WASHINGTON (WOWO) — Students seeking federal financial aid for the 2027-28 academic year can now complete the FAFSA after the U.S. Department of Education launched the application Wednesday, nearly a week earlier than its traditional Oct. 1 release date.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is available through the federal government’s StudentAid.gov website.

The department says the latest version of the form has been updated to make the application process faster and easier to navigate as families continue to face the rising cost of higher education.

Education Department officials said previous versions of the FAFSA could take students more than an hour to complete, with applicants sometimes waiting one to three days to receive their results.

The department says the updated application can now be completed in about 15 minutes, with results available in seconds in many cases.

The changes follow a major overhaul of the FAFSA process that began in 2023.

The Biden administration’s changes were designed to simplify the application and allow students to skip more than 25 questions depending on their individual circumstances.

That rollout, however, was plagued by delays and technical problems, prompting criticism from lawmakers in both parties.

For the 2027-28 academic year, the Trump administration has made additional changes focused on the wording of questions and the way students connect parents or spouses to their applications.

One of the most visible additions is a QR code that students can scan to send a customized text message to a parent or spouse inviting that person to participate in the FAFSA.

The department says the feature is intended to make it easier for students to connect the people whose financial information may be required to complete the application.

Several questions have also been rewritten.

The Education Department said wording involving students’ college and career school plans, homelessness and high school completion was changed based on user research.

The signature portion of the application has also been redesigned.

It is now called “Review & Sign,” and the signing process has been consolidated onto a single page.

Another terminology change involves the section previously known as “Personal Circumstances.”

For the 2027-28 FAFSA, that section is now labeled “Background.”

The FAFSA is used to determine eligibility for federal financial aid, including grants, work-study and federal student loans. Information submitted through the application can also be used by states, colleges and other participating organizations to determine eligibility for additional forms of financial assistance.

Students and families are encouraged to complete the FAFSA even if they are unsure whether they will qualify for federal aid.

Eligibility can depend on household financial circumstances, family size, enrollment status and other factors.

The earlier launch also gives students and families additional time to complete the application and address potential issues before financial aid deadlines set by individual colleges, states or scholarship programs.

Those deadlines can vary, so students should check the requirements for the schools they plan to attend.

The federal FAFSA deadline is separate from college and state deadlines, meaning waiting until the federal deadline can result in a student missing out on aid with an earlier application cutoff.

The Department of Education said the latest changes are intended to make the process more straightforward while reducing the amount of time students spend completing the form.

For students seeking aid for the 2027-28 academic year, the FAFSA is now open and can be completed through StudentAid.gov.