Unlock Federal, State, and Institutional Aid with the 2025-2026 FAFSA đź’ˇ
By Karen Treon, Senior Editor & College Parent
The 2025-2026 FAFSA is live! The US Department of Education offered a beta model over the last several weeks and the reviews have been great! Last year had its glitches, but the updates this year appear to have solved those problems. FAFSA is the gateway to federal financial aid as well as state grants and institutional aid. It is a critical step for families figuring out how to pay for college.
If you applied during the beta period (which means sometime in the last month), you’re finished - the beta application is official. If you haven’t started yet, there is no time like the present. The FAFSA is user-friendly, and students and parents often find that the wizards and help tips that appear throughout the application address all of the questions that they might have.
If you do have questions, there are a number of places to find good guidance on FAFSA. Some of our favorites are listed below:
The FAFSA website is where it all starts. Here you can set up FSA IDs (for students and parents) as well as fill out the application. The site’s Help Center is very good and odds are you can find answers to your questions there. If not, there is a live chat feature and phone help available. (We suggest you search for your answer on the website first as the phone call hold times can be lengthy.)
The California Student Aid Commission. This resource is particularly helpful for California residents, but students from outside of California will find their FAFSA information extremely helpful. They post regularly on Instagram with timely and up-to-date information (Instagram: @castudentaid).
For students and families with questions about eligibility, My Undocumented Life is an excellent resource. (Remember: FAFSA eligibility is based on a student’s immigration status only - not the parents’ status.)
At this point in the process, many students have been accepted to a college or university. If that is the case, the financial aid office at that school is an excellent resource as well. Note that most schools are only able to help students that have been admitted.
While it is nice to check the FAFSA off of the to-do list, it isn’t a race. Make sure and check the priority deadlines for FAFSA at your student’s potential schools, and then schedule time to complete the FAFSA before that deadline.
