Register Now for the December 2024 Federal Student Aid Webinar Series

Join us on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, as we host a free one-day virtual event! This live webinar series will guide you through submitting the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form and is tailored for both independent and dependent students.

This event is for students, parents, and college/career professionals, and will feature the following:

Spread the word with family, friends, and your network!

Expanded FAFSA Beta

Building on successful testing results since Oct. 1, we have expanded the online beta testing period to all users.

This means that any individual who wants to access the online form will be able to do so on the FAFSA website. During this time, we will continue to carefully monitor the FAFSA form, overall system performance, and support operations, such as our contact center, and adjust operations as needed. This will allow us to test the FAFSA system with higher volumes of users, while giving students an opportunity to submit online 2025–26 FAFSA forms before official FAFSA launch date of Dec. 1.

We will continue to provide regular updates to users and stakeholders on Beta Central at fafsa.gov/beta.

2025–26 Counselor Resource for Completing the FAFSA® Form

To support counselors, mentors, and others who help students and families submit the FAFSA, we've published the 2025–26 Counselor Resource for Completing the FAFSA® Form.

This resource focuses on specific parts of the FAFSA process that students and families tend to find challenging—such as inviting a parent as a contributor or filling out the finances section—and documents these sections in detailed, step-by-step instructions. Counselors can reference this guide themselves while working with students or share it with others who come to them for advice on navigating the FAFSA form.