Wow, this thread is incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with the exact same error right now and was starting to panic about my deadline. Reading through all these solutions gives me hope that I can actually fix this. I'm going to work through the checklist that's been built up here: check for yellow triangles, verify all my numbers match (especially SSN), make sure income fields are complete even if zero, double-check dependency status, and try during off-peak hours. If that doesn't work, I'll try the browser extension thing and maybe even the nuclear option of starting over. It's so frustrating that the FAFSA system can't just tell us exactly what's wrong instead of that useless generic error message, but at least we have this community to help each other out! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and solutions.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm a community college student who just started the FAFSA process and was feeling pretty intimidated, but seeing all these detailed troubleshooting tips makes me feel way more prepared. One thing I wanted to add based on my experience with other government websites - if you're having persistent issues, sometimes clearing your browser's cookies specifically for the studentaid.gov domain can help, rather than doing a full cache clear. You can usually do this by going to your browser settings and searching for "site data" or "cookies" for that specific website. Also, I've found that keeping a simple text document open while filling out forms like this to jot down any error messages or weird behavior can be really helpful when you need to explain the issue to support staff later. Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences - this is exactly the kind of real-world advice they don't give you in the financial aid workshops!

Thank you everyone for the helpful responses! I feel so much better now understanding this was an intentional change to the system, not me messing up the application. Fingers crossed my son's SAI stays low and he qualifies for good financial aid packages!

Just want to echo what everyone else is saying - you definitely didn't mess up! I'm a first-time FAFSA filer and was shocked at how short the new form was compared to what I expected. My mom kept asking "are you sure you didn't skip anything?" because she remembered it being much more complicated when my older brother applied years ago. It's actually refreshing that they simplified it so much. The fact that your SAI came out lower than expected is probably accurate and great news for your son's aid eligibility. Good luck with the college application process!

I got so stressed about this last year I ended up just listing them alphabetically lol. But seriously, one thing I learned - if you're applying to more than 10 schools total, you'll need to go back and edit your FAFSA later to add the others. Just don't forget to do that! I almost missed a deadline because I didn't realize I needed to manually add my last two schools.

Just want to add one more thing that might help - when you do submit your FAFSA, make sure to check each school's financial aid portal afterward to see if they need any additional documents. Some schools require verification or have their own supplemental forms even after you submit FAFSA. I learned this the hard way when one of my schools almost didn't process my aid package because I missed their deadline for additional paperwork. Good luck with your applications!

Quick update to my earlier advice - check if Twin A's SAI calculation has been processed yet. If it has, the correction option should be available now. If it's been more than 5 business days with no calculation, that's when you should definitely call FSA directly, as there might be additional verification flags on the account due to the SSN discrepancy.

Did you ever get this fixed?? I'm dealing with something similar now and pulling my hair out!

Update: My Student Aid Report came through! My SAI is 4,289 - is that considered high or low? What kind of aid might I qualify for with this number?

That's awesome that your SAR came through so quickly! An SAI of 4,289 is definitely on the lower side, which means you should qualify for decent financial aid. For reference, the maximum Pell Grant eligibility usually goes up to an SAI around 7,000-7,500 (depending on the year), so you're well within that range. You'll probably get some Pell Grant money, subsidized loans where the government pays interest while you're in school, and potentially work-study opportunities. The exact amount will depend on each school's cost of attendance, but you're in a good position! Make sure to keep an eye out for your financial aid award letters from the schools you applied to - they should start coming in soon.