Preparing for the 2025–26 FAFSA

Updated Nov. 11, 2024

We want to keep you informed about changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2025–26 academic year. These changes, brought about by the federal FAFSA Simplification Act, are designed to make the financial aid process easier for your family and to better determine aid eligibility.

Here's what you need to know:

FAFSA availability and timeline

The 2025–26 FAFSA opened for beta testing in October and will be available for SCAD students and families to complete on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. SCAD will begin receiving FAFSA data shortly thereafter.

Once processed, we will send out missing information requests and offer letters for incoming students. We expect current students to receive offer letters on the regular schedule, beginning in early June.

Vocabulary changes

The FAFSA introduced new terminology during the 2024–25 aid year:

  • Student Aid Index (SAI): Replaced the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) and measures your ability to pay for college
  • FAFSA Submission Summary: Replaced the Student Aid Report (SAR) and summarizes your submitted FAFSA via email
  • Federal Tax Information (FTI): Describes financial data from the IRS
  • Direct Data Exchange (DDX): Replaced the Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) as the method for FTI retrieval

FAFSA form changes

When completing the FAFSA, many filers will notice a more streamlined experience. Additionally, some questions have been reworded to provide additional clarity.

The FAFSA form can now be started by either the student or the parent. Read on to review some important notes about the 2025–26 FAFSA form.

Who is included on the FAFSA?

Who is my parent?

For dependent students, the FAFSA will use the following flow chart to help you understand which parent’s information you will need to include on the FAFSA.

  • Are parents married to each other? If yes, list both.
  • Are parents unmarried and living together? If yes, list both.
  • If none of the above apply, did one parent provide more financial support than the other over the last 12 months? If yes, list that parent.
  • If this parent is remarried, the stepparent’s information should also be included on the FAFSA.
  • If one parent did not provide more financial support, the student should list the parent with the greater income or assets.
  • If this parent is remarried, the stepparent’s information should also be included on the FAFSA.

Contributors

Contributors are individuals who will need to provide FTI on the FAFSA.

All contributors to the FAFSA will be required to have an FSA ID to log in to the FAFSA form. This includes non-citizen parents.

Independent student form contributors:

  • Student
  • Student’s spouse, if married and filed taxes separately

Dependent student form contributors:

  • Student
  • Biological or adoptive parent(s), depending on the “Who is my parent?” flowchart above and tax filing status
  • If parents filed taxes jointly, only one parent may need to contribute.

Federal Student Aid has also released a tool to assist you in understanding which parent(s) should be included on the FAFSA, which is available on studentaid.gov.

Financial data transfer

All contributors must consent to FTI transfer for aid eligibility. Non-consent means the student is ineligible for Federal Student Aid. This consent does not imply financial responsibility to pay for college by any party.

New eligibility calculation

To expand Pell Grant access, the FAFSA began using new eligibility calculations in 2024–25, including the SAI, which can go as low as -1,500. The Federal Student Aid Estimator can help you estimate your SAI and potential eligibility for federal aid prior to completing the FAFSA.

Siblings in college

Beginning with academic year 2024–25, the number of children in college no longer impacts the SAI, potentially affecting aid eligibility for some families.

Family farms and small businesses

  • Farm net worth now includes family farms but excludes primary residences. It comprises land, buildings, livestock, crops, and machinery.
  • The net worth of all businesses must be reported, regardless of size or employee count.