Government shutdown's impact on student aid: What to know

Although student aid is not impacted by the government shutdown, some local college officials say they are concerned that any FAFSA system hiccups could go unaddressed without people available to help at the federal level.

Students are encouraged to continue to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which opened to everyone for the 2026-27 academic year on Sept. 24 and was available to a limited number of students before that. Applications for 2025-26 remain open until June 30, 2026. Borrowers should still pay their loans, but "processing of refunds and discharges could be delayed," according to the U.S. Department of Education.

During the federal shutdown, no new grants are being awarded. Civil rights complaints also will not be reviewed.

"The Department will continue to disburse student aid such as Pell Grants and Federal Direct Student loans, and student loan borrowers will still be required to make payments on their outstanding student debt," according to a memo the Education Department posted online.

Nick Prewett, assistant provost and executive director of financial aid at Stony Brook University, said if the FAFSA processing systems encountered glitches, as they had in the past, it would be difficult to find a timely resolution.

"The only issue we have is, if we have any problems or any concerns, there's no one at the Department of Education for us to reach out to," Prewett said during a phone interview on Friday.

At Hofstra University, Sandra Mervius, director of financial aid, said in an email that while funding to schools and students continued without interruption, "anything needing human support or assistance can and will be delayed, especially the longer the shutdown continues. We also do not know what the contingency plan is, should one of the systems experience an issue, for example, the FAFSA website."

Adelphi University spokesperson Taylor Damian said in an email: "Longer shutdowns increase the risk of slower responsiveness from the Department of Education], with only a small fraction of staff on duty."

Sarah Austin, policy analyst at the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, said in an email she did not expect any system disruptions as a result of the shutdown. She said education officials in charge of Pell Grants and other assistance were keeping staffing at levels needed to keep programs running.

"One area where we will see an impact related to student loans, is that according to Federal Student Aid (FSA), the processing of refunds and discharges of student loans could be delayed. Along with that, it is NASFAA’s understanding that income driven repayment (IDR) and Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) application processing is paused during the shutdown," Austin said in the email.

Newsday reported in July there was a 12% increase in the number of Long Island high school students applying for federal financial aid this past academic year.

The FAFSA application rollout has experienced glitches in recent years, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.