The FAFSA Application

When you are filling out your student loan forms, one of the most important that you will ever fill out is the FAFSA application. Here is everything you need to know before you apply for a FAFSA.

Before you apply for FAFSA, it is important to know what it is. FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This form is filled out by you and your parents to apply for federal financial aid. The FAFSA application form will help you gain access to grants, scholarships, student loans, as well as work-study programs. The FAFSA financial aid application is also used to determine your eligibility for non-federal aid at some schools, states, and financial institutions.

The Department of Education releases new FAFSA very year. You can fill out a FAFSA online application, or get printouts of FAFSA applications from your counselor. When you do the online version, you will need to get a FAFSA application pin number. You get one of these by sending in your name, birth date, address, and social security number. Once you receive it, you can fill out a FAFSA application online or mail in a printable FAFSA application.

You can get the official FAFSA application in printed form the first week of October, and the FAFSA online application home page opens up the first of January. You can mail in your free FAFSA application any time between January 2nd and June 30th, though since in many cases financial aid is based on who applies first, the sooner you fill it out, the better.

The FAFSA free application on the web covers 102 questions that are divided into six groups. These are designed to figure out your academic, personal and financial information. Your FAFSA application to print will require you to put in your dependency status, the colleges that you would like your results sent to, and your identification information. You will need two year’s of income tax returns in order to fill it out completely. If you have not turned in your tax returns by January 1st, estimate the amount based on your last paychecks. You can then go back in and edit the information later.

Once the FAFSA application is turned in, the government will review it and send you a Student Aid Report (also known as SAR). This usually will include a summary of your financial aid information and the Expected Family Contribution (the EFC). The colleges you listed will also receive this information. When you apply, the colleges will use this and other financial information to determine what student aid you can qualify for.