February 10, 2011

New FAFSA Facts

Several changes were made to the 2011-12 FAFSA process that financial aid administrators need to be aware of, including:

• FAFSA Question Changes
• FAFSA on the Web Simplification
• Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) and National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant (National SMART Grant) Program Funding Changes
• Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant Updates
• Need Analysis Income Threshold Increase
• Veterans Administration (VA) Discharge of Federal Student Aid Loans
• Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Data Retrieval Tool Enhancements

The Department of Education (ED) posted a complete description of the FAFSA changes (PDF). The document includes contact information for schools that have questions about the changes.

In addition, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) plans a Feb. 14 start date for processing tax returns delayed by recent tax law changes. This will impact many taxpayers who must wait until Feb. 14 to file their taxes. To find out which filers are impacted and the timeframe and schedule for processing pending tax returns, visit the IRS website.

Remember, to meet deadlines and early application dates, parents and students who have not filed their 2010 taxes can still complete their FAFSA using estimated tax amounts. Once their taxes have been filed, corrections can be made online or by mailing in the paper SAR.