The U.S. Department of Education has announced that institutional batch corrections for the 2024-25 FAFSA will not be available in mid-August as previously promised. Instead, colleges will be required to submit corrections on a student-by-student basis.
The Tuesday decision means that colleges cannot process bulk corrections to students' financial aid records this year, potentially leaving some students unable to pay their bills before classes begin.
"This decision is based on two main factors. First, due to the delayed delivery timeline, institutions would not be able to utilize batch corrections before they begin their fall semesters," the department said. "Second, we are prioritizing the development of a well-tested, robust, and end-to-end launch of the 2025-26 form and need to ensure development resources are focused appropriately. We know this is also a priority for all our partners and students."
This announcement is a significant setback for financial aid offices, as it is expected to greatly increase the workload on staff as critical deadlines approach. It also adds to the ongoing challenges with the new FAFSA, which has faced processing errors and delays. Without batch processing, financial aid officers will have to handle each correction manually, which could further delay aid offers and complicate enrollment for many students.
The department stated that batch correction functionality will be available for the 2025-26 school year. In the meantime, the department will begin processing paper FAFSAs this week, with a backlog expected to clear within two to three weeks. However, corrections for paper FAFSAs will now be available by the end of September, rather than mid-August as initially planned.
Amid the continued delays, the announcement also outlined additional help for institutions, including no-cost technical assistance to help institutions submit corrections via the FAFSA portal.
