U.S. Department of Education Unveils Schedule and Updated Procedure for 2025-26 FAFSA Form Release

The U.S. Department of Education (Department) has announced that the 2025-26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA® form will be introduced through a new procedure. From October 1, the Department will release the 2025-26 FAFSA form for trial with a limited group of students and institutions. The full application will be accessible to all students by December 1. This approach is based on discussions and input from numerous students, institutions, and other interested parties.

The Department will call for volunteers to take part in the trial period and gradually extend access to the form to a growing number of individuals, starting from a few hundred and expanding to tens of thousands of applicants. By doing so, the Department can test and address any issues before making the form available to the wider student body and contributors. Through this method, the Department will unveil full functionality, including submission and backend processing, simultaneously.

“In response to a challenging 2024-25 FAFSA cycle, the Department carefully considered feedback from students, families, and higher education institutions, implemented significant changes in leadership and operations at Federal Student Aid, and is adopting a new approach this year that will greatly enhance the FAFSA experience,” stated U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “With the input of our partners, we have devised a more efficient implementation process for 2025-26. I am excited to continue collaborating with our partners to ensure that this year’s FAFSA implementation better serves our nation’s students.”

The primary objective of the phased launch of the 2025-26 FAFSA form, aligned with industry best practices, is to engage with specific user groups to identify and rectify system errors that could hinder millions of students, contributors, and colleges. It will also allow the Department to incorporate user feedback to ensure that the application instructions are user-friendly for students, contributors, and the supporting community.

Due to investments in the FAFSA Student Support Strategy and the collaboration of various community stakeholders, the success rates of student applications have notably increased in the last six months, with the submission gap from the previous year decreasing from around 40% in March to less than 4% currently.

“We have heard the clear message from students, families, higher education professionals, and other stakeholders: they desire an improved, more straightforward FAFSA process, and they seek predictability in its availability,” stated FAFSA Executive Advisor Jeremy Singer. “In close partnership with collaborators, FSA is confident in delivering not just a better product but also a smoother process than the previous year, making higher education more attainable for a wider population.”

Throughout the trial period, the Department will provide regular updates to students, families, and a wide range of community stakeholders to ensure transparency about our advancements. This will instill confidence among students, families, institutions, state agencies, and other partners and stakeholders.

Additionally, the Department will continue to gather feedback from our partners through August listening sessions and a subsequent formal request for information next week. Insights from these engagements, along with a new roadmap and supplementary tools for students, families, counselors, institutions, and other partners for a successful 2025-26 FAFSA season, will be shared.

In the forthcoming weeks, the Department will provide more details on how the testing phase will operate. Our primary focus is to ensure that students have access to the maximum federal financial aid available to achieve their educational objectives, and we are committed to ensuring a seamless experience with the 2025-26 FAFSA form.