Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant Program

Program News

(last updated August 24, 2026)

2026-27 Program Funding
2026-27 Benefit Usage
2026-27 Eligibility Data
2026-27 File Specifications
2026-27 Interactive Application

2026-27

Program Funding

The 2027 fiscal year (July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2027) appropriation for both the Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant and Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) programs is $5,000,000.

The FY27 state budget includes funding through ISAC to reimburse public universities for some of the tuition and fees that they waive on behalf of eligible Illinois National Guard members and veterans. The budget also includes funding for the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) to reimburse Illinois community colleges for the costs associated with waiving tuition and fee charges for ING Grant and IVG recipients; their appropriation is expected to cover community colleges' IVG and ING Grant costs in full.

Benefit Usage

As announced in an August 24, 2026 e-Message, ISAC is accepting 2026-27 ING Grant Program benefit usage data for the fall term. Even though ISAC may not be able to fully reimburse institutions for 2026-27 ING Grant awards, reporting of enrollment hours must still take place so that benefit usage (i.e., eligibility units) can be accurately assessed to students' accounts.

Important dates and reminders for 2026-27 ING Grant benefit usage processing:

  • ING Grant benefit usage data for the fall term must be submitted on or before Thursday, December 31, 2026 in order to be considered timely.
  • Colleges will be notified when ISAC begins accepting ING Grant benefit usage data for the spring and summer terms.
  • After submitting data, colleges are encouraged to always review the Benefits Results Exceptions report that is available the next business day.
  • Any 2026-27 benefit usage data that was submitted via File Transfer Protocol (FTP) prior to August 24, 2026 will not be processed, and must be resubmitted by the college.
    • In order to prevent having to resubmit data in the future, never submit benefit usage data via FTP until after ISAC announces it is accepting the data for that academic year.

Colleges report enrollment hours and dollar amounts for initial, in-district and out-of-district benefit usage by students, as well as adjustments to previously-submitted data, via the ING Grant system.

New data for students eligible for benefits will be available whenever there is a new or updated eligible record for the college. While new data could potentially be available on a daily basis, the college may not have students that appear in the system each day. It is recommended that the college check the ING Grant system at least once a week for new student data that may have been processed for the 2026-27 academic year.

For additional details, refer to the ING Grant Benefit Usage page within this section. An ING Grant Program User Guide can help colleges navigate the online process. ING Grant file specifications can be accessed in the section below and from the ING Grant Electronic Processing page.

What's Next

As announced in a July 1, 2026 e-Message, FY27 funds have been appropriated for ISAC to reimburse public universities for some of the tuition and fees that they waive on behalf of eligible Illinois National Guard members. Details regarding the disbursement of these funds will be provided once they have been determined.

Eligibility Data

The 2026-27 ING Grant system is available to access student eligibility data. When a student submits an ING Grant application to ISAC, a record is added to the school's database in the ING Grant system that can be viewed by the school on the ING Student List Eligibility: View screen.

The ING Grant eligibility data includes information for each applicant who has applied for the ING Grant at the college of record, and for whom the Department of Military Affairs in Illinois (DMAIL) has confirmed eligibility as of the "Certified Eligible" date. It is recommended that the college check the ING Grant system for new or updated eligible records at least once a week.

Refer to the ING Grant Certification of Eligibility area for information regarding student eligibility data. Specific details regarding the ING Grant system, including important reminders and guidelines, are provided at the ING Grant Electronic Processing page of the Processes area.

The college's GAP Access Primary Administrator must update privileges for the appropriate staff to access the ING Grant system. Instructions for updating user privileges are provided in the GAP Access User Guides section, which is located on the GAP Access page.

File Specifications

2026-27 ING Grant specifications – describing the file layouts that ISAC uses to provide Eligibility Files, and that colleges use to transmit benefits used data to ISAC via File Transfer Protocol (FTP) using ISAC's Secure File Transfer System – are available within the Electronic Tools section of the e-Library. Make sure all files submitted to ISAC conform to the 160-byte format described in the specifications.

Access to ISAC's Secure File Transfer System (transfer.isac.org) requires a valid GAP Access user ID and password. Additional information and instructions are provided in the FTP Process Using GAP Access Credentials Guide.

Interactive Application

The Illinois National Guard (ING) Grant interactive application for the 2026-27 academic year is available for students to complete and submit online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal. Students should allow at least 12 weeks for processing of the application. Remind applicants in the Air National Guard that they must provide the base on the application.

There are no priority consideration dates by which ING Grant applications must be submitted each term. Rather, ING Grant applications must be received by ISAC in time for eligibility to be determined and the applicant to then notify the college about their eligibility no later than the last scheduled day of classes for the first term for which benefits have been requested.

In addition, applicants must have a profile in the ISAC Student Portal to complete and submit the ING Grant interactive application. Encourage students planning to submit an ING Grant application to create a profile in the ISAC Student Portal. Once they have a profile, applicants can return to the Student Portal to check their application status, verify the number of ING Grant eligibility units they have remaining or, if necessary, print a duplicate copy of their ING Grant eligibility notification.

To assist you with questions you receive from students regarding the ING Grant online application process, refer to the ING Grant page in the Students & Parents area.

Refer to the Application Procedures for the ING Grant page for an overview of the online application process, entry steps, and application confirmation information.