Being a contributor does not mean the person is financially responsible for paying the student’s college costs or loans. It simply means they are required to provide information and consent for the FAFSA.

Federal Student Aid recommends that the student start their FAFSA and complete their portion first. The required contributor can then provide the information requested from them.

What Is the Student Aid Index?

Once you submit the FAFSA, the information is used to calculate the student’s Student Aid Index, or SAI.

The SAI is an index used by schools to help determine a student’s financial need. It is not a bill, the amount your family is expected to pay, or the amount of financial aid your student will receive.

This is an important distinction because parents sometimes see the SAI and immediately think, That’s what we’re going to have to pay.

It isn’t.

The college will use the FAFSA information, along with other factors, to determine the student’s actual financial aid offer.

Don’t Confuse the FAFSA Submission Summary With a Financial Aid Offer

After the FAFSA is processed, your student will receive a FAFSA Submission Summary.

Read it carefully.

The Submission Summary includes information such as the student’s SAI and estimated federal aid eligibility. It is not the student’s financial aid offer from a college.

Actual financial aid offers come from individual colleges after the student has been admitted. Those offers will spell out the specific grants, scholarships, work-study and loans the school is offering.

This distinction will become particularly important when your student has several college acceptances.

That’s when you’ll want to compare the actual financial aid offers, not simply the FAFSA results.

What Happens After You Submit the FAFSA?

Don’t file the FAFSA and then forget about it.

Once the form is processed, review your FAFSA Submission Summary carefully.

Check for:

Errors in the information provided
Your Student Aid Index
Estimated federal aid information
The colleges listed on the FAFSA
Any issues or corrections that need attention

If you find an error, the FAFSA Submission Summary provides a way to make a correction.

And keep an eye on your student’s email and college portals.

A college may request additional information or documentation before it can finalize a financial aid offer.

What If Your Financial Situation Has Changed?

This is another reason not to assume the FAFSA tells the whole story.

The FAFSA relies on specific financial information, but families can experience significant changes after the tax year used on the form.

Maybe a parent lost a job.

Maybe your income dropped significantly.

Maybe your family experienced another major financial change.

If your current circumstances don’t accurately reflect the financial information reported on the FAFSA, contact the financial aid office at the colleges your student is considering.

A college may have a process for reviewing special financial circumstances and may request documentation.

Parents, Put FAFSA on Your College To-Do List

I know how easy it is to look at the FAFSA and think, I’ll get to that after we finish the college applications.

But college applications, essays, testing, scholarships, campus visits and financial aid have a funny way of piling up all at once.

Getting the FAFSA submitted is one more thing you can check off the list.

And perhaps more importantly, it opens the door to financial aid your student may be eligible to receive.

You don’t have to know exactly where your student will attend college before you complete the FAFSA. You can list the schools you’re considering, and you can update the list later if your plans change. Federal Student Aid currently allows up to 20 schools to be listed on the online FAFSA.

So if your student is heading to college in 2027, don’t put FAFSA off until next year.

Get your StudentAid.gov accounts ready, gather your information, check those deadlines and start the process.

One less thing hanging over your head and one important step closer to figuring out how you’re going to pay for college.

Where to Get Help

The official FAFSA is available through StudentAid.gov.

Remember: FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. You should never have to pay someone simply to access or submit the FAFSA.

If you’re unsure about something on the form, contact the financial aid office at your student’s college or use the resources available through Federal Student Aid.