Just wanted to add that as a newcomer to this community, reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation to Luca - starting a healthcare program soon and worried about loan repayment. It's really reassuring to see actual numbers and experiences from people who've been through this process. The breakdown of $250-300 monthly payments for $24k in loans sounds so much more manageable than the horror stories you hear. Thanks to everyone who shared their real experiences and practical advice - this thread should be bookmarked for anyone starting their FAFSA journey!

As someone new to this community and just starting to research student loans, this entire thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I had no idea there were so many different repayment options available. The income-driven repayment plans sound like a real lifesaver for new graduates who might not land high-paying jobs right away. I'm curious - for those who mentioned the SAVE plan, how difficult is the application process? And does anyone know if you can switch between repayment plans if your financial situation changes after you start working? It sounds like there's a lot more flexibility in the federal loan system than I originally thought. Thanks to everyone sharing their real experiences - it's making this whole process feel a lot less intimidating!

Wow, this thread is incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with a similar situation where my FAFSA shows "processed successfully" but also says corrections are needed with zero specifics. Reading through everyone's experiences, it sounds like the new system is really struggling with tiny formatting inconsistencies that wouldn't have been issues before. I'm going to systematically check all the things mentioned here - name formatting consistency, household vs college student counts, address formatting, and ID information. It's ridiculous that we have to play detective to figure out what's wrong with our own applications! Thanks to everyone for sharing their solutions, especially @Anastasia Fedorov for the detailed update. Going to try that Claimyr service if I can't resolve it myself in the next day or two.

As someone who just went through this nightmare myself last month, I can't stress enough how important it is to check EVERY single detail for consistency across all sections. The new FAFSA system is incredibly sensitive to even the tiniest discrepancies. Beyond what others have mentioned, also check if your school codes are still correct - sometimes they get accidentally removed during corrections. And if you have any assets or investments reported, make sure those numbers are exactly the same in all places they appear. I also learned that if you're using the DRT (Data Retrieval Tool) for taxes, sometimes it pulls slightly different formatting than what you manually entered elsewhere. The system treats these as "errors" even though they're technically the same information. It's absolutely maddening that they don't just tell us what's wrong, but persistence really does pay off. Don't give up!

I'm in a very similar boat - lost access to my FSA ID from 2020 and have been dreading dealing with this! Reading through all these responses is super helpful. It sounds like creating a new FSA ID is definitely the way to go rather than trying to recover the old one. One question I have - if I create a new FSA ID now, will I be able to see my previous year's tax information that was imported, or will I need to manually enter everything again? I used the IRS Data Retrieval Tool before and it made things so much easier. Also, has anyone had experience with dependent vs independent status changing between applications? I was a dependent in 2020 but I'm independent now - wondering if that complicates the linking process at all. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread is way more helpful than the official FAFSA website!

I'm a new student going through this exact same nightmare right now! Just wanted to add one more option that worked for my friend - if you happen to remember ANY of the security questions you set up originally, that's another recovery path. Even if you can't remember the email or phone number, the challenge questions might work. That said, after reading everyone's advice here, I think I'm just going to bite the bullet and create a new FSA ID too. The 1-3 day verification period that @Angel Campbell mentioned is really good to know - I was planning to wait until the last minute but definitely won't now! Quick question for anyone who's been through this - when you create the new FSA ID, do you have to use a different username than your old one, or can you reuse it if you remember what it was?

Make sure you specifically ask about the HESC Form H (Special Consideration Form). This is typically the form used for TAP dependency overrides in McKinney-Vento cases. Not all college financial aid advisors mention it immediately, but it's the official pathway for these situations in New York State. The student's high school McKinney-Vento liaison should be familiar with this form as well.

I'm new to this community but wanted to share some hope! My sister went through almost the exact same situation last year as a McKinney-Vento student. The initial TAP rejection was devastating, but we didn't give up. Working with her college's financial aid office, we gathered every piece of documentation we could find - the McKinney-Vento determination letter, statements from her high school counselor and principal, even a letter from the family she was staying with. The key was being very persistent and detailed in explaining her complete lack of contact with her parents. It took about 6 weeks total, but TAP finally approved her dependency override. Don't lose hope - the system is frustrating but it can work! Make sure to keep copies of absolutely everything you submit.

As someone who just went through this exact situation with my daughter, I can confirm that you should absolutely list him as a senior for the 2025-26 FAFSA! The grade level should reflect his actual academic standing based on credit hours at the beginning of the academic year. We had the same "jump" from freshman to junior on consecutive FAFSA forms due to her dual enrollment credits, and it didn't cause any issues at all. The financial aid office actually told us that these accelerated progressions are becoming so common with dual enrollment students that their systems are designed to handle them now. Just make sure his school's registrar office confirms his senior classification before you submit - having that documentation gives you peace of mind if any questions come up later. Don't worry about the appearance of jumping grade levels - you're just accurately reporting his academic progress!

I'm new to this community and going through a very similar situation with my daughter! She's accumulated so many dual enrollment credits that she'll technically be a senior next year even though this is only her second year of college. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - especially the advice about making sure the FAFSA grade level matches what the school has on file. I had no idea that grade level "jumps" were so common with dual enrollment students. It's reassuring to know that financial aid offices are used to handling these situations now. I'm definitely going to confirm her official classification with the registrar before submitting our FAFSA. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread is exactly what I needed to feel more confident about navigating this process!