One more thing to be aware of - if the correction process takes longer than expected, make sure your son's college financial aid offices are aware of the situation. They can often place a hold on his financial aid package until the corrected information comes through, rather than issuing an initial package based on incorrect data. Just have him email the financial aid offices explaining the FAFSA glitch and that corrected information is forthcoming.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Just went through the contributor process yesterday and it only asked about government benefits - nothing about income, assets, or taxes. So frustrating to see this is a widespread problem. Reading through everyone's experiences here, it sounds like calling FSA and getting them to acknowledge the glitch is the key step. Has anyone had luck with specific phone numbers or times of day that work better for getting through? I'm dreading spending hours on hold but it seems like that's what it's going to take to get this fixed.

This thread is incredibly helpful! As someone who works in college financial planning, I see this exact mistake constantly - the retirement account confusion probably affects thousands of families every year. What's frustrating is how the FAFSA form could easily clarify this with better wording, but instead families have to learn through trial and error or posts like this. For anyone dealing with similar issues, I always recommend having families document their correction with screenshots before submitting. If there are any delays or disputes with the school, having that paper trail showing exactly what was changed and when can be really valuable. Also, once the correction processes and the aid package is recalculated, make sure to get the new award letter in writing - sometimes there can be communication gaps between the federal system and the school's financial aid office. Great job catching this error and sharing the solution with everyone!

As someone who went through this exact same nightmare two years ago, I can't stress enough how important this post is! My daughter's SAI was completely wrong because I included our 401k and Roth IRA accounts in the asset section - I thought "investments" meant ALL investments. It took weeks to get it sorted out and we almost missed out on a state grant deadline. One thing I'd add for future FAFSA filers: if you're unsure about ANY question, call the Federal Student Aid hotline BEFORE submitting. Yes, the wait times are brutal, but it's way better than having to fix major errors later. Also, keep copies of all your tax documents and bank statements handy when filling it out - I made several smaller errors just from estimating numbers instead of looking them up properly. So glad your brother's family caught this in time! That corrected SAI should make a huge difference in their aid package.

Just wanted to add another potential solution for anyone still dealing with this - I had the exact same "unknown error" after mobile verification and what finally worked for me was switching to a different phone number entirely. Turns out the system sometimes gets stuck on a specific number even after verification goes through. I used my mom's phone number instead (you can change it in your FSA ID profile) and the verification went through immediately. It's frustrating that we have to jump through all these hoops, but if you have access to another phone number it might be worth trying before spending hours on hold with FSA!

Wow, reading through all these responses really shows how widespread this issue is! I'm a senior who's been dealing with FAFSA for 4 years now and this verification error is definitely new this year. For anyone still struggling, I want to add that some browsers have stricter security settings that can interfere with the verification process. I had success using Microsoft Edge instead of Chrome or Firefox - apparently Edge handles the FSA cookies differently. Also, if you're using any ad blockers or privacy extensions, try disabling them completely before attempting verification again. The FAFSA system is notoriously finicky about browser security settings. It's absolutely ridiculous that we need a master's degree in troubleshooting just to apply for financial aid, but hopefully these tips help someone avoid the hours of frustration!

If the laptop is owned by your business and reported as a business asset on your tax forms, then it would be considered part of your excluded business assets. The key is consistency between tax reporting and FAFSA reporting. If you're depreciating it as a business expense on your Schedule C, then it's a business asset and covered by the exclusion.

why does everythng have to be so complicated with fafsa??? last year I spent 3 days trying to figure out how to report my husbands tool chest for his side business. ended up just leaving it off and nothing happened lol

I'm an accountant who works with small business owners filing FAFSAs. For a horse training business where the primary value is the skill of the trainer, you're correct that the business itself doesn't have a transferable value like a retail store would. Here's what I recommend: 1. Review Schedule C from your tax return 2. Identify depreciable business assets from Part I, Line 13 3. Calculate current fair market value of those assets 4. Add business bank account balances 5. Add accounts receivable (money owed to the business) 6. Subtract any business loans or credit card balances used for business This gives you the net worth of business assets, which is what FAFSA is actually asking for. They don't expect you to value intangible assets like skill, client relationships, or reputation for a small service business.

As someone who just went through this exact situation with my landscaping business last year, I can relate to the confusion! The key thing that helped me was realizing FAFSA isn't trying to value your husband's expertise or client base - they just want to know about physical assets that could theoretically be converted to cash. For our business, I listed equipment (mowers, trailers, etc.) at current market value (not what we paid), added our business checking account balance, then subtracted the remaining balance on our equipment loan. Came out to about $23,000. One tip: if you use any equipment for both business and personal use (like that horse trailer), you'll want to estimate the percentage that's business vs personal. I used 80% business for our trailer since we occasionally use it for personal hauling. The good news is service businesses typically have much lower asset values than retail or manufacturing businesses, so it shouldn't impact your daughter's aid eligibility too much. Just be consistent with whatever you report on your taxes!