This electronic announcement provides an update for institutions, states, and vendors on processing 2025-26 FAFSA forms. 

Today, the Department announced that, on October 1, the Department will release the 2025-26 FAFSA form and ISIR processing for testing with a limited set of students and institutions. The Department will make the application available to all students on or before December 1, 2024.  Using this approach, the Department will launch full functionality, including submission, processing, and corrections at the same time.

During the testing period, the Department will make the form available to an increasing number of participants, starting with hundreds and expanding to tens of thousands of applicants. This process will allow the Department to test and resolve issues before making the form available to all students and contributors The Department will provide additional information on participating in the 2025-26 FAFSA form testing in the coming weeks.

This process was informed by conversations and feedback from thousands of students, institutions, and other stakeholders, who requested greater transparency and certainty in the development process and that the ability to submit, process, and correct FAFSAs be released at the same time. Throughout the testing period, the Department will share regular updates with students, families, and a broad range of community stakeholders to provide more transparency into our progress.