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That retirement withdrawal situation is frustrating when it affects your Pell Grant eligibility. Unfortunately, the FAFSA does count retirement distributions as income, even when used for debt payoff rather than education expenses. Your best approach is definitely to request a Professional Judgment review from your school's financial aid office. Prepare documentation showing: - The retirement withdrawal amount - Proof it went directly to debt payments - A letter explaining this was a one-time circumstance that doesn't reflect your family's typical financial situation When you meet with the financial aid administrator, be clear that this withdrawal artificially inflated your family's income for FAFSA purposes and doesn't represent ongoing financial capacity. Some schools are more flexible with Professional Judgment than others, but this is exactly the kind of situation it's designed for. You might also want to check if your school has emergency grants or other institutional aid that could help fill the gap if the Professional Judgment review doesn't fully restore your Pell eligibility.
@brianna rodriguez I d'also suggest gathering any documentation that shows the debt burden was preventing your family from contributing to your education in the first place. For example, if high monthly debt payments were eating up most of your father s'income, collect old credit card statements or loan documents that demonstrate this. You want to paint a clear picture that the retirement withdrawals were essentially robbing "Peter to pay Paul rather" than creating new disposable income. Also consider asking your school s'financial aid office if they can do a forward-looking assessment - since the debt is now paid down, your family s'actual ability to contribute to education costs may have improved, which could help your case for future aid years.
@brianna rodriguez One more thing to consider - if your father is still working and plans to stop making retirement withdrawals once the debt is fully paid off, make sure to emphasize the temporary nature of this situation in your appeal. Even though it s'happened multiple years, if there s'a clear endpoint like (debt "will be fully paid by X date ,")that strengthens your case that this isn t'permanent income but rather a specific debt elimination strategy. You might also want to calculate and present what your family s'normal "income" would be without these withdrawals to show the financial aid office what your typical eligibility should look like. Some schools are more willing to work with families when they can see a clear timeline for when the unusual financial circumstances will end.
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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.
It's been 7 business days now and still showing as processing. I'll try calling tomorrow morning. Thank you for checking back in!
Did you ever get this fixed?? I'm dealing with something similar now and pulling my hair out!
Yes! Finally resolved it yesterday. I used the Claimyr service someone mentioned above to get through to FSA without the 2+ hour wait. The agent put notes on both accounts and manually cleared the SSN flag. Twin A's application is now being reprocessed with the correct info, and Twin B was able to create her account today. The agent said to expect another 5-7 days for both to fully process, but at least we're moving forward now!
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UPDATE: I finally got through to my loan servicer (after being on hold for 1.5 hours)! Turns out it WAS a system error on their end. The rep said they did system maintenance last weekend and something got messed up with a bunch of IDR calculations. She fixed it while I was on the phone and confirmed my payment is still $35. She also put a note on my account so it shouldn't happen again. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions!
Great news! Glad you got it resolved. This is why it's so important to question things when they don't seem right. Always trust your instincts when it comes to your student loans!
see i TOLD you it was probably a glitch lol. glad it's fixed!
So glad you got this resolved! This is exactly why I always recommend checking both your studentaid.gov account AND your servicer's site when there are payment discrepancies. System maintenance issues seem to be happening more frequently with all the FAFSA changes this year. For anyone else dealing with similar issues, Diego's experience shows how important it is to be persistent and not just accept unexpected payment increases without questioning them. Thanks for updating us with the resolution!
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my sister had twins last year and she said one got more aid than the other even with identical parent info. depends on what schools they apply to and their own merit scholarships etc
That's interesting and a bit concerning. I hope the colleges will consider that we have two kids attending simultaneously. I've heard there's some adjustment for multiple college students but wasn't sure how that works now with the new SAI system.
With the new FAFSA, multiple children in college is handled differently than before. The SAI calculation no longer includes the automatic reduction for multiple students that the old EFC had. However, individual colleges may still make adjustments to their aid packages when they see multiple students from the same household. It's definitely worth contacting each financial aid office directly to discuss your twin situation.
Just wanted to add another perspective as someone currently going through this process with twins this year! One thing I discovered is that it's helpful to create a simple spreadsheet with all your financial information before starting either application. This way, when you're completing the second parent portion, you can just copy the exact same numbers and avoid any typos that might trigger verification issues. Also, make sure both twins use consistent naming conventions when they list you as their contributor - use your full legal name exactly as it appears on your tax return for both applications. This small detail can prevent headaches later!
That's such a smart tip about the spreadsheet! I'm definitely going to do that. I'm also wondering - should I wait for both twins to completely finish their student portions before I start either parent section, or can I complete one parent portion as soon as I get the first notification and then do the second one later when the other twin finishes?
Hailey O'Leary
Just went through this exact situation last month! My advice would be to document everything showing you provide the majority of her living expenses - bank statements, receipts for school supplies, medical bills you pay, etc. Even though your ex claims her on taxes, having proof that you're the one actually supporting her day-to-day will really help when you file that special circumstances appeal with the colleges. Also, make sure to apply this to EVERY school she's considering - don't assume they'll all have the same response to your appeal. Some schools are way more flexible with divorced parent situations than others.
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Luca Russo
•This is really smart advice! I never thought about keeping documentation like that. I definitely pay for most of her day-to-day stuff - clothes, school activities, medical appointments, etc. I'll start gathering receipts and bank statements now. Good point about applying to every school too - I was wondering if the appeal process would be different at different colleges. Did you find some schools were more understanding than others about divorced parent situations?
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Emma Johnson
As someone who just went through this nightmare with my daughter's FAFSA, I feel your pain! The key thing is getting your ex on board early because once you start the application, you can't really move forward without his cooperation. I'd suggest having a conversation with him about timelines - the FAFSA opens October 1st for the following school year, and some deadlines are really early (like February for state aid in some states). Also, make sure he understands that even though he claims her on taxes, if you're the one who will actually be paying for college, you should gather documentation now showing your financial support. This will be crucial if you need to appeal the aid decision later. The whole system is frustrating, but it's definitely doable once you know the steps!
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Finley Garrett
•This is such great advice about getting the ex on board early! I'm definitely going to have that conversation with him this week. You're absolutely right about the timing - I had no idea some state deadlines were as early as February. Question though - when you say gather documentation showing my financial support, do you mean like keeping receipts for everything I pay for her, or more like bank statements showing regular transfers? I want to make sure I'm collecting the right kind of proof in case we need to appeal later.
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