To summarize what everyone has correctly mentioned: 1. Either parent can complete the FAFSA form 2. You must report combined financial information for both parents 3. The email used for your FSA ID doesn't affect calculations 4. Retirement accounts (401k, IRA) are NOT reported as assets 5. Regular investment accounts, 529 plans, and additional real estate ARE reported Just make sure whoever fills it out has all the necessary information for both parents readily available, including the tax return, bank statements, and investment account values.

Just wanted to add one more tip that helped me when I was going through this process - make sure to gather all your financial documents BEFORE you start the FAFSA! I made the mistake of starting it and then realizing I didn't have our investment account statements handy. The form times out after a period of inactivity and I had to start over. Having everything organized beforehand (tax returns, bank statements, investment account balances as of the FAFSA filing date) made the whole process so much smoother the second time around.

Great to hear your verification went through quickly! As you complete your portion, make sure you're prepared with your tax information from 2023 (for the 2025-2026 FAFSA). The system will likely use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to pull your information automatically, but having your documents handy helps if you need to enter anything manually. Also, don't be alarmed if you see a message about your information being "sent for processing" after submission. That's another normal waiting period (typically 3-7 days) before your student receives their SAI (Student Aid Index, formerly EFC).

This is such a helpful thread! As someone who's about to start this process with my daughter next year, it's really reassuring to see all the detailed experiences and advice. The tip about making sure names match exactly with Social Security records seems particularly important - I'll definitely keep that in mind. Also bookmarking that Claimyr service just in case we run into any roadblocks with phone support. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences!

One other thing to check - make sure you're using the correct parent role classification. If you indicated you're the "Parent 1" and your husband is "Parent 2," the system expects specific role relationships. Try switching the parent roles if nothing else works. Also, verify you selected the correct marital status at the beginning of the parent section (married, remarried, separated, etc.) as this affects how the system processes spouse information.

I went through this exact same nightmare last month! Here's what finally worked for me after trying everything mentioned here: 1. Log out completely and clear ALL browser data (not just cache) 2. Use an incognito/private browser window 3. Make sure you're entering the spouse info in the EXACT order the form expects - I was jumping around fields which seemed to confuse the system 4. If his name has ANY special characters (apostrophes, hyphens, spaces), try entering it without them first just to get past the error, then contact support to fix it later The apostrophe issue @Hugo mentioned is REAL - my husband's name is O'Connor and removing the apostrophe was the only way to get it to accept. The financial aid office fixed it later with no problems. Also, try doing it during off-peak hours (early morning or late evening) when fewer people are using the system. Good luck!

As a financial aid officer, I want to echo what others have said - this Common App mistake absolutely will not impact her FAFSA or financial aid eligibility. The FAFSA uses income data, family size, and assets to calculate her Student Aid Index (SAI), not test scores. For the SAT issue itself, definitely have her send that clarification email to each school's admissions office. Most schools have robust systems to track these kinds of corrections, and admissions officers are used to handling application updates. Just make sure she includes her full name, date of birth, and Common App ID in the email so they can easily locate her file. One practical tip: if any school has an online portal where she can check her application status, she should monitor those after sending the emails to see if they update her file to show "test optional" status.

I'm new to this whole college application process and reading through this thread has been so educational! My younger sibling will be applying next year and I had no idea that FAFSA and Common App were completely separate systems. This gives me confidence that even if we make similar mistakes, it won't ruin everything. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences - it really helps those of us who are still figuring all this out!

I'm a new parent going through this FAFSA process for the first time and this thread has been incredibly reassuring! My daughter just submitted her application yesterday and we're already seeing the "Cannot Calculate SAI" message. Reading everyone's experiences here makes me feel so much better about waiting it out rather than immediately assuming we did something wrong. Quick question though - should we be doing anything proactive while we wait, like checking with her college's financial aid office to let them know about the delay? Or is it better to just wait until the SAI comes through before contacting anyone?

Going through the exact same thing right now with my twin daughters! Both submitted their FAFSAs last week and we're seeing "Cannot Calculate SAI" on both applications despite everything looking complete. It's such a relief to read this thread and know we're not alone. The new FAFSA system seems to have so many processing hiccups this year. One thing I wanted to add for other parents - I found it helpful to screenshot the "Submitted" status page as proof of on-time submission, just in case any of their colleges need documentation about the delay. Also keeping a simple log of when we submitted vs when (hopefully!) the SAI gets calculated so we have a timeline if we need to call for help. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and timelines - it's making this waiting period much more manageable!