Next year's version of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, won't be fully available to students requesting help paying for college until early December, the U.S. Department of Education said Wednesday.
The upcoming iteration of the form used annually by millions of students and families is for the 2025-26 school year. Although the FAFSA typically opens to students on Oct. 1, a congressionally mandated overhaul to the financial aid system last year set off a series of problems that put officials behind on their conventional timeline – now, for the second year in a row.
Officials indicated that the FAFSA will be ready for a "limited set of students and institutions" on Oct. 1. They said they plan to test it for errors, before slowly making it widely accessible to all students "on or before" Dec. 1. The Education Department did not immediately clarify which types of students would be able to complete the form in early October.
Miguel Cardona, the education secretary, indicated earlier this year that the agency originally planned to meet the usual Oct. 1 deadline for people seeking aid for the 2025-26 year. In a statement Wednesday, he said slowing the timeline will help make next year's financial aid process better than this year's rollout, which he previously acknowledged negatively impacted certain students.
“Following a challenging 2024-25 FAFSA cycle, the Department listened carefully to the input of students, families, and higher education institutions, made substantial changes to leadership and operations at Federal Student Aid, and is taking a new approach this year that will significantly improve the FAFSA experience," he said.
The postponement comes after Democrats and advocacy groups urged the Education Department in recent weeks to prioritize accuracy over speed for the next form. Bill DeBaun, who tracks data for the National College Attainment Network, said in an interview that rushing to put out another application before it's ready would only hurt students.
"The most important thing here is to make sure that the FAFSA is functional," he said, "and students get the aid they need."
Congressional Republicans blasted the decision on Wednesday to wait until Dec. 1 for a full rollout. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican of Louisiana who serves on a committee overseeing education policy, called it "completely unacceptable."
Read more: GOP committee orders Biden administration to hand over documents on FAFSA rollout
Students who still need financial assistance paying for the 2024-25 school year can fill out the last version of the FAFSA, which won't close until June 2025 .
Zachary Schermele covers education and breaking news for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele .
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When does the next FAFSA open? Expect delays – again.
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