Article Guide · FAFSA Updates
FAFSA 2027–28 Filing Checklist: Everything You Need Before You Submit
The 2027–28 FAFSA opened on September 23, 2026. It's the second cycle under One Big Beautiful Bill Act rules, it uses 2025 tax information, and most forms are now processed in real time. This checklist covers every step, from setting up accounts to reviewing your aid offer. Filing for the current school year instead? The 2026–27 form is open until June 30, 2027, and the same steps apply with 2024 taxes.
By Moises Lopez, Educator (10+ yrs, LAUSD & nonprofits) · Sourced from P.L. 119-21 and FSA guidance
What's Different for the 2027–28 FAFSA
Before the document checklist, here's what's new or still new for 2027–28. Most of the OBBBA changes to the form arrived in the 2026–27 cycle and carry over.
It opened September 23, 2026, and most forms process instantly
The 2027–28 FAFSA opened to everyone after limited testing that began in August. Most online forms are now processed in real time, so you see your results in the same session, and if something needs fixing you can start a correction right away.
It uses 2025 tax information
The FAFSA uses tax information from two years before the school year. For 2027–28, that's 2025. Once each contributor gives consent, the IRS sends most of it directly, and those figures count as verified.
Small businesses and family farms stay excluded
Since the 2026–27 cycle, the FAFSA doesn't count the net worth of a family business with 100 or fewer full-time (or full-time-equivalent) employees, a farm the family lives on, or a family commercial fishing business. For families who own one, the SAI can be much lower than it would have been a few years ago.
A high SAI now rules out Pell entirely
Under OBBBA, an SAI of twice the maximum Pell Grant or more means no Pell at all. For 2026–27 that line is 14,790. The 2027–28 maximum hasn't been announced yet.
Legacy (interim exception) status still matters
If the student was enrolled by June 30, 2026, had a federal loan for the program disbursed before July 1, 2026, and stays at the same school for the same credential without a break, the old loan limits may still apply, including Parent PLUS and Grad PLUS up to the cost of attendance minus other aid. Your school makes this call, not the FAFSA, so confirm it with the financial aid office before accepting your aid offer.
Part 1: Documents to Gather Before You Start
Have every item below ready before you open the form. The most common reason families abandon a FAFSA halfway is stopping to hunt for documents.
1 StudentAid.gov Accounts: Student and Each Contributor
Everyone who fills in part of the form needs their own account (often still called an FSA ID).
- ☐ Student: a StudentAid.gov account username and password
- ☐ Each parent (or spouse) the form asks for: their own separate account. Never share one
- ☐ A parent without a Social Security number can still create an account; identity is confirmed through a short questionnaire
- ☐ Accounts are set up in real time, but create them before you start so nobody gets stuck mid-form
2 Tax and Income Information (2025 Tax Year)
The 2027–28 FAFSA uses 2025 tax information. Once each contributor consents, most of it transfers directly from the IRS.
- ☐ 2025 federal tax return for the student and each parent contributor, for reference and in case the IRS transfer doesn't work
- ☐ If someone didn't file taxes: records of what they earned from work in 2025
- ☐ Child support received, if any
- ☐ Anyone who filed a tax return in Puerto Rico or another U.S. territory: that return too (the form now asks everyone about it)
3 Asset Information (as of the Day You Sign)
Assets are a snapshot as of the date you sign the form, not December 31 or tax-time balances.
- ☐ Current checking and savings balances (student and parent)
- ☐ Current value of investments: brokerage accounts, stocks, bonds, and real estate other than your home. Retirement accounts (401k, IRA, pension) are not reported
- ☐ Business net worth only if the business has more than 100 full-time (or equivalent) employees
- ☐ Farm net worth only if the family does not live on the farm
- ☐ 529 and Coverdell accounts owned by a parent for this student (reported as parent investments)
4 Identification and School Information
- ☐ Student's Social Security number, and an Alien Registration Number if you're an eligible noncitizen
- ☐ Federal School Codes for every school you might attend (search by name inside the form)
- ☐ Up to 20 schools online (10 on the paper form); at least one is required
Part 2: Key Dates and Deadlines
The FAFSA has three separate sets of deadlines: federal, state, and school. Missing any one can cost you aid, even if you meet the others. Official state dates are on the studentaid.gov deadline list; see our state deadlines guide for key states.
Federal FAFSA Deadline
- → 2027–28: submit by June 30, 2028; corrections by September 12, 2028
- → Still need aid for this school year? The 2026–27 form stays open until June 30, 2027
- → Meeting only the federal deadline keeps you eligible for Pell Grants and federal loans, but state and school grant money is usually gone long before June
State Deadlines (2027–28)
- → Examples: Texas priority date January 15, 2027; Maryland March 1, 2027; California March 2, 2027; Tennessee Promise April 1, 2027; Pennsylvania May 1, 2027
- → Illinois (MAP), Kentucky, and Vermont say to file as soon as possible after October 1, 2026: aid is awarded until the money runs out
- → Many state deadlines are hard cutoffs. Filing a day late can cost that year's state grant
- → See the full official list on studentaid.gov, then confirm with your state agency
School Priority Deadlines
- → Each school sets its own priority date for its own grants and scholarships
- → Some fall well before spring, so check every school on your list
- → Missing one doesn't affect federal aid, but you may get a smaller school grant
- → Look on each school's financial aid website. There's no standard date
The 45-Day Rule for Unsubmitted Drafts
- → A FAFSA you start but never submit can be deleted after 45 days of inactivity
- → It isn't an OBBBA rule, and it isn't a verification deadline
- → A form isn't filed until it's submitted. Check its status under My Activity on StudentAid.gov
- → A deleted draft means starting over from scratch
Already past one of these dates? Don't assume you've lost all aid — read what happens if you miss the FAFSA deadline for exactly which funds are still available and what to do next.
Part 3: Step-by-Step Filing Checklist
Follow these steps in order. Trying to start the form before everyone has an account is the most common reason families get stuck and give up.
Create StudentAid.gov accounts for the student and each parent
Go to StudentAid.gov and create an account for the student and for every parent the form will ask for. Each person needs their own; the form collects separate consent and signatures from each. If you made an account in an earlier year, log in once to make sure it still works.
Gather the documents in Part 1
Have tax returns, current account balances, and your list of schools ready before you open the form. Stopping mid-form to hunt for documents is how drafts get abandoned.
Start the 2027–28 FAFSA on StudentAid.gov
Log in at StudentAid.gov and start the 2027–28 form (for school starting between July 1, 2027 and June 30, 2028). The official form is free. Don't pay a third-party site to file it.
Answer the student questions
Your answers about age, marriage, and family decide whether you're a dependent student and which parents, if any, have to contribute information. If you can't contact your parents or it isn't safe to, the form lets you say so and routes you to your school's financial aid office.
Invite each parent contributor
From inside the form, invite each parent the form asks for. They join your FAFSA with their own account and fill in their own section. You can finish your part while you wait.
Every contributor consents to the IRS data transfer
Each contributor has to consent to having their tax information sent from the IRS, even if they didn't file taxes. If any contributor refuses, the student can't get federal student aid.
Report assets as of the day you sign
Enter current balances and values, not December 31 figures and not what's on the tax return. Log into your accounts and note the balances the day you sign.
Apply the business and farm exclusions correctly
Leave out a family business with 100 or fewer full-time (or equivalent) employees, a farm the family lives on, and a family commercial fishing business. If you're unsure how to answer, ask a school's financial aid office before you submit.
List every school you are seriously considering
You can list up to 20 schools online. Listing a school doesn't commit you, and schools can only build an aid offer if they're on your list. You can change the list after you submit.
Review, sign, and submit
Check Social Security numbers, names, and dates of birth carefully: a mismatch with Social Security records can stop processing. Each contributor reviews and signs their own section, and the form isn't filed until it's submitted. Don't close the browser until you see confirmation that it went through.
Check your results and your FAFSA Submission Summary
Most online forms are processed in real time, and some take one to three days. Your FAFSA Submission Summary shows your Student Aid Index (SAI). Read it for errors.
Fix mistakes with a correction
Log in to StudentAid.gov to correct errors or add schools. For 2027–28, corrections are accepted until September 12, 2028, and each one is sent to the schools on your list.
Part 4: After You Submit — What to Expect
Submitting the FAFSA is not the end of the process. Here is what happens next and what to watch for.
Processing: usually the same session
Most online FAFSAs are processed in real time, and some take one to three days. Every school on your list gets your record (the ISIR), which includes your SAI. Your FAFSA Submission Summary shows the same information.
Verification: if your school asks
Some FAFSAs are selected for verification, and your school will ask for documents. Tax information that came directly from the IRS already counts as verified. The federal deadline for documents is the earlier of 120 days after your last day of enrollment or a date set each year (September 18, 2027 for 2026–27), and schools often set an earlier one. Respond quickly.
Financial aid offer review
Schools combine your SAI, their cost of attendance, and their own funds into an aid offer. Separate grants (free money) from loans. Unless the student qualifies for the interim exception, Parent PLUS is capped at $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total per dependent student. If an offer shows more than that, ask the financial aid office why before you accept.
Confirm legacy (interim exception) status if it applies
Nobody self-certifies legacy status on the FAFSA. If the student was enrolled by June 30, 2026, had a Direct Loan for the program disbursed before July 1, 2026, and is continuing at the same school for the same credential without a break in enrollment, ask the financial aid office to confirm the old loan limits apply. Do this before accepting the aid offer; it can change how much you're able to borrow.
Common Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them
Starting but never submitting
Fix: An unsubmitted draft can be deleted after 45 days of inactivity, and it doesn't count toward any deadline. Finish in one sitting if you can, and confirm the status says submitted.
A parent skipping the consent step
Fix: Every contributor has to consent to the IRS data transfer, even if they didn't file taxes. Without it, the student can't get federal aid.
Using year-end asset balances instead of today's values
Fix: Assets are reported as of the day you sign. Log into your accounts and use current balances.
Leaving off schools you are considering
Fix: Listing a school doesn't commit you. A school that isn't on your list can't build your aid offer.
Sharing one account between parent and student
Fix: Each person signs and consents separately with their own StudentAid.gov account. A shared account causes problems you then have to untangle.
Reporting an excluded business or farm
Fix: A family business with 100 or fewer full-time (or equivalent) employees and a farm the family lives on aren't counted. Reporting them raises your SAI for no reason.
Waiting until spring
Fix: File as early as you can. The 2027–28 form opened September 23, 2026, and several state deadlines fall in January through March. Some states award aid until the money runs out.
Related Articles
Student Aid Index (SAI) Ranges: What Your Number Actually Means
How the Student Aid Index is calculated, what a negative SAI means, and how schools translate it into your aid package
FAFSA Dependency Status: When You Can File as an Independent Student
The 10 independence criteria, what a dependency override is, and why this determination can change your SAI dramatically
OBBBA Is Now in Effect: What Actually Changed on July 1, 2026
The rules behind this checklist are now live law — which provisions took effect and what stayed the same
Estimate Your Aid Before You File
Use the Federal Pell Grant Eligibility Calculator and Parent PLUS Gap Calculator to model your expected aid package before submitting — so you know what to expect when offers arrive.
Open Calculators →Sources: FSA Electronic Announcement on the 2027–28 FAFSA launch (updated Sept 23, 2026); 2027–28 FAFSA Specifications Guide, Vol. 1; FSA Handbook, Filling Out the FAFSA Form; studentaid.gov FAFSA deadlines; P.L. 119-21 (OBBBA); studentaid.gov OBBBA definitions (interim exception, Parent PLUS limits); FSA Handbook, SAI and Pell Grant eligibility. Figures checked against official Federal Student Aid sources (how the numbers are checked).