The U.S. Department of Education takes first public step in the FAFSA development process.

February 5, 2025 - WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education released the following:

Today, the U.S. Department of Education published the information collection for the 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid ( FAFSA®) form in the Federal Register, the first public step in the FAFSA development process. The Department is on track to launch the 2026-27 FAFSA by Oct. 1, 2025 as mandated by the FAFSA Deadline Act.

The Department also announced that current and future FAFSA forms will rightfully reflect the biological reality that there are only two sexes: male and female. Department officials will remove “nonbinary” as a gender identification option from the current year’s FAFSA form.  

“The Trump Administration will correct the failures of the last Administration and ensure students and families can easily access the FAFSA form in a timely manner,” said Acting Under Secretary James Bergeron. “Resolving ongoing problems with the 2024-25 form, reflecting biological reality by referencing sex identifiers, and beginning the process for the 2026-27 form on-time will allow the Department to earn back the trust of the American people. Families and students depend on the FAFSA  form to plan their futures, and any release delays or unnecessary politicization of the form is wholly unacceptable.” 

The public has 60 days to suggest improvements to the 2026-27 FAFSA form via the Federal Register. Following the 60-day period, the Department will review the suggested improvements and publish a revised draft for an additional round of public comments. This process puts the Department on track to meet the new statutory deadline and give parents and students enough time to complete and submit the form.  

Resolving Problems with the 2024-25 FAFSA Form 

The Department is currently beta testing the ability of colleges and universities to make batch corrections to FAFSA forms, allowing colleges and universities to more efficiently update information on the form after it has been completed and submitted by the student and family. Batch corrections will reduce the university staff time spent on FAFSA edits. The Department plans to release full batch correction capability by the end of February, which is on schedule to the previously announced plan.  

The Department also expects to complete the substantial backlog of features left incomplete by the Biden-Harris Administration in the coming months. This includes providing post-screening data from the National Student Loan Database System, notifying schools about changes in student eligibility, and other important changes. 

Commonsense Revisions to the 2025-26 FAFSA Form 

Consistent with Executive Order 14168, the Department is modifying the current question about “gender” on the 2025-26 form to collect data about applicants’ sex. 

Proposed Reforms to the 2026-27 FAFSA Form 

The Department is proposing a redesign to the FAFSA contributor invite process, which is the source of the largest drop-off of students who decide not to complete the FAFSA form. The redesign will increase completion and satisfaction and ultimately reduce the volume of support calls.  

Ensuring a timely and smooth FAFSA process is a top priority for the Trump Administration. The FAFSA technical team has been hard at work to improve the FAFSA form for all students and their families. 
Source: U.S. Dept. of ED.