How this year's pay shows up on next year's FAFSA

Which year the FAFSA looks at

The FAFSA reads income from two years before the award year, which is often called the prior-prior year. Pay you earn during 2026 appears on the FAFSA that opens by October 1, 2027, for the 2028-29 award year. Put simply, this year's paychecks land on the form you file next fall.

When you and any contributors give consent on the form, tax information for that year comes straight from the IRS. That is why the return from the last lesson matters, since its figures become the figures on your FAFSA. A new FAFSA is filed for every award year in which you want aid.

How student earnings are counted

The formula behind the Student Aid Index sets aside part of a student's income for living costs before counting the rest, and the size of that allowance is set each year. Earnings above it raise the index, which can change the need-based aid a school offers. A dependent student's parents report their own income too, so a parent's raise or job loss also moves the result.

Federal Work-Study wages are treated differently. The form asks for them separately so they can be subtracted, which means work-study pay is not counted against you the way other earnings are. Taxable grant and scholarship amounts reported as income are handled in a similar way.

When this year looks different

Two years is a long time in a student's life. If you or a parent lost a job, stopped working to study full time, or saw a large change in income since the tax year the FAFSA used, its numbers may no longer describe your situation.

Your school's financial aid administrator can use professional judgment to adjust the figures in those cases, based on documents you provide. Each school runs its own process and asks for its own evidence, so ask the aid office what it needs from you.

Getting ready now

Keep your pay stubs, W-2s and tax returns together in one place, labeled by year. Your W-2 from the school may combine work-study with other campus pay, so ask the aid office for your work-study total and write it down. Mark October 1 on your calendar as the date the next FAFSA is set to open.

If your income has changed, contact the aid office soon after you file instead of waiting for an offer. A short note explaining what changed, with documents attached, gives the office time to review it before awards go out.