The 2025-26 FAFSA is now available to anyone wanting to complete form – even though the beta-testing period is still underway.
Last week, the Department of Education announced that “building on successful testing results” this fall it would expand the online beta testing period to all users before officially releasing the form by December 1. Expanding online beta testing to all students and families is consistent with industry best practices, the Department said in the announcement.
“This means that any individual who wants to access the online form as part of the Beta 4 testing period will be able to do so on the FAFSA website,” the Department said in the announcement.
The Department said during that time it will continue to carefully monitor the FAFSA form, overall system performance, and support operations, such as the contact center, and adjust operations as needed. This will allow the Department to continue testing the FAFSA system with higher volumes of users, while giving students an opportunity to submit online 2025–26 FAFSA forms before December 1.
“More than 14,000 students have already submitted 2025–26 FAFSA forms, and we have successfully processed them and sent them to colleges, universities, and state agencies across the country,” said Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal. “Allowing more students to access the FAFSA form is the final state of beta testing as we prepare to officially launch the form no later than December 1.”
The Department will make the decision to end the beta testing and announce the official release of the 2025–26 FAFSA form based on platform stability, customer satisfaction, and contact center capacity, no later than December 1.
