THE BETTER FAFSA

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What Students and Their Families Need to Know

Higher Education Opens Doors to Opportunity
The U.S. Department of Education is making transformational changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form. The FAFSA form is an application that students and families need to complete to apply for federal student aid, such as federal grants, work-study funds, and loans. Completing and submitting the FAFSA form is free, and it gives students access to the largest source of financial aid to help pay for higher education.

The Better FAFSA is:

• Simple and streamlined
• Easier to fill out—many people complete it in under 15 minutes

7.1 MILLION

total students expected to be eligible for Pell Grants

• 665,000 more students will receive Federal Pell Grants
• Over 1.7 million more students will receive the maximum Pell Grant
• All students will be able to access the maximum financial aid for which they are eligible

Better FAFSA Timeline

for the 2024-25 Award Year

• Students and families should complete and submit the 2024-25 FAFSA form

• The Department begins transmitting FAFSA information to schools and state agencies for processing

• Colleges review FAFSA information for students who applied for admission
• Colleges start sending aid packages to students

• FAFSA award year starts

Note: Students and families should check critical deadlines for their institutions and states regarding scholarships and enrollment commitments.

Pro Tips for the 2024–25 FAFSA® Form

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Have these documents ready:

• 2022 Tax returns*
• Records of child support received
• Current balances of cash, savings, and checking accounts
• Net worth of investments, businesses, and farms

Have contributor information ready:

• first and last name,
• SSN (if they have one),
• date of birth, and
• email address (or mailing address, if they don’t have an SSN)

You (the student) should complete your section of the form first

Read questions and definitions carefully

Consult in-form resources if you need help

Don’t forget to review, sign, and submit the form!

• Review your answers prior to submission
• Monitor your form’s status, and don’t forget to submit the FAFSA form after all of your contributors have signed and all sections are completed

Remember that if you make a mistake, you can correct it

2024–25 FAFSA Issue Alerts

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The Department of Education is aware of all major issues with the new Better FAFSA, and is constantly updating, fixing and maintaining all-known issues for students trying to complete and submit a FAFSA. You can visit the page on the button for updates on open and closed issues. Tips with work-arounds are also posted on this resource page. Please note that your experience with issues may vary and your specific issue may not be listed.

Additional Resources

Follow @castudentaid on Instagram for further updates, tips and tricks on the new Better FAFSA 2024-25

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Common Issues

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Mixed Status Families
When creating an FSA ID for a parent without a social security number:

• Do not use an ITIN number for the social
• Do not use 0s for the social security number

If your parent has an existing account with an ITIN or non-valid social, you must call the Department of Education at 1-800-433-3243 to have your account fixed

More coming soon
As we tackle special situations comments and tips from TRIO NCEOC will be posted here

If you need help filling out a FAFSA® application you can make an appointment here with an NCEOC Advisor.