Axe ’Em, Jacks!
The 2024-25 FAFSA is changing
The FAFSA Simplification Act was passed Dec. 27, 2020, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act. The 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid has undergone major changes and improvements, so wasn't available until Dec. 31 2023.
On Jan. 31, the U.S. Department of Education announced schools will not receive the FAFSA until possibly as late as mid-March.
Timeline
- Dec. 31, 2023: 2024-25 FAFSA opened
- March 1, 2024: SFA's general scholarship application deadline
- Mid-March: U.S. Department of Education starts processing FAFSA package details — approximately six million backlogged — and sending information to schools
- Late March: Students begin receiving scholarship offers
- April 15, 2024: Texas aid priority deadline
- Late-April/May: New students begin receiving financial aid package offers.
Additional timeline resource: U.S. Department of Education's 2024-25 FAFSA Roadmap for Students and Families.
Prepare for the FAFSA
The 2024-25 FAFSA is now available. You and your contributors need to each create an FSA ID on the Federal Student Aid website. The FSA ID gives you access to the Federal Student Aid's online system, where you'll:
- fill out the FAFSA
- sign your Master Promissory Note (if borrowing loans)
- complete loan counseling
- and more.
Important notes for creating your FSA ID
- Each contributor must provide their own email address.
- Duplicate email addresses are no longer allowed when creating your FSA ID.
- School email addresses aren't permanent and therefore should not be used.
Streamlined application process
You will use 2022 tax information to complete the 2024-25 FAFSA.
The FAFSA will contain fewer questions and requirements, and you'll transfer tax information using a direct data exchange with the IRS instead of the previous IRS Data Retrieval Tool currently used.
FAFSA paper application
This method is not recommended.
The paper application for the FAFSA will be available in PDF form by Dec. 31, 2023 on studentaid.gov. Applications completed through this method will need to be mailed by the student or family to the Department of Education for processing. There is currently no known date regarding when schools will receive information from paper applications for the 2024-25 year.
Students and families are highly encouraged to use the online application.
New terminology and information
The FAFSA still asks how many of your family members are in college, but that number will be excluded from the federal, state, and institutional financial aid calculation.
Key terms
- Student Aid Index: For academic years 2023-24 and prior, the SAI is called the Estimated Family Contribution, or EFC.
- This is the need analysis formula used to determine eligibility for financial aid.
- This number may now be a negative number.
- Contributor: Contributors are those required to provide information for the FAFSA, including the student, student's spouse, the student's biological or adopted parent, and the parent's spouse.
- If your parents are divorced or separated, the contributing parent is the parent (and their spouse, if remarried) who provided the greater portion of your financial support during the 12 months immediately prior to submitting the FAFSA. It is not automatically the parent you primarily lived with during the previous 12 months.
- Consent: Consent must be given by each tax-filing contributor to transfer data from the IRS to the FAFSA.
- This data transfer is now required and is no longer optional.
- If consent is not given, you will not be eligible for federal financial aid.
- FAFSA Submission Summary: Currently known as the Student Aid Report, or SAR, this report summarizes your FAFSA information.
After the 2024-25 aid year, the FAFSA window will return to the usual Oct. 1 open date.
Resource: studentaid.gov: What is the FAFSA Simplification Act?
FAQ and resources
- How do I receive assistance completing the 2024-25 FAFSA?
- Your financial aid advisor can help you. Schedule your in-person appointment by calling 936.468.2403 or emailing finaid@sfasu.edu.
- Where can I check the status of my 2024-35 FAFSA? Has it been processed?
- Visit studentaid.gov and log in to your account to check the status of your FAFSA.
- Has SFA received my 2024-25 FAFSA?
- FAFSA package details that include the SFA school code (003624) will be received as soon as the U.S. Department of Education sends them to us. We are working swiftly to import received FAFSA package details into our system.
- What if I gave an incorrect answer on my FAFSA?
- The U.S. Department of Education states you will have the ability to make updates and corrections during the "first half of April."