Frosh Finance: FAFSA Renewal
Your college student is probably receiving emails from their university reminding them that it is time to renew their FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) application. Or perhaps the emails are urging them to fill the FAFSA out if they didn’t do so before starting college. The renewal form is on the same timeline as the FAFSA and opens for application for the following school year on October 1st. There are a few things to know about renewal:
If your student received federal or state need-based aid, they will be required to submit a renewal application every year to continue to receive aid.
If your student applied and didn’t receive federal or state need-based aid their first year, it is still important to renew their FAFSA and update the information.
And if your student didn’t apply for FAFSA their first year, it is not too late. They can and should do an initial application this year (you can read our FAFSA and CSS overview if you need an overview).
The renewal form is faster than the original form because many fields are pre-populated.
Students can appeal need-based financial aid awards if their family’s circumstances change and they can show that the two-year lookback is not an accurate reflection of their current situation. Our post about financial aid appeals can point you in the right direction. But . . . to do this . . . a student MUST have a current FAFSA on file. Annual renewal is therefore vital.
The FAFSA renewal process is straightforward, and if your student (and you, as a contributor) have already submitted the first FAFSA it will be a breeze. Your student just needs to follow the following steps:
Log into their FAFSA account with their established log in credentials.
Review the pre-populated information to ensure it is correct.
Add new information as requested, and provide consent for their updated tax data to be transferred from the IRS.
Follow the steps to invite contributors (usually a parent) to complete their portion of the form (that form will go directly to the contributor).
Electronically sign the document.
Remember to follow up with contributors to ensure they complete their forms.
In the event your student runs into any challenges, we have GREAT NEWS! The financial aid office of the college they attend stands at the ready to help them with any questions or problems. Your student can email, drop in, call, or set up a virtual meeting with a financial aid officer for help. Remember, financial aid offices will not speak to parents directly, but usually will if the student is present as well.
While it is nice to check the FAFSA renewal off of the to-do list, it isn’t a race. Make sure and check the priority deadlines for FAFSA at your student’s, and then schedule time to complete the FAFSA renewal before that deadline.