FAFSA简化法案
The FAFSA简化法案 actually does simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form. For most people, it will go from more than 100 questions down to 36. As anyone who has filled out a FAFSA knows, this is very good news.
The new form will probably not be available until December 2023. In the meantime, here are a few things we do know about the revised FAFSA rules for 2023.
新的FAFSA与直接数据
12月开放日期
In the past, the FAFSA form has opened on October 1 of your student’s senior year in high school. This year the new Better FAFSA probably won't open until December. Federal Student Aid (FSA) hasn't released a specific date yet. There will be announcements when it’s official.
更短的FAFSA表格
There's a new system that allows the FAFSA to pull information directly from your income tax return. You don’t have to go hunting for your past returns anymore. You just need to give your consent for the transfer of data.
您必须创建一个登录
This interface between the simplified FAFSA and the Internal Revenue Service means your private information must be protected. 当你尝试使用FAFSA, you’ll be directed to a form to give your consent and create an FSA ID, 如果你还没有的话. 基本上就是用户名和密码. FSA will then verify your information, and you can log in.
因为这涉及到安全问题, there will be multi-factor verification to log in using your FSA ID. Your online bank or credit card site may have something like this. When you log in, you’ll get a text or phone call to a number you’ve provided. This verifies who you are before allowing you onto the site.
如果你被确定为一个独立的学生, then your parents will also need to create their own FSA ID so they can give consent to have their income tax information transferred from IRS to the FAFSA. 随着FAFSA的简化, parents without social security numbers (SSN) may now create their FSA ID after they undergo verification of identification.
学生资助指数(SAI)
家庭贡献的变化
新的学生援助指数
一个主要的目标 FAFSA简化法案 is to make the amount of aid your student is eligible for more transparent and predictable. In the past, the FAFSA determined aid using the Estimated Family Contribution (EFC). It was a complicated process even for financial aid specialists. Families often had no idea how much they could receive until they got their financial aid offer from the college.
新的学生援助指数 (SAI) is streamlined and better defined. 在某些情况下, low-income students can be eligible for need-based aid using only the family’s adjusted gross income taken from their income tax return. The new SAI streamlines procedures for students with more complicated income sources as well.
Families with more than one member in college
Under the old Estimated Family Contribution system, if you had multiple family members in college at the same time, 你的EFC被他们平分了. 根据新的学生资助指数, 更好的FAFSA仍然会问这个问题, but it doesn’t consider the number of family members in college in its calculations.
For example and using some very simplified numbers: Under the old FAFSA, 如果你的EFC是3美元,000 and you had three eligible family members enrolled in college at the same time, each enrolled student could have an EFC of $1,000. This would have increased the amount of federal aid they could receive. 现在在更好的FAFSA, 每一种都有3美元的SAI,000, 减少联邦援助的数量.
佩尔助学金的变化
“The federal Pell Grant program is the single largest source of federal grant aid supporting postsecondary education students,” according to The Congressional Research Service (August 2022). These grants are need-based, and you don’t have to pay them back. Your FAFSA form determines your Pell Grant amount.
Pell Grants will now be calculated using the SAI or under certain circumstances, your gross Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) from your tax return. 这将简化资格.
The SAI and AGI levels for aid have also been adjusted and should result in more students qualifying for more Pell Grant money. Since the new form is shorter and simpler, there’s no excuse not to apply. In fact, it’s always best to file your FAFSA each year whether you think you qualify or not.
Changes for special or unusual circumstances
在新的简化FAFSA下, financial aid administrators at colleges must let families know that students who apply for aid can pursue adjustments based on their family and financial circumstances.
变更可能意味着延迟，所以尽早提交
As with any new system, there may be a few bumps in the beginning. Filing early is the best way to have the time you need to get into the new system and submit your FAFSA.
The new simplified FAFSA form will be shorter and require much less effort on your part to fill out. But, if at any point you have questions, please contact the 财政援助办事处 寻求帮助.
If you want the full information currently available on the FAFSA简化法案, check out the Congressional Research Service 关于FAFSA简化法案的报告.