Schools and other organizations will soon be able to test the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) system for the 2026-27 award year.
In a January 7 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education announced that the FSA Partner and School Relations Center will allow school testing of the COD system for the 2026-27 award year from January 12, 2026 through December 11, 2026.
Schools, third-party servicers, and software providers will be able to test Pell Grant, TEACH Grant, and Direct Loan processes and system software with the COD System before transmitting actual data.
In late January, the complete testing information will be available in the School Testing Guide (Volume 5 of the 2026–27 COD Technical Reference, which will be posted to the Knowledge Center.
Any school participating in the Pell Grant, TEACH Grant, or Direct Loan program for the first time in the 2026-27 award year must complete school testing with COD before sending production data unless they are using EDExpress or software from a software provider or third-party servicer.
The announcement includes a table outlining the testing phases and dates:
- Phase 1 – Common Record Manual Verification Testing
- Phase 2 – Structured Application Testing
- Phase 3 – Unstructured Application Testing
Organizations can participate in Phase 1 testing only, Phase 1 and 2, or in all three phases. Test student data that must be used in testing will be provided by the FSA Partner and School Relations Center.
To register for the testing, schools must complete the “COD School Testing 2026-27 Sign-up Document” which is available on the COD website’s home page under the “COD Resources” link. The completed document can be faxed to the FSA Partner and School Relations Center at 1-877-623-5082 or via email to CODSupport@ed.gov with “School Testing Sign-up” in the subject line. Once received, the organization will be contacted via email to obtain school-specific information and to schedule specific test dates.
Questions about the COD School Testing or testing sign up can be directed to the FSA Partner and School Relations Center at 1-800-848-0978 or by emailing CODSupport@ed.gov.
