What Is the CSS Profile? Cost, Deadlines, Waivers (2026)

The CSS Profile is the second financial aid form many private colleges ask for. Here is what it is, who has to file it, what it costs, and how its deadlines line up with early decision, early action and regular decision.

The CSS Profile is an online financial aid application, run by College Board, that colleges and scholarship programs use to award their own non-federal aid. It does not replace the FAFSA: College Board says plainly that for federal aid you must complete the FAFSA. Instead, it sits next to the FAFSA and gives a college a fuller picture of your family's finances before it builds a grant offer. The application for students starting college in fall 2027 is open now, and each school sets its own due date, which for early applicants often falls in November.

This guide covers who needs the CSS Profile, the fee and the free route, what you need on hand, and real deadlines from four colleges' own aid pages. It does not tell you how much aid you will get; only the colleges can do that.

What Is the CSS Profile?

The CSS Profile collects information about your family's income, assets and expenses and sends it to the colleges and programs you choose. College Board describes it as an application used to award non-federal institutional aid: the grants and scholarships that come from a college's own money rather than from the government. On its homepage, College Board says the CSS Profile unlocks access to more than $14 billion in nonfederal aid each year.

Not every college uses it. College Board publishes a list of participating institutions and programs for 2027-28. When we checked it on November 2, 2026, it had about 260 entries, a mix of undergraduate colleges, graduate and professional schools, and private scholarship programs. Many of the most selective private colleges are on it, including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, Georgetown, Emory, Tufts and Wake Forest.

Students usually file it in senior year. College Board says most students complete it starting October 1, and its homepage currently offers two sign-in buttons: one for the Fall 2027/Spring 2028 application (for students starting college in fall 2027) and one for the year already under way.

CSS Profile vs FAFSA: What Each One Does

Most families applying to CSS Profile colleges file both forms. They do different jobs:

Harvard's aid office puts the split simply: the FAFSA is a free form, and if you only want federal aid, it is the only form you need. If a college on your list also asks for the CSS Profile, file both by that college's dates.

Who Needs to File the CSS Profile?

You need it if at least one school or scholarship program you are applying to asks for it. The fastest way to check is College Board's participating list, which has four columns worth reading for each school:

• CSS Profile for domestic students. Whether U.S. applicants file it. Some schools on the list ask only international students for it.
• CSS Profile for international students. Many colleges award aid to international applicants and use the CSS Profile to do it.
• CSS Profile for noncustodial parents. Whether a divorced or separated parent who does not live with you also files. On the 2027-28 list, most entries say yes.
• IDOC. Whether the school collects tax returns and other documents through College Board's Institutional Documentation Service.

Then confirm on the college's own financial aid page, which is the final word on what it requires. At Harvard, for example, every aid applicant files the CSS Profile and an IDOC packet, U.S. citizens and permanent residents also file the FAFSA, and divorced or separated parents each fill out their own CSS Profile.

If you are applying early decision, the CSS Profile matters even more, because the aid offer you weigh against a binding commitment is built from these forms, and filing them on time is what lets a college send that offer with your admission decision. Duke, for example, says it provides the aid offer with the offer of admission. Our guide to whether early decision is binding explains what the agreement says about financial aid.

How Much the CSS Profile Costs, and Who Files It Free

According to College Board's step-by-step application guide, the fee for the initial application is $25, and each additional report is $16. You pay by credit or debit card when you submit, and you can add more schools from your dashboard at any time.

Many families pay nothing. College Board's fee waiver page says undergraduate students living in the U.S. may submit the CSS Profile for free if:

• Family adjusted gross income is up to $100,000
• The student qualified for an SAT fee waiver
• The student is an orphan or ward of the court under the age of 24

A noncustodial parent in the U.S. can also file free when that parent's family adjusted gross income is up to $100,000. College Board's fee waiver FAQ adds a few details: a waiver covers all application and reporting fees, you find out whether you qualify while you complete the application, and an SAT fee waiver carries over if you sign in with the same College Board account you used for the SAT. An SAT voucher, or an SAT paid for by your school or district, does not carry over automatically, although you can still qualify based on your application. To check whether you qualified for an SAT fee waiver in the first place, see our SAT cost guide.

When the CSS Profile Opens and When It Is Due

The CSS Profile opens on October 1 each year. There is no single national deadline. College Board's getting-started page tells you to submit by midnight Eastern Time of your earliest priority filing date, which means the earliest deadline among all the schools on your list.

For early applicants, that date often lands in early to mid November, right next to the admission deadline. Here are four colleges' dates for fall 2027 applicants, read on each college's own aid page on November 2, 2026:

Two of those dates have already passed by the time you read this, and that is the point: aid deadlines for early rounds can come before or right alongside the application itself. Tufts also asks Early Decision I families for tax returns and W-2s through IDOC by December 1, a separate step from the CSS Profile. Check every school's aid page, not just its admissions page, and put the earliest date on your calendar. For the admission side of these rounds, see our lists of early action deadlines, Early Decision 2 schools and dates and regular decision deadlines.

What You Need Before You Start

College Board's getting-started page lists what to gather first:

• Your family's most recently completed tax returns
• W-2 forms and other records of current year income
• Records of untaxed income and benefits
• Records of assets, and bank statements

A few practical points from College Board and the colleges:

1. Use the College Board account you already have. If you created one for the SAT, PSAT or AP, sign in with it. Custodial parents use the student's account; a noncustodial parent creates a separate one.
2. You can save and come back. The application does not have to be finished in one sitting.
3. Answer student questions about the student. College Board says a common mistake is parents answering the "Student Status" questions about themselves.
4. Estimates can be fine. Harvard tells families who have not filed taxes yet that they may estimate, and it updates the figures from the actual returns later.
5. Watch for IDOC. Not everyone submits documents through IDOC. If you need to, College Board will email you.
6. Mistakes can be fixed. After you submit, you can update the application with "Correct Your CSS Profile" on your dashboard, and you can add schools at any time.

Frequently Asked Questions About the CSS Profile

What is the CSS Profile used for?

Colleges and scholarship programs use it to award their own non-federal aid, such as institutional grants and scholarships. Federal aid comes through the FAFSA, which you file separately.

Is the CSS Profile free?

Not for everyone. It costs $25 for the first school and $16 for each additional report. U.S. undergraduates file free if family adjusted gross income is up to $100,000, if they qualified for an SAT fee waiver, or if they are an orphan or ward of the court under 24.

When is the CSS Profile deadline?

Each school sets its own. Early round dates often fall in November (Harvard November 1, Duke November 3, Tufts November 16 for Early Decision I), and regular decision dates are often around February 1. Submit by midnight Eastern Time of the earliest date on your list.

Do I have to file both the CSS Profile and the FAFSA?

If a college asks for both and you are eligible for federal aid, yes. Harvard, Duke and Tufts each list both forms with the same deadlines for U.S. applicants.

Do divorced parents both fill out the CSS Profile?

At many schools, yes. College Board's participating list shows whether each school asks noncustodial parents to file, and Harvard says separated or divorced parents each complete their own CSS Profile. The noncustodial parent creates a separate College Board account.

What if I miss a CSS Profile deadline?

File as soon as you can and read the school's own policy. Harvard says it will accept a late application but may not be able to respond as quickly, so contact the aid office directly.

The CSS Profile is a money form, and it is also a sign that senior year is in full swing. If an SAT or ACT is still on your calendar this winter, Larry Learns has 30,000+ SAT and ACT practice questions on web, iPhone and Android, with 3 free quizzes a day. Try a free practice quiz or create a free account.