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FAFSA Information

The FAFSA for the 2026-2027 academic year are now available. Once you submit your FAFSA, the U.S. Department of Education will send your information to the schools you listed. Dallas Baptist University’s school code is 003560. DBU Financial Aid is happy to assist you with questions regarding completing the FAFSA but cannot answer any questions regarding your aid eligibility or status until we receive your FAFSA information.

Who Should File?

Students currently enrolled who have not completed a 2025-2026 FAFSA may still do so. Students planning to enroll in college for the fall 2026 or spring 2027 semester should submit the 2026-2027 FAFSA.

What Can I Do to Get Prepared?

Determine your eligibility status. Find out whether you are considered a dependent or independent student. This will help you understand which information needs to be provided on the FAFSA.

  • First-time filers: You will need to create an FSA ID on studentaid.gov. To do this, you’ll need a working email address (not tied to your school account).
  • Returning filers: You’ll need to remember your FSA ID username and password so you have it readily available when it’s time to file.
  • If you cannot retrieve your username or password, call the FSA Information Center at 1-800-433-3243 for assistance.

Whose Information Goes on the FAFSA?

Dependent Students: If you are considered dependent, you will need to provide both your information and your parent’s information. Both the student and parents must create an FSA ID.

For dependent students with divorced parents, the parent who provides the most financial support will need to provide their financial information. For more information on who qualifies as your parent on the FAFSA, please visit the Reporting Parent Information page to learn more about who is considered your parent when filing the FAFSA.

Independent Students: If you meet the criteria to be considered an independent student, only your information and, if applicable, your spouse’s information will be used on the FAFSA.

Special or Unusual Circumstances

If you cannot provide parental information due to special or unusual circumstances, such as homelessness or foster care, you can still file the FAFSA to the best of your ability. Follow the prompts on the FAFSA to proceed with this process. The DBU Financial Aid Office will reach out if additional information is needed once we begin receiving FAFSAs.

What Information is Collected by the FAFSA Form?

The FAFSA will ask questions about you and your family’s financial situation, including:

  • Demographic information (name, Social Security number, birthdate)
  • Federal tax information (income, business and farm assets, investments like stocks and bonds)

Most of the financial information will be collected through the FA-Direct Data Exchange (FA-DDX) (formally the IRS data exchange). You and your parents (if you are a dependent student) must consent/agree to share your IRS tax information with the FAFSA. For 2026-2027 your family size will be based on your 2024 tax records, but if there have been any changes in your family size since then, you will be prompted to manually answer additional questions in order to update this information.

What if My Parent Doesn’t Have a Social Security Number?

If your parent does not have a Social Security Number (SSN), you can still complete the FAFSA by following these

steps:

  1. Create an FSA ID : Your parent can create an FSA ID to electronically sign and submit the FAFSA. This is necessary for the contributor to have their federal tax information transferred directly from the IRS into the form.
  2. Manual Entry : The contributor will need to manually enter their tax or income information on the FAFSA. They should collect their current bank balance information, records of child support received, and 2023 tax and income documents before beginning the application.
  3. Identity Verification : After submission, a quick identity validation process will be required to finalize the application.
  4. StudentAid.gov Account : It is recommended that both the student and the contributor create a StudentAid.gov account before starting the FAFSA form.

It is important to ensure that all information entered on the FAFSA form matches exactly with what is entered on the StudentAid.gov account. Even small discrepancies can cause errors that prevent the contributor from completing the FAFSA form.

For more detailed guidance and assistance, students and contributors can refer to the official Federal Student Aid website or contact their financial aid office at the institution they are applying to.

Scams

The FAFSA form is FREE. If a website asks you to pay to fill it out, you are not on the official FAFSA site. Always visit studentaid.gov to access the correct website.

Terms to Know

Student Aid Index (SAI): calculated by the FAFSA data; will determine student aid eligibility. This replaces the EFC that was used in previous years

Cost of Attendance (COA): includes tuition and fees, food and housing, books and supplies, miscellaneous expenses, and transportation

Contributor: a parent, stepparent, student, or spouse of the student who is providing information for the FAFSA.

Consent: required from all contributors in order for the IRS to share tax data directly to the FAFSA. If any contributor does not provide consent to share the tax data, the student will automatically be ineligible for aid

FA-Direct Data Exchange (FA-DDX): previously known as IRS Data Retrieval, this tool imports tax data directly from the IRS to the FAFSA

FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS): A summary of the completed FAFSA information. This replaces the Student Aid Report (SAR) that was used previously

FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS)

After the FAFSA has been processed, the Federal Student Aid office will send a FAFSA Submission Summary to you and an electronic version to DBU. This contains all the information you provided on the FAFSA, including your family's financial details, the list of schools you are applying to, and your Student Aid Index (SAI). Essentially, it's confirmation that your FAFSA has been processed and a summary of the information you've submitted. Financial Aid offices use your SAI to guide them as they put together a package of grants, scholarships, and loans that will make it financially possible for you to attend their school.

The FSS also indicates whether you have been selected for a process called verification and whether you are eligible for a Federal Pell Grant. If you do not have a copy of your FSS, you can request a duplicate copy from the Federal Student Aid Information Center by calling 1-800-433-3243.