What’s New and Noteworthy in Aid

Launch of the 2024–25 FAFSA® Form

The communication below replaces previouslyy shared information related to the availability of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). As previously announced, students and their families will be able to submit the 2024-25 FAFSA form online by December 31, 2023.

The period leading up to and after December 31st will be considered a "soft launch" period. During this period, the U.S. Department of Education will monitor and respond to any processing issues that could impact the FAFSA applicant experience. During the "soft launch" the department will be monitoring site performance, conducting planned maintenance, and making updates to improve the application experience as warranted.

The U.S. Department of Education also wants to assure students and families that there is ample time to complete the 2024-25 FAFSA. This is because FAFSA data will not transmit to schools until later in January (exact date is unknown).

Here is what students, families, and schools can expect during the soft launch period:

Contributors (the student, parent, student’s spouse, or parent’s spouse), including those without a Social Security number (SSN), will be able to create a StudentAid.gov account to access and complete the online FAFSA form. Contributors who already have a verified account username and password will use their existing credentials to sign in and access the form.
Federal Student Aid (FSA) will initiate planned pauses for site maintenance and to make updates as needed to create a better FAFSA experience for students and families. During these pauses, users who are already online will be able to complete their work, but other users may not be able to begin or resume work on the 2024-25 FAFSA form. Users who go on-line during a temporary pause should check back at a later time to complete the form.
Applicants may experience a waiting room feature, which will help control website volumes to ensure optimal performance of the form.
If a student completes their form during the soft launch period, their information will be stored for processing. They do NOT need to return to resubmit their application after the soft launch concludes.
If a student completes their FAFSA form, but a contributor cannot access the site during a period when the site is unavailable, the contributor can return to complete their portion of the form as soon as the site becomes available again. Any data entered in the form is still in the system and is secure.
If FSA initiates site maintenance while a student or contributor is completing an application, they will be able to continue until they have completed the form.
After all sections of the online FAFSA form are completed and submitted, the student will receive a confirmation email noting their submission date, their estimated Student Aid Index SAI), and estimated Federal Pell Grant eligibility. However, the student will not receive a FAFSA Submission Summary until FSA processes the FAFSA, beginning in late January.

Changes to the 2024-25 FAFSA include:

expanded eligibility for federal student aid and
a more streamlined application process.

Stay informed about the changes and receive up-to-date notifications and information:

Did you fill out a FAFSA form for 2023–24? Log in to your StudentAid.gov account to confirm that your email address is current. Once the launch date of the 2024-25 is announced, the U.S. Department of Education will send email notification to students (and parents of dependent students) if they completed a 2023-24 FAFSA form. That is why is it important to update your email if it has changed since completing the 2023-24 FAFSA form.
If you did not submit a 2023–24 FAFSA form please make sure to create your StudentAid.gov account—and remember your username and password so you can access and submit the 2024–25 FAFSA form when it is available.
You can also follow Federal Student Aid on social media for announcements and resources.

Repayment of Student Loans:

As a result of the debt ceiling agreement, the current student loan repayment pause is going to end at the end of August 2023. The debt ceiling bill codifies the end of the repayment pause and does not allow for additional extensions of the repayment pause.

Student loan interest will resume starting on Sept. 1, 2023, and payments will be due starting in October.

The Biden administration is working towards a smooth transition to ensure student loan payments are reasonable and manageable. However, we recommend that you prepare now. Here are some tips to get started:

Locate your student loan servicer. The company that manages your student loans may have changed since the repayment pause began. Find your student loan servicer by logging into StudenAid.gov.
Contact your loan servicer. Log in to your servicer’s website or call them. Make sure your contact information is up to date. Ask what payment plans are available and set up auto pay.
Consider an income-driven repayment IDRR) plan. We suggest you complete the paperwork now if you plan to sign up for anIDRR plan.

The repayment pause is separate from the Biden’s Administration debt relief proposal which was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.

WATCH OUT FOR STUDENT LOAN SCAMMERSS:

Link to the web page below for important information on how to identify a student loan scam:

3 Ways to Spot Student Loan Scams – Federal Student Aid

Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB):

The Affordable Connectivity Program replaced the Emergency Broadband Benefit on December 31, 2021. Learn more about the Affordable Connectivity Program by visiting fcc.govACPP.

FAFSA Updates to the Selective Service Requirement and Drug-Related Convictions:

On December 27, 2020, the FAFSA Simplification Act (Act) was enacted into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. The Act makes many important changes to the Higher Education Act of 1965 HEAA) and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). Two significant changes are listed below:

The requirement that male students register with the Selective Service before the age of 26 to be eligible for federal student aid under Title IV of theHEAA (Title IV); and
Suspension of eligibility for Title IV aid for drug-related convictions that occurred while receiving Title IV aid.

2021-2022 Award Year

Beginning with the 2021-2022 award year, the Selective Service and drug conviction questions (as well as the option to register with the Selective Service via the FAFSA) will remain on the FAFSA. However, failing to register with the Selective Service or having a drug conviction while receiving federal Title IV aid will no longer impact a student’s Title IV aid eligibility.

2022-2023 Award Year

Similar to the 2021-2022 award year:

The Selective Service and drug conviction questions (as well as the option to register with the Selective Service via the FAFSA) will remain on the FAFSA. However, failing to register with the Selective Service or having a drug conviction while receiving federal Title IV aid will no longer affect a student’s Title IV aid eligibility.

2023-2024 Award Year

For the 2023-2024 award year, the U. S. Department of Education plans to completely remove both the Selective Service and drug conviction questions from the FAFSA, as well as the option to register with the Selective Service via the FAFSA.

Repeal of the 150% Direct Subsidized Loan Limit (SULA):

The Department of Education (ED) recently announced that the 150% Direct Subsidized Loan limit, or "SULA” is being repealed. What exactly does this mean for students? Here is a brief summary:

For students who receive Federal Direct Subsidized Loans first disbursed on July 1, 2021 or later, SULA restrictions do not apply, regardless of the award year associated with the loan.
For students whose interest subsidy benefits were lost due to having a remaining eligibility period of zero or less, subsidy benefits will be restored for all subsidized loans with outstanding balances on July 1, 2021. The interest subsidies will be retroactively applied for all subsidized loans issued since the 2013-2014 award year.
Direct loan entrance counseling will no longer be required to include information on the eligibility limitation of subsidized loans based on a borrower’s subsidized usage period.
Direct loan exit counseling will no longer need to include SULA information, including:
- How a borrower’s maximum eligibility period, remaining eligibility period, and subsidized usage period are determined;
- The sum of a borrower’s subsidized usage periods at the time of exit counseling;
- The consequences of continued borrowing or enrollment;
- The impact of the borrower becoming responsible for accruing interest on total student debt;
- That the Secretary will inform the student borrower of whether he or she is responsible for accruing interest on his or her Direct Subsidized Loans; and
- That the borrower can access the National Student Loan Data System NSLDS) to determine whether he or she is responsible for accruing interest on any Direct Subsidized Loans.

The repeal of SULA has many benefits for students. As an example, students who had outstanding loan balances and had lost their interest subsidy will benefit from the retroactive restoration of their interest subsidy, and future students will no longer need to make decisions based on the potential loss of their interest subsidy.

Undocumented Students

State law, enacted by the Connecticut General Assembly, allows undocumented students to apply for institutional financial aid. These students must meet certain age, residency, and criminal history requirements along with an affidavit provided to Charter Oak about their intent to legalize their immigration status when they are eligible to do so. This new law does not apply to non-immigrant visa holders.

Federal Pell Grant Program - Duration of Eligibility

Once you have received a Pell Grant for 12 semesters (full-time), or the equivalent, you are no longer eligible for additional Pell Grants.

You are eligible to receive a Pell Grant for up to 12 semesters or the equivalent. If you have exceeded the 12-semester maximum, you lose eligibility for additional Pell Grants. Equivalency is calculated by adding together the percentage of your Pell eligibility that you received each year to determine whether the total amount exceeds 600%.
For example, if your maximum Pell Grant award amount for the school year was $5,550, but you only receive $2,775 because you were only enrolled for one semester, you would have used 50% of your maximum award for the year. If in the following school year, you were enrolled only three-quarter time, you would have used 75% of your maximum award for that year. Together, you would have received 125% out of the total 600% lifetime limit.