The soonest a FAFSA application can be filed with the Department of Education is on the January 1st preceding the academic year that you are requesting financial aid for. However by using our service, you can start even earlier. We can prepare your FAFSA for a future academic year now, and file it for you as soon as possible after January 1st, ensuring you the best chance at receiving the most aid.

It is important to note that each academic year has its own FAFSA application. The academic year most commonly runs for 10 months from August to May. The FAFSA application window for that academic year however runs for 18 months, from the January 1st preceding the academic year to the June 30th following the academic year. For example:

The 2011-2012 academic year most commonly runs from August 2011 to May 2012. So the FAFSA application for the 2011-2012 academic year can be filed from January 1st, 2011 to June 30th, 2012.
The FAFSA for the 2012-2013 academic year can be filed from January 1st, 2012 to June 30th, 2013.
The FAFSA for the 2013-2014 academic year can be filed from January 1st, 2013 to June 30th, 2014.
The FAFSA for the 2014-2015 academic year can be filed from January 1st, 2014 to June 30th, 2015.
etc.

It is also important to note that the FAFSA application is used to apply for federal, state, and college-sponsored aid, however each aid program may have its own deadlines. The dates above are the federal aid filing deadlines. To learn filing deadlines for state aid for the 2011-2012 academic year, click here. To learn filing deadlines for state aid for the 2012-2013 academic year, click here. To learn filing deadlines for college-sponsored aid, speak to the financial aid administrator at the college you wish to attend.

State aid program deadlines are often sooner than the federal deadline. However, residents of any state can still file a FAFSA after their state deadline to apply for federal aid.

When you place an order for our service by 7pm Central Time on a state or federal holiday, we do our best to file it with the federal processor by midnight of that same day. But we cannot guarantee FAFSA filing times due to the many factors which may affect it, including the completeness and accuracy of information received, the volume of orders, the multiple technical platforms upon which order processing relies, and more. Therefore, we always recommend filing as soon as possible after the 1st of January prior to each academic year (for example, 1/1/12 for the 2012-2013 academic year), whether you use our services or file on your own directly with the government.

Finally, some deadlines apply to the filing date of the FAFSA, whereas other deadlines apply to the processing date of your FAFSA, which happens after filing. The federal deadlines listed in the bullet points above apply to the filing date of your FAFSA. When researching state aid and college-sponsored aid deadlines, make sure to pay attention to whether the date applies to the filing or processing of your FAFSA. When you place an order with our service to file your FAFSA, the processing of your FAFSA will typically be completed by the US Department of Education within 2 weeks after you provide them with your signature page.

Still have questions? Return to the Learning Center for a full list of questions.