Can I just vent for a sec about how they made the ENTIRE FAFSA PROCESS more difficult this year? They claimed it would be "simplified" but my cousin's family spent TWENTY HOURS trying to get everything set up properly with FSA IDs for both parents and acceptance of invitations. Schools are reporting way fewer successful submissions this year because of all the technical issues. My daughter's college financial aid office said they're seeing a 30% drop in completed applications! That means many kids won't get the aid they qualify for just because the system is so broken.

UPDATE: I finally figured it out! For anyone else struggling with this issue, the key is that small dropdown menu in the upper right corner that says "Selected Student" - it's really easy to miss because it doesn't look clickable. Once I found that, I could switch between both kids' applications. Thanks everyone for your help - especially the suggestion about the dropdown menu location! Now I just need to figure out how to report our 529 plans correctly so they don't count against us too much in the SAI calculation...

For clarity on the FAFSA signature process, here's exactly what happens: 1. Creating an FSA ID is NOT the same as signing the FAFSA 2. Each contributor (student and parents) needs to: - Create an FSA ID - Log in with that ID - Electronically sign their portion A common issue is parents think creating the FSA ID automatically signs the form. It doesn't. They need to specifically complete the signature page using their FSA ID credentials. Once all required signatures are submitted, your SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation can begin, and you'll get a true completion status. Your original submission date is still preserved for priority deadlines.

As someone who just went through this exact same nightmare a few weeks ago, I can confirm what others have said - the "processed" status is misleading! My FAFSA showed processed for almost 2 weeks before I got the missing signature email. What helped me was logging into studentaid.gov and looking for a yellow warning banner at the top of my dashboard that I had totally missed before. It said something like "Action Required - Missing Signature" even though the main status showed processed. Once I clicked on that banner, it took me directly to the signature section and showed me exactly whose signature was missing (turned out to be my mom's). The whole thing was fixed within 24 hours after she signed. Don't ignore those emails - they're actually more accurate than the dashboard status!

I'm also going through a separation and FAFSA correction right now, so this thread has been incredibly helpful! One thing I wanted to add that I learned from my tax preparer - when you're doing the Head of Household recalculation, make sure you're using the correct standard deduction amount for HOH filing status (it's higher than Single status). For tax year 2023, the HOH standard deduction was $20,800 vs $13,850 for Single, so that can make a significant difference in your calculated tax liability and ultimately your SAI. Also, if you had any joint estimated tax payments during the year, you'll need to figure out how to allocate those between you and your ex for the recalculation. My accountant suggested using the same percentage split as your income allocation, but definitely verify this with FSA when you speak with them. The whole process is overwhelming but everyone's advice here is making me feel more confident about tackling it!

I'm a tax professional who works with families going through separation, and I can confirm that Head of Household is absolutely the correct filing status for your situation since your daughter lives with you more than 50% of the time. A few practical tips that might save you some headaches: 1. When doing the tax recalculation, use tax software to run a "what-if" scenario rather than trying to calculate by hand - it's much more accurate and will handle things like the correct HOH standard deduction automatically. 2. For the FAFSA correction, you'll need to report your separated income AND update your household size (likely from 4 to 2 if it's just you and your daughter now). 3. Keep detailed records of how you separated joint assets and income - FSA may ask for your methodology during verification. 4. File the correction ASAP even if you don't have all documentation ready. You can provide additional docs during verification, but getting the correction in early helps protect your daughter's aid timeline. The good news is that switching from joint filing to HOH status usually results in a lower calculated contribution, which could mean more aid for your daughter. The verification process is tedious but manageable if you stay organized. Don't let the horror stories scare you - most corrections go through without major issues!

Thank you everyone for the helpful responses! I've updated my info on my son's FAFSA last night and will wait for it to process before applying for the Parent Plus loan. It's such a relief to know the credit check isn't based on a specific score number. I'll definitely borrow only what we need and keep that refund tip in mind! I've also bookmarked that Claimyr service in case I run into trouble reaching someone at FSA. You all have been so helpful!

Just wanted to chime in as someone who went through this process recently! Yes, the FAFSA is absolutely required first - learned this the hard way when I tried to apply for Parent Plus without it being complete. One thing I'd add is to double-check that your son's school participates in the Direct Loan program (most do, but it's worth confirming). Also, if you're worried about the 3-week deadline, don't stress too much - once you're approved for the Parent Plus loan, you can usually work with the school's financial aid office on the timing of disbursement even if it's after the deposit deadline. Most schools are understanding about federal loan processing times. The whole process from updating FAFSA to Parent Plus approval took me about a week total.

Don't worry at all! I'm a college financial aid advisor and I can confirm that having both parents create contributor accounts is actually very common and won't cause any problems with your FAFSA submission. The 2025-2026 FAFSA system is designed to handle multiple contributors seamlessly. Since your daughter can see both accounts linked in her dashboard, that means everything was set up correctly. You should receive your SAI within 3-5 business days if there are no other issues with the application. The only time multiple contributor accounts cause delays is if there are significant discrepancies in the financial information provided, but that would trigger an immediate error during submission rather than a processing delay later. Since your application went through successfully, you're in good shape! Keep an eye on your email for the SAI notification, and don't hesitate to contact your daughter's school's financial aid office if you have any questions once you receive it. They can help interpret the results and guide you through next steps for aid applications.

I just went through this exact same situation a few weeks ago! Both my husband and I created contributor accounts and I was absolutely panicking that we'd ruined our son's application. Turns out it's totally fine - we got our SAI in 4 days and everything processed normally. The new FAFSA system actually expects multiple contributors in many cases, especially for married parents filing jointly. As long as both of your accounts show up in your daughter's dashboard (which you confirmed they do), you're all set. One thing that helped ease my anxiety was calling the school's financial aid office directly. They were able to pull up our application and confirm everything looked good on their end. Might be worth doing that if you want extra peace of mind while waiting for the SAI!