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What Is the Deadline for FAFSA?

All FAFSA forms/applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. central time on June 30th of the academic year for which you are applying. For example, if you are applying for aid for the 2021-2022 academic year, you must file the form/application by 11:59 p.m. central time on June 30th, 2022. If you need to make any corrections or updates to your application, you must submit them by 11:59 p.m. central time on Sept. 10th of that academic year, i.e., September 10, 2022. Filing so late, however, will impact the aid you receive as you would receive it after the academic year.

Note: Each College Has its Own FAFSA Deadline

While the federal government has its own deadline, that is not the only date you need to take note of. You need to pay attention to the FAFSA deadline for the schools to which you are applying. It’s really important that you understand the list of schools that you or your child will be applying to and what their financial aid deadlines are – and those deadlines are much earlier than the federal government’s deadline.

FAFSA Deadlines Also Differ by How You Apply to the School

Not only do FAFSA deadlines differ by school, they can also differ by how you apply to that school, meaning whether you are applying early action or early decision (remember early decision is binding, early action is not). Sometimes if you’re applying early action, and most of the time when you’re applying early decision, schools want you to submit your financial aid forms sooner than if you’re applying regular decision.

Estimated School FAFSA Deadlines

The short answer to what is the FAFSA deadline is that it can vary. Usually, the school FAFSA deadlines fall anywhere between November 1st to sometime in February. Be sure to go to the Financial Aid section of the website for each school to find that school’s specific financial aid and FAFSA deadlines. You must adhere to those deadlines, not the later federal government deadline, if you want to be considered for aid from that school. If you miss the school’s deadline, you may get no money. I recommend creating a spreadsheet that lists each school and their financial aid and FAFSA deadlines so you don’t miss out on any funding opportunities as these applications also are tied to scholarship opportunities.

State Financial Aid Deadlines
In addition to the above deadlines, if you are applying to colleges within your state of residence, you need to keep track of your state’s financial aid deadline. Click here to see a list of the state deadlines.

Looking for help with the college search and application process? We help students and families through the entire college planning journey – from search, applications and essays to interview prep, financial aid consultation and final school selection.

Contact us at info@signaturecollegecounseling.com or by phone, 845.551.6946. We work with students through Zoom, over the phone, and by email.