How the FAFSA works, from start to finish

The FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. It is the first form for almost every kind of college aid, and filing it costs nothing.

What the form does

The FAFSA collects information about your household and income, then calculates a number called the Student Aid Index. Schools use that number, along with their own costs, to decide what aid to offer you.

Federal grants, federal student loans and work-study all start here. Many states and many colleges also use the same answers for their own money, so one form opens several doors at once.

What to do

• File at studentaid.gov, never through a site that asks for payment
• List every school you are considering, not only your first choice
• Read the Submission Summary as soon as it arrives
• File again for each year you plan to study

Filing it

You file at studentaid.gov. The form for the next school year opens by October 1, and you can list several schools on it so each one receives your answers.

Most income details now come straight from the IRS once you and anyone else on the form give consent. That means fewer numbers to type and fewer mistakes to correct later.

If a website asks you to pay before it will file your FAFSA, close the tab: the official form is free.

What comes back

A few days after you submit, you receive a FAFSA Submission Summary. Read it for errors. Then each school you listed builds an aid offer, usually in late winter or spring for students starting in the fall.

If something on the summary is wrong, you can log back in and correct it. A correction is routine and does not count against you.