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Tip of the Week

March 22, 2023

New FAFSA set for December 2023 release

Good things come to those who wait.

In news that wasn’t totally unexpected, the Department of Education announced yesterday that the new 2024-25 FAFSA will be released in December 2023, two months or so after the normal release date of October 1.

The announcement confirms what many college access and financial aid professionals thought would happen this year as the Department tries to implement the many changes under FAFSA Simplification.

“The redesigned FAFSA form is the most ambitious and significant redesign of the federal student aid application and delivery in decades, and will significantly simplify how students, parents, and other educational stakeholders use the FAFSA form starting this year,” the Department said in the announcement.

As a part of the announcement, the Department released a roadmap, providing a general implementation timeline of when resources, guidance, and training for the new FAFSA would be released.

In the announcement, the Department indicated the delay is necessary to ensure a secure and stable FAFSA and to give itself and others time to make the required changes.

“Given the unprecedented complexity of creating the new form, including a new streamlined application flow for students and parents; and a process for securely retrieving tax data directly from the Internal Revenue Service, FSA’s top priority is ensuring a successful launch of the 2024-25 FAFSA season,” the Department said. “We also recognize that to successfully implement the remaining provisions of the FUTURE Act and FAFSA Simplification Act, schools and software vendors will need sufficient time and resources to develop and implement the technical and operational changes.”

The Department said it has been working—and will continue to work—to launch a 2024-25 FAFSA form as early as possible.

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