FAFSA SAI vs. the Old EFC: What Changed for 2026-27

The EFC Is Gone -- and Most Online "EFC Calculators" Never Updated

Starting with the 2024-25 FAFSA, the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) -- the number that had determined federal financial aid eligibility since the 1990s -- was permanently replaced by the Student Aid Index (SAI). The change came from the FAFSA Simplification Act, and it wasn't cosmetic: the underlying math changed in ways that can move a family's number by thousands of dollars in either direction.

The problem is that a lot of "FAFSA calculators" still circulating online are really just old EFC calculators with the label swapped -- they still divide by "number of family members in college" and still apply an Asset Protection Allowance, both of which no longer exist in the actual formula. If a calculator's inputs ask "how many children do you have in college right now," it's running outdated math.

This site runs a dedicated, from-scratch SAI calculator for each of the three legally distinct formulas the Department of Education actually uses for AY2026-27, built directly from the Department's own annual inflation-adjustment notice (90 Fed. Reg. 23922, "Federal Need Analysis Methodology for the 2026-27 Award Year") and the in-force statutory text at 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087oo, 1087pp, and 1087qq.

Three Things the FAFSA Simplification Act Actually Changed

Compared to the old EFC formula, three structural changes carry over into every SAI formula below:

1. No more "number in college" divisor. The old EFC formula divided the parent contribution by how many household members were simultaneously enrolled in college, so a family with two kids in college at once got a lower number for each. The SAI formula calculates ONE household-level contribution regardless of how many siblings are also enrolled -- a change that increases the calculated contribution (and can reduce aid eligibility) for multi-child households compared to the old rules.
2. The Asset Protection Allowance is now $0. The old EFC formula exempted a chunk of parents' (and independent students') reportable assets based on the older parent's age, before assessing the rest. The Department of Education's own 2026-27 notice confirms this allowance is $0 at every age, for every formula -- all reportable savings, brokerage, and investment assets are now assessed from the first dollar (retirement accounts and the primary home remain excluded entirely, as before).
3. The overall floor dropped from $0 to -$1,500. The EFC could never go below zero. The SAI can go as low as -$1,500, which lets the Department of Education rank the neediest applicants against each other even after they've all technically hit "zero family contribution" -- a lower (more negative) SAI can still mean a larger Pell Grant within the same enrollment status.

Every other input -- income, taxes paid, family-owned business or farm net worth -- still feeds into the calculation, but which formula processes those inputs depends entirely on which of three legally distinct student categories you fall into.

Formula 1: Dependent Student (Most Undergraduates)

If you're a traditional undergraduate whose parents are required to provide financial information on the FAFSA, your SAI is calculated under 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087oo. This is the most complex of the three formulas because it runs TWO separate calculations that get added together:

- Parents' contribution: parents' available income (AGI minus taxes, a household-size-based Income Protection Allowance, and an employment expense allowance) plus available assets (reportable assets minus the now-$0 Asset Protection Allowance, assessed at a flat 12%) are combined into an Adjusted Available Income (AAI) figure, which is then run through a progressive assessment-rate bracket schedule published in the Department's annual notice.
- Student's contribution: the dependent student's own income is assessed at a flat 50% (after the student's own small allowances), and the student's own assets are assessed at a flat 20% -- much higher than the parents' 12% rate, with zero protection allowance, specifically to discourage parking money in a child's name to lower the family's number.

The two pieces are added together (and can partially offset if one side is negative) to produce the final SAI, floored at -$1,500. Run the numbers with the FAFSA SAI Calculator for Dependent Students.

Formula 2: Independent Student Without Dependents

If you're independent -- generally 24 or older, married, a graduate/professional student, a veteran or active-duty service member, an orphan or former foster youth -- and you do NOT support any dependents besides possibly a spouse, your SAI is calculated under 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087pp. This is the simplest of the three formulas:

- There is no separate "parent contribution" step at all -- your own (and your spouse's, if married) income and assets are the entire calculation.
- The Income Protection Allowance is a flat amount by marital status only, not household size: $18,310 (single) or $29,350 (married) for AY2026-27.
- Available income (AGI minus federal tax, a payroll-tax allowance, the IPA, and, if married, an employment expense allowance) is multiplied by a flat 50% -- there's no progressive bracket schedule here, unlike the dependent-student formula.
- Reportable assets (minus the $0 Asset Protection Allowance) are assessed at a flat 20%, the same rate applied to a dependent student's own assets.

Run the numbers with the FAFSA SAI Calculator for Independent Students.

Formula 3: Independent Student With Dependents Other Than a Spouse

If you're independent AND you support your own dependents who are not your spouse -- most commonly a parent going back to school with children at home -- your SAI is calculated under 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087qq. This formula is a hybrid of the other two:

- Like Formula 2, there's still no separate parent-contribution step -- you and your dependents are the entire family unit being assessed.
- Like Formula 1, the Income Protection Allowance varies by BOTH marital status and household size (not a flat amount), and available income plus available assets are combined into an AAI figure run through the SAME progressive bracket schedule used for parents in the dependent-student formula, rather than a flat percentage.
- The employment expense allowance (the lesser of $5,000 or 35% of combined earned income) applies whether you're single or married -- unlike Formula 2, where it only applies if you're married.
- The asset-assessment rate is a flat 7% -- lower than both other formulas (12% for parents, 20% for independent students without dependents), a fixed statutory rate under Sec. 1087qq(c)(1)(A)(ii) that doesn't change from year to year.

Run the numbers with the FAFSA SAI Calculator for Independent Students With Dependents.

Side-by-Side: How the Three Formulas Differ

All figures below are for Award Year 2026-27, read directly from the Department of Education's own annual inflation-adjustment notice and the current-force text of each governing statute.

Dependent Student (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087oo): separate parent contribution: yes. Income Protection Allowance: by parents' household size. Available-income assessment: progressive bracket schedule. Asset-assessment rate: 12% (parents) / 20% (student's own assets). Asset Protection Allowance: $0. Overall SAI floor: -$1,500.

Independent Student, No Dependents (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087pp): separate parent contribution: no. Income Protection Allowance: flat by marital status ($18,310 single / $29,350 married). Available-income assessment: flat 50%. Asset-assessment rate: 20%. Asset Protection Allowance: $0. Overall SAI floor: -$1,500.

Independent Student, With Dependents (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087qq): separate parent contribution: no. Income Protection Allowance: by marital status AND household size. Available-income assessment: progressive bracket schedule (same as parents'). Asset-assessment rate: 7%. Asset Protection Allowance: $0. Overall SAI floor: -$1,500.

The 7% rate for independent students with dependents is the lowest of the three -- Congress set it below both the 12% parent rate and the 20% rate that applies to independent students without dependents and to a dependent student's own assets.

Which Formula Is Actually Yours?

The FAFSA itself determines your dependency status through a series of yes/no questions -- you generally don't get to choose. As a starting point: if you're an unmarried undergraduate under 24 with no children and no other independence trigger (veteran, orphan, ward of the court, emancipated minor, etc.), you're almost certainly a dependent student and Formula 1 applies, with your parents required to provide financial information. If you meet an independence trigger and support no dependents besides a spouse, Formula 2 applies. If you meet an independence trigger AND support your own dependents (typically children) other than a spouse, Formula 3 applies.

Whichever formula applies, remember the number that comes out is your SAI, not necessarily what you'll pay -- your school's cost of attendance minus your SAI (and minus other aid) determines your actual financial need, and colleges vary widely in how generously they meet it. An SAI at or below $0 generally qualifies for the maximum Federal Pell Grant for your enrollment status; check the current Federal Pell Grant Payment Schedule (published by Federal Student Aid) for the exact eligibility ceiling above $0.