The U.S. Education Department (ED) on Tuesday announced more details of its plan to test the 2025-26 FAFSA process with a select group of organizations and students beginning October 1 and then gradually open it to all by December 1.
During a “series of beta tests,” ED says it will work with community-based organizations (CBOs), high schools, institutions of higher education, states and limited groups of students and contributors to fill out and submit the form. To start, the department is accepting applications from interested CBOs until September 5.
“We’re using the beta testing period to uncover and fix issues with the FAFSA form before the form is available to millions of students and their families,” FAFSA Executive Advisor Jeremy Singer said in a release. “During this first beta test, we’re grateful that community-based organizations are willing to work with us to support students and contributors when they encounter issues. In the end, our collective efforts will benefit all students and their families in their pursuit of higher education.”
ED says each beta test will include:
- Students and contributors filling out and submitting the FAFSA form.
- The department processing Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) and transmitting them to states and institutions.
- Applicants making corrections to the form.
- Institutions making individual corrections.
With each beta test, ED will increase the number of participating students and contributors, starting first with hundreds, then growing to tens of thousands by the final beta test.
“By starting with only a few hundred participants, the Department and participating CBOs will be able to thoroughly support students and contributors through their entire application process,” ED said in the release. “By the final beta test, the Department will have tested FAFSA processes at institutions and state agencies, as well as readied Department contact centers to provide better support for students and their families, states, and institutions.”
For the first beta test that begins on October 1, ED says it is looking to partner with two to six CBOs that can recruit at least 100 students applying to college and have the ability to partner with institutions to test the ISIRs generated by submitted FAFSA forms.
In subsequent beta tests, ED will team with other types of organizations and institutions to recruit participants. The department says it will seek to work with high schools that can host FAFSA completion nights and institutions that can recruit their returning students to submit the FAFSA form and process those students’ ISIRs.
“Working with high schools and additional institutions of higher education will allow the Department to test the FAFSA form with tens of thousands of students from a wider variety of student populations and help the Department identify and fix major issues before the application is available to all students and contributors. The Department also may directly recruit students in later beta tests,” according to ED.
The department will announce more details about later beta tests in the coming weeks and will provide information about how ED will recruit participants as well as how organizations can apply.
