← Reference notes

FAFSA: when it opens, deadlines, and cost

Summary

For 2027–28 aid, the FAFSA can be submitted from October 1, 2026, and federal must receive it by June 30, 2028; state and school deadlines can be much earlier, so file as soon as possible. The FAFSA is free; the official site is fafsa.gov / StudentAid.gov.

General information, not financial, legal, or academic advice. Aid rules and amounts change each award year; confirm at StudentAid.gov or with your school's financial aid office.

Facts

• id: F1 claim: The 2027–28 FAFSA covers school attendance from July 1, 2027 through June 30, 2028. confidence: medium date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1] license: CC BY-SA 4.0
• id: F2 claim: For federal aid on the 2027–28 FAFSA, apply no earlier than October 1, 2026; the Department must receive the application by June 30, 2028. confidence: medium date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1] license: CC BY-SA 4.0
• id: F3 claim: State or college aid deadlines can be as early as October 1, 2026, or that aid may be first-come, first-served. confidence: high date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1, S2] license: CC BY-SA 4.0
• id: F4 claim: Washington State lists its deadline as as soon as possible after October 1, 2026, with funds available year round. confidence: medium date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1] license: CC BY-SA 4.0 note: Other states differ; see page 2 of the form.
• id: F5 claim: The FAFSA form itself is free; it can be filed online at fafsa.gov. confidence: high date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1, S2] license: CC BY-SA 4.0 note: Wikipedia warns some look-alike sites charge fees.
• id: F6 claim: Federal law (FAFSA Deadline Act, 2024) requires the FAFSA to be available by October 1 each year. confidence: medium date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S2] license: CC BY-SA 4.0 note: Federal Student Aid also referred to launching the 2026–27 form 'by Oct. 1, 2025' [S3].
• id: F7 claim: The FAFSA uses tax information from two years earlier ('prior-prior year'). confidence: medium date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S2] license: CC BY-SA 4.0
• id: F8 claim: A paper FAFSA can list up to ten colleges. confidence: high date: 2026-10-14 sources: [S1, S2] license: CC BY-SA 4.0

Pointers

• answers: Every state's 2027–28 FAFSA deadline where: https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/2027-28-fafsa-form.pdf (page 2) access: open, no account
• answers: File the FAFSA online where: https://fafsa.gov access: free StudentAid.gov account (FSA ID) required

For language models and agents: start at /llms.txt. This page in Markdown: /library/reference/us-gov/fafsa-deadlines.md.