For students seeking federal financial aid to pay for college, the deadline to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, is June 30 for each academic year.
But to maximize their chances of receiving aid, prospective and current college students would ideally submit the FAFSA promptly after the application opens — long before their college and state financial aid deadlines.
When Are FAFSA Deadlines?
The federal application remains open for nearly 18 months, not closing until June 30. For example, for the 2026-2027 academic year, the last day for students to submit the form is June 30, 2027.
Students must submit the FAFSA to be eligible for federal financial aid like work-study, student loans and the Pell Grant, as well as a range of other college and state need-based aid.
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In addition to keeping the federal deadline in mind, students must juggle multiple independent FAFSA deadlines unique to their college. Students can use an online tracker — such as a cell phone notes page or Excel spreadsheet — to keep up with key deadlines, says Nicole M. Cunningham, director of financial aid at College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts.
“Always look at the institution that has the earliest financial aid filing deadline and submit the application materials not only for that school, but for all of the colleges and universities that they’re applying to by that specific date,” she says. “That way, they are ensuring they are meeting the deadlines of all the schools.”
Each state has its own grant and scholarship programs — usually for residents only — that also often have deadlines much earlier than the federal FAFSA deadline.
Some states and colleges have priority deadlines shortly after the form opens or in the early spring months of the following year. The difference between filing early, on time or late can amount to thousands of dollars in funding to pay for college.
If a student misses an institution or state deadline, however, there may still be hope for financial aid. But that decision is up to the individual school or state.
Indiana, for example, allows students to appeal if they miss the state deadline due to death of an immediate family member, serious illness of the student or an immediate family member, pregnancy, birth of a child, active duty military service, or participation in a religious or public service volunteer program.
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The Department of Education publishes a list of state deadlines for the FAFSA. Students should also check their college’s website to find deadlines for specific grants and scholarships, or contact the financial aid office if the submission deadline isn’t clearly stated.
“Don’t hesitate to ask for help,” says Walter Caffey, vice president for enrollment and dean of admissions and student aid at Wheaton College in Massachusetts. “If we have any students that either we hear from them or when the information we received is incomplete (and) we notice that it’s incomplete, we try to reach out immediately to those families to try to help walk them through the process.”
Benefits of Filing the FAFSA Early
Some states and colleges offer funding first come, first served.
“In general, schools don’t always have an abundance of resources,” Cunningham says. “So applying for financial aid after one is admitted to a college or university can be problematic in that the school may have already extended all of their resources and would not be able to extend consideration. So in order for students to receive maximum consideration for financial aid, it’s always in a student’s best interest to apply early or on time.”
[Read: 5 Myths About Parent Information on the FAFSA.]
Limited funding and strictly enforced deadlines are just two of the reasons students should apply for financial aid well before the federal deadline, experts say.
There are other advantages to filling out the form early, including usually having more time to review and compare financial aid offers.
“If they file on time or early and they extend the information to all of the schools that they apply to, that will give them a wider breadth of aid comparison to be able to make that informed decision in terms of what is not only the best fit for them academically, but also financially,” Cunningham says.
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FAFSA Deadlines to Know originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 10/27/25: This article was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
