The 2027-28 FAFSA is already open, and several states hand out their grant money to the earliest filers until it runs out. If you or your child will need college aid next year, file it now instead of waiting for spring.
Illinois stopped announcing 2026-27 Monetary Award Program grants to students whose FAFSAs arrived after April 23, 2026, more than 14 months before that school year’s federal deadline of June 30, 2027.
The cutoff came with little warning. Later filers went onto a waiting list the state calls suspense, paid in filing order only if money freed up, and the Illinois Student Assistance Commission told them they “should not count on it.” Illinois isn’t alone. StudentAid.gov’s 2027-28 deadline list shows at least 10 states, including Kentucky, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Vermont, paying grants only until the money runs out. Others set early priority dates, like Jan. 15, 2027, in Texas.
The stakes rose on July 1, 2026. New borrowers of Parent PLUS, the federal loan parents take out for a child’s college, can now take at most $20,000 a year and $65,000 in total per dependent student. Their loans are repaid on one fixed-payment plan that doesn’t count toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness. A family that would have borrowed more than $20,000 a year or $65,000 in total now has a gap to fill, and grants are money it doesn’t have to pay back.
You don’t have to wait for October. The Education Department opened the 2027-28 form to everyone on Sept. 23, 2026, ahead of the traditional Oct. 1 launch. If you filed during its beta test, that FAFSA counts, and you don’t need to submit it again.
Set up the accounts first. Each contributor, such as a parent or spouse, signs with a StudentAid.gov account of their own. Then check your state aid agency’s site for its deadline and any extra form it asks for.
File now. You can correct mistakes later, but you can’t move your filing date up.
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