Financial Aid Application (FAFSA)
Latest Updates on 2024-2025 FAFSA/TASFA
Click here for the latest info, as many things are in flux or changing due to the overhaul of federal student aid.
The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is a free application provided by the federal government to help students pay for college.
All US citizens and certain eligible non-citizens (such as permanent residents) can apply for financial aid using the FAFSA. This must be done each year and the FAFSA is a free service. You should never pay to fill out a FAFSA. The FAFSA application requires a federal school code or for you to select what school(s) you want your application to be sent. The UTSA federal school code is 010115.
FAFSA Application
To complete a FAFSA, visit https://studentaid.gov.
FAFSA Instruction
Find out all the details about how to complete your FAFSA at Filling Out the FAFSA.
Understanding your FAFSA Submission Summary
Once your FAFSA is submitted and process by the Department of Education you’ll receive a FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS), which was referred to as a Student Aid Report (SAR) for the 2023-2024 academic year. You’ll probably have questions about what it means so feel free to check here for more information.
Top 10 Helpful Tips When Filing a FAFSA
Create an FSA ID
Use your Legal Name. You must use your legal name (look to your Social Security Card) on the FAFSA rather than nicknames.
Know your Parents Social Security Number, Email and Date of Birth.
One of the most common mistakes on the FAFSA is when the Social Security numbers and dates of birth for the parents are not included. Leaving this information blank will cause the FAFSA to be rejected. If parents do not have a Social Security Number, check the box labeled “I do not have an SSN” when creating an FSA ID and when asked throughout the FAFSA.The “you” in the FAFSA refers to the student
Remember the FAFSA application assumes the student is completing the FAFSA. For example, if a parent is completing the FAFSA, remember that the word ‘you’ refers to the student.Don’t use cents or decimals
Dollar amounts should not include cents. Do not indicate one hundred dollars as 100.00 as the FAFSA will read that 10,000. Instead of leaving an income question blank, you should indicate a zero.Marital Status is based on the day you submit FAFSA
This refers to the marital status (student and/or parents) at the moment the FAFSA is filled. If your parent is divorced or separated and have not remarried, only include the income and assets of the parent who provides the greater portion of the student’s financial support.Even if you filed taxes independently, you might be seen as a “dependent” on your FAFSA
Most students under the age of 24 will have to indicate dependent status. Please read this portion of your FAFSA application carefully and call One Stop Enrollment Center if you have additional questions or believe you qualify for independent status.Number in Household and College
Read this part carefully and remember to include yourself as a person in college (you will be for the coming year!). If you are a dependent student and your parent is attending college, you cannot include your parent in the number in household attending college.All Contributors Must Provide Consent/Approval
For the FAFSA to process successfully, consent / approval must be provided by all required contributors (student, parent, parent spouse, and/or student spouse) on the FAFSA. This allows the Federal Tax Information (FTI) transferred from the IRS to be provided to higher education institutions, state higher-education agencies, and designated scholarship organizations. This consent is necessary even if the contributor does not have a Social Security Number (SSN), did not file taxes, or filed taxes in another country. To provide consent, contributors must have an FSA ID.Don’t forget to review, sign and submit the FAFSA form
You can review all of the answers you provided in your section on the review page, which you’ll see before you provide your signature. Once all contributors have completed and signed their section of the FAFSA, you may submit the FAFSA for processing.