2026-27 FAFSA, Alternative Application, and Important Dates

10/01/2025

The Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) would like to share information which may be helpful to you and/or your students.

Links in this message go to ISAC's website (isac.org) unless otherwise noted.

You may scroll through this message, or click a link to go to a specific section:

2026-27 (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027)

2025-26 (July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026)

2024-25 (July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025)

General Information (Not Specific to One Academic Year)

2026-27 ACADEMIC YEAR

2026-27 FAFSA and Alternative Application

The 2026-27 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) cycle – including availability of the online FAFSA for all students – has opened, and the FAFSA Processing System (FPS) is transmitting 2026-27 FAFSA results to colleges. Students (and any contributors, if applicable) who successfully submitted the 2026-27 FAFSA form during the fall 2025 beta testing period do not need to resubmit it.

Visit the Applying for Financial Aid section of the e-Library for information about the 2026-27 application cycle.

The 2026-27 Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid (Alternative Application) is also available (in English and Spanish). Further details are provided at ISAC's Retention of Illinois Students & Equity (RISE) Act page.

The Financial Aid Planning area has resources to help students complete the financial aid process.

MAP Processing Cycle

At its September 18, 2025 meeting, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission approved a start-up formula for 2026-27 academic year Monetary Award Program (MAP) grants. The formula includes the same 4% reduction that was in place for 2025-26 MAP awards, resulting in an effective maximum award of $8,064. Additional details regarding the formula are provided in a September 19, 2025 "2026-27 MAP Start-up Formula Approved" e-Message.

The 2026-27 Required School-Issued Award Notification Language will soon be available on the MAP Award Announcements page, and the 2026-27 MAP 160-Byte File Layout Specifications document will be posted at the Electronic Tools page in the e-Library when it becomes available.

ISAC will announce when the 2026-27 MAP processing cycle has begun and 2026-27 MAP eligibility information is available in the MAP system.

2025-26 ACADEMIC YEAR

October 31: Post-Master of Social Work School Social Work Professional Educator License Scholarship Program Application Priority Consideration Date

The application for the 2025-26 Post-Master of Social Work School Social Work Professional Educator License Scholarship Program (Social Work Scholarship) is available to complete and submit online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. The priority application consideration date for the 2025-26 academic year is October 31, 2025. Complete applications submitted after that date will be considered only if available funding remains after all timely complete applicants have been awarded.

Certify Eligibility

Colleges may certify applicants' eligibility for 2025-26 Social Work Scholarships via the Social Work Scholarship system.

December 5: First-Term Claim Deadline Date for MAP

2025-26 MAP first-term payment requests (i.e., claims) are due on or before December 5, 2025.

When submitting claims, remember that ISAC has suspended the announcement of 2025-26 MAP grants for all students whose initial 2025-26 FAFSA is received and processed by the federal processor, or whose initial Alternative Application is received and processed by ISAC, after June 5, 2025.

Future updates will be announced via the FAA Message Board, the MAP Program News page, and/or ISAC's e-Messaging system.

December 31: First-Term Priority Claim Deadline for ECACE, Golden Apple, and NES

December 31, 2025 is the 2025-26 first-term priority payment request (claim) deadline for the Early Childhood Access Consortium for Equity (ECACE) Scholarship, Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois, and Nursing Education Scholarship (NES) programs.

Further details are provided via the e-Messages listed below.

December 31: Fall-Term Deadline to Report Benefit Usage Data for IVG and ING Grant

ISAC is accepting fall-term benefit usage data for the 2025-26 Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) and Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant programs.

  • IVG data for the fall term is due on or before Wednesday, December 31, 2025.
    • The date by which IVG data for the summer term must have been submitted in order to be considered timely has passed; however, colleges are still encouraged to submit summer-term data as soon as possible.
  • ING Grant data for the fall term is due on or before Wednesday, December 31, 2025.

IVG benefit usage data and ING Grant benefit usage data is submitted to ISAC by colleges via the benefit usage functionality within each program's system. Colleges report enrollment hours and dollar amounts for initial benefit usage by students, as well as adjustments to previously-submitted data. Rporting of benefits used must take place so that usage can be accurately reflected on students' accounts, even though ISAC may not be able to fully reimburse institutions for 2025-26 IVG or ING Grant awards.

Further details are provided in an August 21, 2025 "Submit 2025-26 IVG & ING Grant Benefit Usage Data" e-Message.

March 1: Spring-Term Application Deadline for Grant Programs for Dependents of Police, Fire, or Correctional Officers

March 1, 2026 is the spring- and summer-term application deadline for the 2025-26 Grant Programs for Dependents of Police/Fire/Correctional Officers. Students complete and submit applications online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. Applications received after March 1 will be considered for summer-term awards only.

Reminder: Starting with the 2025-26 academic year, colleges administer awards for the Grant Programs for Dependents of Police, Fire, and Correctional Officers via ISAC's Gift Assistance Programs (GAP) Access portal. Further details will be provided throughout the year.

March 1: Spring-Term Application Deadline for the Displaced Energy Worker Dependent Transition Scholarship Program

March 1, 2026 is the spring- and summer-term application deadline for the 2025-26 Displaced Energy Worker Dependent Transition Scholarship Program. Students complete and submit applications online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. Applications received after March 1 will be considered for summer-term awards only.

2025-26 FAFSA and Alternative Application Remain Available

Although ISAC has suspended the announcement of 2025-26 MAP grants (for all students whose initial 2025-26 FAFSA is received and processed by the federal processor, or whose initial Alternative Application is received and processed by ISAC, after June 5, 2025), these 2025-26 applications remain available online. Please inform your students that their 2025-26 application should be completed and submitted as soon as possible if they will be attending college between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026. FAFSA results are used to determine eligibility for several types of federal, state and institutional financial assistance. The suspension of 2025-26 MAP award announcements does not impact any other financial aid programs.

2024-25 ACADEMIC YEAR

Submit Outstanding Amounts Due

Notifications detailing the outstanding amount that must be refunded to ISAC for the 2024-25 programs listed below were emailed to financial aid directors in early August, with a due date of September 30, 2025. Outstanding amounts still must be refunded even though that deadline has passed. If not already done, review the August notification and return the appropriate amount – along with a completed Gift Assistance Programs Refund Check Form and, if applicable, Gift Assistance Programs Refund Check Explanation Form (Excel spreadsheet) – as soon as possible.

Details about returning funds to ISAC and the payment offset and reconciliation process are provided in the Refunds and Unpaid Claims section of the Processes area.

Coming Soon: Reporting Enrollment Verification Data for ISAC-Administered Teacher Education Programs

ISAC anticipates the functionality for colleges to submit 2024-2025 enrollment verification data, for students who previously received funds from ISAC-administered teacher programs, will be available soon.

Watch for more details – including when ISAC begins accepting enrollment verification data, and the date by which it will be due – in a future e-Message.

GENERAL INFORMATION

One Click College Admit Opt-in Remains Available for Students

One Click College Admit – an initiative of the State of Illinois – is the state's free, quick, and stress-free direct admissions program into most state public universities and all community colleges.

Participating students pay no application fees and do not need to submit essays or letters of recommendation for general admission to these state universities or their local community college – the only requirement to be considered for admission to most of the state's universities is meeting the university's minimum grade point average (GPA).

Interested students can visit the One Click College Admit site (https://oneclickadmit.org/) for more information and to opt in to participate. Please note, students who are under 18 years of age must have their parent or guardian complete and sign the consent and release form.

Upcoming "Monthly Program & Operational Update" Webinars

Our "Monthly Program & Operational Update" webinars will be offered at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on the following dates.

  • Wednesday, October 29, 2025
  • Wednesday, November 19, 2025*
  • Wednesday, December 17, 2025*

* Webinar earlier in month than usual to accommodate holiday schedules.

To participate, visit the Partner Training page in the e-Library on the day of the event to access the webinar link and presentation materials.

Upcoming ILASFAA Events

Be sure to mark your calendar and take part in the following Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (ILASFAA) events.

December 4: Next Commission Meeting

The next meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission is scheduled to take place at 1:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, December 4, 2025. Further details, including a listing of tentative agenda items, will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the About ISAC area.

The Commission Meeting Schedule page will soon be updated with information regarding all meetings scheduled in 2026.

Holiday Schedules

ISAC staff will be unavailable for these holidays:

  • Monday, October 13 – Columbus Day
  • Tuesday, November 11 – Veterans Day
  • Thursday, November 27 – Thanksgiving Day
  • Friday, November 28 – Day after Thanksgiving
  • Thursday, December 25 – Christmas
  • Thursday, January 1 – New Year's Day

Staff will again be available the first business day immediately following each holiday.

Processing Schedules

All ISAC-administered program systems within the GAP Access portal remain available on holidays during regularly-scheduled hours. For MAP and other programs administered through components of the GAP Access portal, results for claims submitted from 5:00 p.m. (CT) the business day prior to the holiday through 5:00 p.m. (CT) the business day following the holiday will be available via the appropriate program's system on the morning of the second business day after the holiday.

Click on the following link to access holiday processing schedules for all systems within the GAP Access portal.

System Availability

For Assistance

Access the Financial Aid Administrators area anytime, or send an email message to Partner Services at [email protected]. We will review and respond to messages during regular business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (CT).

You are receiving this message because you registered for ISAC's e-Messaging service through one or more subscription groups for FAAs.

If you have any questions, please contact School Services by sending an e-mail to [email protected] or calling 866.247.2172.