Today, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced it has officially released the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), 10 days before its Dec. 1 goal. The online FAFSA form is available to all students and families at fafsa.gov, and the Department is processing submissions and sending Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) to schools. The paper (PDF) form is also now available for students to submit.
The FAFSA form and systems are in a strong position, but the Department will continue working to ensure every student has the help they need to access higher education. In the coming days and weeks, the Department will carefully monitor the 2025–26 FAFSA form, as well as the Federal Student Aid Information Center (contact center) and make any needed adjustments to improve the experience for students, families, and the financial aid community. The Department will begin processing paper forms by early December. In the coming months, the Department will further enhance the user experience and release additional functionality, including batch corrections and paper corrections, to facilitate a smoother process for students, families, and institutions.
The Department looks forward to continuing its work with partners to ensure that all students and their families can easily access the FAFSA form, have timely and clear information, and can quickly complete the application and access aid.
Additional Resources for Students, Families, and Partners
The Department has taken actions to significantly improve the Federal Student Aid Information Center’s contact center experience for students, families, and institutions, including to support the official release of the 2025–26 FAFSA form. These improvements include:
- Increasing staffing by nearly 80%. Since January, we have added more than 700 agents to the contact center.
- Coordinating with the vendor team to ensure all agents, including those typically assigned to back-office processing, are trained on FAFSA to allow for an “all hands-on deck” approach if needed.
- Adding 225 agents over the next few weeks, in addition to the 700 agents who have already been added, for ongoing surge support, enabling extended hours of operation.
- Implementing hold time announcements to inform callers of current wait times, giving them the option to hold or call back during less busy hours.
In addition to normal operating hours, found on StudentAid.gov, students and families will have access to FAFSA form-only hours at the contact center that include evenings and weekends. The expanded hours begin Nov. 22 and will extend through Mar. 2, 2025. Students and families can reach agents at the contact center in English or in Spanish. Interpretation services in additional languages can be accessed here at StudentAid.gov.
Federal Student Aid Contact Center Hours
| Day(s) | Regular Contact Center Hours | FAFSA-only Support Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 8 am – 9 pm ET | Available until 10 pm ET |
| Tuesday and Wednesday | 8 am – 8 pm ET | Available until 10 pm ET |
| Thursday and Friday | 8 am – 6 pm ET | Available until 10 pm ET |
| Saturday | Closed | Noon – 5 pm ET |
| Sunday | Closed | Closed |