The SAT Fee-Waiver Program expands access to the SAT and its benefits by letting low-income students test for free.
Fee Waivers for the 2020-21 school year
Starting with the 2020-21 school year, schools will receive digital weekend SAT fee waiver codes instead of paper fee waivers. Codes are accessible via the K–12 Reporting Portal. Community-based organizations (CBOs) don't have access to the K–12 Reporting Portal and will continue to receive paper fee waivers. Accompanying fee waiver publications such as the SAT Fee Waivers Student Brochure and Counselor's Guide to Fee Waivers are available online and were mailed in mid-August. Check this page for best practices and templates to track and record code distribution.
How Students Get Fee Waivers
SAT fee waivers are not sent directly to students. School counselors identify first-time fee waiver–eligible students at their school and distribute fee waivers to them. Students who've already tested with a fee waiver will automatically have their full set of fee waiver benefits in their account.
Authorized agencies and community-based organizations (CBOs) may also distribute fee waivers.
How Schools and Organizations Get Fee Waivers
Schools: Schools automatically receive SAT fee waivers based on how many students used them for the first time during the most recent fall and spring tests.
To request additional fee waivers for your school, call the SAT Educator Helpline at 888-SAT-HELP.
CBOs: CBOs that have a six-digit College Board agency code also automatically receive SAT fee waivers if first-time fee waiver–eligible students used them during the previous testing year. If you need fee waivers but your CBO doesn't have a code, email us.
For more information about ordering, receiving, and distributing fee waivers, go to Fee Waiver FAQs.
Brochures
SAT Fee Waivers Student Brochure (.pdf/182 KB)
SAT Fee Waivers Student Brochure—Spanish (.pdf/209 KB)
Counselor's Guide to Fee Waivers (.pdf/4.13 MB)
College Application Fee Waivers
The College Board provides college application fee waivers directly to students. Eligible seniors get their college application fee waivers when they get their scores. Eligible juniors will get college application fee waivers in the fall of their senior year.
More Ways to Help
School counselors, educators, and representatives of CBOs and agencies help make sure that low-income students can take the SAT for free. But research shows that underrepresented students need more than a fee waiver to make it to test day.
Here are some strategies suggested by counselors and CBO workers to make sure students don't miss test day or other important college planning steps:
- Make a list of nearby test centers; students need to choose a test center when they register.
- Help each student create their personal College Board account. It's free, and they'll need it to get their scores, send scores to colleges, and more.
- Sit with your students individually or in groups and help them register online or on paper.
- SAT Weekend Fee Waivers—What Counselors Need to Know (.pdf/(183 KB)
- Electronic Fee Waiver Access Overview (.pdf/345 KB)
- From the Field: Strategies for Using Electronic Fee Waiver Codes (.pdf/174 KB)
- Managing Electronic Fee Waiver Codes for SAT (.docx/67 KB)
- Student Fee Waiver Tracking Form (.docx/71 KB)
- Print and make copies of student Admission Tickets in case students lose them. Store them in a safe place until right before test day.
- Keep track of students' test dates on a calendar.
- Make a test day plan with students:
- Make sure students know exactly where their test center is and how long it will take to get there.
- Confirm that they have transportation to and from the test center. Help them set up a car pool, if that's practical.
- Remind students to bring their Admission Ticket and an ID that meets College Board requirements.
- Remind students to use the SAT Test Day Checklist.
- Practice is essential. Show students where to find free, world-class practice from Khan Academy® and other free practice resources.
- Hand out a goodie bag with pencils and snacks for test day, as well as a printout of the SAT Test Day Checklist.
- Check in with students via texts, email, phone calls, or video chat.
- Check in with students to confirm their attendance and find out about their test day experience.
- If students missed test day, encourage them to go online or call Customer Service (866-756-7346) and transfer their registration to another test date right away. They'll have to pay a change fee to do this.
- Celebrate students' accomplishment with a congratulatory note or a group gathering.
Plan next steps with students:
- Use the score release date as a college planning milestone. Sign in with students to collegeboard.org and check scores together.
- Talk with students about next steps and goals, such as areas they can focus on in their SAT practice if they plan to take the test again.
- Encourage students to go online the week after the test to send their free score reports to colleges and universities they’re applying to. Students using SAT fee waivers can send as many free score reports as they want at any time, even after they've seen their scores.
- Urge students to research financial aid options. Students who use SAT fee waivers can use CSS Profile to apply for financial aid from participating colleges, for free.