Yes! You can use AI to fill out 2026–27 FAFSA® Form, Free Application for Federal Student Aid

Many applicants focus only on the federal deadline and miss earlier state or institutional priority deadlines listed on page 2. States and colleges often award aid on a first-come, first-served basis, so missing a priority deadline (some as early as October) can result in losing out on significant grants and scholarships. To avoid this, identify the deadlines for your state of residence and for each college you are applying to, and submit the form as early as possible after October 1st.

The rules for which parent's information to provide are complex, especially in cases of divorce or separation. Applicants often mistakenly report information for the parent they live with, when the form requires information from the parent who provides the greater portion of financial support (page 4). This error can lead to an incorrect Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation, requiring corrections and causing significant delays in receiving an aid offer. Carefully review the 'Which parent should include information?' section to ensure the correct parent completes the form.

A paper FAFSA requires a handwritten signature and a filled-in consent circle from the student and each required contributor (e.g., parent, spouse). Forgetting to sign or provide consent (Questions 24, 29, 41, 46) is a critical error that will cause the application to be rejected immediately. This forces the applicant to resubmit, delaying the entire financial aid process. Before mailing, triple-check that every required signature and consent field is properly completed.

Applicants frequently misunderstand what to include as an asset in Questions 22 and 40. Common mistakes include reporting the value of the primary home or retirement plans (like a 401k or IRA), which should be excluded. Conversely, applicants may forget to report the value of 529 college savings plans, rental properties, or UTMA/UGMA accounts. These errors lead to an inaccurate SAI and can significantly impact aid eligibility. Review the detailed notes on page 23 to correctly identify and report assets.

A simple typo in a name or Social Security Number (SSN) is one of the most common reasons for processing delays. The information entered in Question 1 (student) and Question 30 (parent) must exactly match the name and SSN on file with the Social Security Administration. Using a nickname or an unrecorded name change will cause a data mismatch and halt the application. To prevent this, carefully copy the full legal name and SSN directly from the Social Security card.

Manually transcribing financial data from an IRS Form 1040 into the FAFSA (e.g., Questions 20, 38) is highly prone to error. Applicants may pull figures from the wrong line, make calculation errors, or transpose numbers, which can drastically alter the aid calculation. For example, confusing total income with Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) is a frequent mistake. To avoid this, carefully match each FAFSA question to the specific IRS form and line number indicated in the instructions. AI-powered tools like Instafill.ai can help prevent these errors by validating data as it's entered.

The definitions for 'family size' (Question 34) and 'number in college' (Question 35) are very specific and often misinterpreted. A common error is including parents in the 'number in college' count, which the instructions explicitly forbid. Incorrectly counting household members can directly impact the SAI calculation and the amount of aid awarded. Carefully read the instructions for these questions to ensure the numbers are accurate.

Since the paper FAFSA is scanned by a computer, messy handwriting or incorrect formatting can cause data to be misread, leading to errors and delays. The form requires using dark ink, printing in BLOCK CAPITAL letters, and reporting dollar amounts without cents. Failing to follow these simple rules can result in an incorrect SAI and require a lengthy correction process. Since the form is a flat PDF, using a tool like Instafill.ai can convert it to a fillable version, eliminating handwriting issues and ensuring proper formatting.

Questions 5, 6, and 7 determine if a student is dependent or independent, which dictates whether parental information is required. The legal definitions for terms like 'veteran,' 'legal guardianship,' or 'homeless' are very specific and often misunderstood by applicants. Answering these questions incorrectly can lead to either unnecessarily providing parent data or having the application rejected or flagged for verification by the college's financial aid office, delaying the aid award.

The mailing instructions on page 20 are very specific: mail the original pages 7 through 20, even if some are blank. Applicants sometimes assume they only need to send the pages they filled out, resulting in an incomplete application that cannot be processed. This mistake requires the applicant to resubmit the entire packet, causing a major delay. To avoid this, make a copy for your records and then mail all specified original pages together with the required extra postage.