FAFSA FAQs

FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Filing the FAFSA is the first step in applying for financial aid and is a requirement for students who plan to pay for education after high school with the help of federal, state, or institutional aid such as grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans. The FAFSA typically becomes available each year on October 1st. Completing and submitting the FAFSA is FREE – be sure to apply at StudentAid.gov.

Check with all schools you are applying to so you can determine their deadlines. Deadlines to apply for certain types of federal, state, and institutional financial aid vary by school, and many have early deadlines.

The FSA ID is a Federal Student Aid username and password that you will need to access Federal Student Aid websites, including StudentAid.gov. Your FSA ID serves as your legal signature. If parent information is required on your FAFSA, at least one parent will also need to create their own FSA ID to electronically sign your FAFSA. To create an FSA ID, go to StudentAid.gov and click on “Create Account.” Be sure that you (and your parents, if applicable) have access to your email and can receive a text on your mobile phone when creating your FSA ID. To create an FSA ID, you must be able to access your email.

Your FSA ID must be created and matched by the Social Security Administration before you can start your FAFSA, so create your FSA ID early! You can create an FSA ID now at StudentAid.gov.

Keep track of your FSA ID information using FAME’s Students: Create Your Federal Student Aid Account (FSA ID) sheet.  Parents should use FAME’s Parents: Create Your Federal Student Aid Account (FSA ID) sheet. Keep these sheets in a secure location — for example, where you keep tax return information. 

Yes. Because eligibility for federal student aid does not carry over from one year to the next, you need to fill out the FAFSA each year you are a student.

Your eligibility for financial aid can differ from year to year for various reasons, including your family’s financial situation.

On FAME’s website! Learn about financial aid basics, comparing financial aid offers from different schools, borrowing to pay for college, and more. Use FAME’s Scholarship Search to find scholarships for Maine students. FAME’s PAY: Tips to Afford Higher Education booklet is also available for download.

Yes! The only way you can access the FAFSA is with your FSA ID. This is also the case for parents and spouses if they are required to provide information on the FAFSA.

Yes, every time you use your FSA ID to access any Federal Student Aid websites, including the FAFSA, you will need to enter a verification code. Depending on the options you set up and verified when creating your FSA ID, you can request that the code be sent via text to your cell phone, sent to your email, or provided by an authenticator app.

If a parent or spouse needs to access the FAFSA, they will need their own FSA ID and will also be required to provide a verification code. 

If your biological or adoptive parents live together, regardless of marital status or gender, answer the questions about both.

If your biological or adoptive parents are divorced or separated, answer the questions about the parent that provided the majority of your financial support (it does not matter who claimed you on their tax return). If your parent is remarried on the  day you file the FAFSA, answer the questions about your parent and your stepparent.

If one of your parents is deceased, answer the questions about the surviving parent. If that parent is remarried on the day you file the FAFSA, answer questions about your parent and your stepparent.

If you live with a foster parent, legal guardian, grandparent, or other relative, they are not considered a parent for the purposes of filing the FAFSA unless that person has legally adopted you. Students in these situations should contact their high school counselor, college financial aid office, or FAME to discuss their situation further and obtain guidance to help them complete their FAFSA.

If you don’t meet the criteria to be considered an independent student, parent information is needed on your FAFSA.

However, if the situation with your parents is complicated or you do not have contact with either parent, providing information may be difficult or impossible. Consider the following to determine your next steps.

If your high school considers you a homeless student as described in the McKinney Vento Act, you can file the FAFSA as an independent student (no parent information will be needed). You will need to document your situation with the financial aid office. Your high school guidance office can provide you the documentation needed. Please keep original copies of this documentation and only give the financial aid office a copy.

If you are not considered a homeless student by your high school, but do not live with your parent and cannot provide parent information, contact the financial aid office or FAME to discuss your options and determine how to apply for financial aid.

If your parent doesn’t have a Social Security number, you are still eligible to file the FAFSA. Parents without a Social Security number are now able to create an FSA ID and complete the parent section of the FAFSA. To create an FSA ID, go to StudentAid.gov and click on “Create Account.”

If your parents file a tax return outside the U.S., convert the amounts on the foreign tax return into U.S. dollars and manually enter the information on the FAFSA.

When a student selects “homeschooled” as their high school completion status, the high school question is automatically skipped and not required on the FAFSA.

Use the “Previous” and “Continue” buttons on the bottom of your FAFSA. DO NOT use your browser’s back and forward arrows at the top left of your screen.

Use your tab key to move from one question to the next, or use your mouse to click into an answer field. DO NOT use your enter key.

Yes. You can save what you have and log back into the FAFSA to make changes any time before your FAFSA is submitted. 

You’ll need to provide income information from two years prior to the year of the FAFSA. For example, the 2024-2025 FAFSA requires income information from the 2022 tax year.

When completing the FAFSA, there is a check box to grant permission for your IRS data to be transferred from the IRS into your FAFSA record. When tax information is transferred, neither you nor your other contributors will see it displayed in the FAFSA form.

It is critical that you click “Approve” to allow federal tax information to be transferred. If approval is not provided, you will be ineligible for federal aid until a correction is made and the box is checked.

Everyone must click “Approve,” including those who do not file taxes.

Yes, that information can be updated, but not on the FAFSA; it must be updated by your school. After you file your FAFSA, follow up with the financial aid office at any school you are applying to, let them know about the change in income, and discuss a financial aid appeal.

Assets that must be reported include your current total balance of cash, savings, and checking accounts; college investing accounts; net worth of investments; a family farm or family business; real estate such as rental property, land, and summer homes.

Assets that are NOT reported include the value of your retirement accounts, the home you live in, personal possessions, pensions, and whole life insurance.

FAME customer service is available to answer your FAFSA-filing questions Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 1-800-228-3734. You can also email a question to Education@FAMEmaine.com. Emails are answered during business hours. Additionally, we offer one-to-one virtual financial aid coaching sessions via Zoom. Schedule a coaching appointment.

Starting in the fall, we’ll offer sessions to help students and parents create their FSA IDs and file the FAFSA. For a list of sessions, visit our Events page.

Help is also available at StudentAid.gov. 

• The help button at the top of each page will redirect you to a list of searchable questions, provide you with information on accessing a FAFSA specialist via live online chat, and provide FAFSA’s email address. If you prefer to speak with someone directly, FAFSA’s toll-free number is 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243). 
• The help button is also located next to each question and provides more information about how to answer that question. 

Once your FAFSA has been processed (usually about three days), log back into StudentAid.gov, navigate to the “My Activity” section, and select “Make Correction.” You will be able to correct your mistake and resubmit your FAFSA. The updated information will be sent to all the schools listed on the FAFSA.

Do not update your FAFSA to reflect changes that have occurred after the FAFSA was filed. Instead, discuss changes (i.e., changes in income or marital status) with the financial aid office at your school. You do not need to discuss changes in assets, as assets always reflect the value as of the day the FAFSA was filed.

Verification is when the school asks you to verify some of the information you provided on your FAFSA by providing additional documentation and/or by completing a verification form. It DOES NOT mean you did anything wrong! Be sure to provide the requested information to the school as soon as possible.

Typically, you won’t receive a financial aid offer until you have completed the financial aid application process and have been admitted to the school. Schools have different schedules for when they send financial aid offers.

There is no standard format for financial aid offers, making it difficult to compare offers from different schools. We recommend using FAME’s Comparing Costs & Financial Aid Offers Worksheet to help you understand your offers and get an “apples-to-apples” comparison.

Check out FAME’s Scholarship Search to research scholarships that might be available to you.

Schools aren’t always able to meet the full financial need of every student. Start by reviewing your expenses to see if there are ways to reduce your costs. If your financial aid offer is still not enough, consider the options listed on our Financial Aid Offers page under the heading “When the Financial Aid Offer Isn’t Enough.”