New FAFSA Procedures for 2016
. Posted in College Admission, College Applications, College Bound, News - 0 Comments
Anyone who has applied for federal student aid knows that it is a lengthy and complicated process. Luckily, there are now Updated FAFSA Procedures to simplify the process for everyone. The changes will be implemented for those entering college during the 2017-2018 school year. Read below to see what changes have been made and how they will make applying for federal student aid easier!
- Submit earlier
FAFSA will be able to be submitted starting the October before the student enters college. So if a student is starting in the Fall of 2017, they can submit FAFSA as early as October of 2016. The previous deadline of January 1st, left a short window of time for it to be processed. This made it so that many students had to commit to a school before knowing how much aid they received.
- Tax data submitted will be from 2 years prior
To allow for this early application, parents will now submit tax documents from two years prior. Previously, parents had to wait to process their taxes before being able to submit FAFSA, which delayed things even further.
- Complete the forms easier
You will now be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool for FAFSA to import tax information, rather than having to read pages of paperwork and then type it in.
- Receive your Financial Aid package sooner
Due to the earlier application, students will receive their financial aid packages months before they have to make a decision regarding which school to attend. This will allow families to take more time and make an educated decision, rather than one hastily made because of a time crunch. The early arrival of the package will also allow families to start budgeting and saving months before a payment must be made to the school.
Amanda De Moraes
Boston Tutoring Services