The standard deadline for submitting your FAFSA for the coming school year is 12:00 a.m. Central Daylight Time on June 30th. Any corrections must be made by mid-September. It's always best to complete your FAFSA as early as possible instead of waiting for the government's deadline. Many schools implement financial aid priority deadlines that are sometimes months before the actual FAFSA deadline. For example, in 2010 Alaskan state schools had a priority deadline of April 15 and Connecticut schools had a deadline of February 15. Such priority deadlines can give you an increased chance of getting certain scholarships and grants. Contact your school's financial aid department for further information and guidance, as the process varies widely by college or university.
The FAFSA allows you to submit the form before you've completed your taxes, as early as January 1 of the year you're submitting the form. If your tax situation is complicated and you don't expect to get your taxes done early, submit your FAFSA using estimated numbers. You can always submit a correction to your FAFSA. This helps you get your financial aid process rolling.
Make sure you have all your required documents gathered before you start, so you don't have to stop halfway through completing the FAFSA form to find missing information. You must have your complete tax returns for the previous year; records of untaxed income like child support or worker's compensation; your identification documents (a driver's license or ID card and your Social Security number); and your parents' tax returns if you're claimed as a dependent. The FAFSA site has a complete list of required documents.
Before sitting down and filling out the actual FAFSA, complete the free worksheet provided by the U.S. government. This lets you review the questions in advance without worrying about making mistakes, missing a question or completing a page before the online timer runs out. After completing the worksheet, simply plug the same numbers and answers into the online form.
After your first year of college or university, save yourself time by submitting a renewal FAFSA instead of a new FAFSA. The renewal process pulls the information from your previous FAFSA so you don't have to enter the information all over again. All you'll need to do is verify that the form is still accurate, and enter any new financial information that may have changed.