Can't reach FAFSA? Claimyr connects you to a live FAFSA agent in minutes.
Claimyr is a pay-as-you-go service. We do not charge a recurring subscription.
Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the FAFSA
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the FAFSA drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
Ask the community...
- DO post questions about your issues.
- DO answer questions and support each other.
- DO post tips & tricks to help folks.
- DO NOT post call problems here - there is a support tab at the top for that :)
Join the conversation
Join the conversation
This is such important information! I'm a newcomer here and facing a similar situation with my daughter who's a junior in high school. Our household income is around $105k and I was also told by someone at her school that we "make too much" for financial aid. Reading through all these responses has been eye-opening - I had no idea that there wasn't actually a hard income cutoff! I'm definitely going to bookmark this thread and make sure we fill out the FAFSA when the time comes. It's honestly shocking that high school counselors are giving out such misleading information. How many families are missing out on thousands of dollars in aid because of this? Thank you all for sharing your real experiences and clarifying how the process actually works!
Welcome to the community! I'm so glad you found this thread helpful. It's really frustrating how widespread this misinformation is - I think it comes from outdated knowledge about the old system. Your income level is definitely not too high to qualify for some form of aid, especially with the complex formula they use now. Make sure to also look into your state's financial aid programs when the time comes - many states have their own grants and scholarships with different income thresholds than federal programs. And don't forget about merit-based aid at individual colleges, which often requires the FAFSA even though it's not need-based. You've got plenty of time to research and prepare since your daughter is still a junior. Good luck!
As someone who just went through this process with my twin daughters, I cannot stress enough how important it is to fill out the FAFSA regardless of income! We make about $120k and I almost didn't bother because of similar advice from well-meaning people. Here's what we actually received: - Both girls got work-study opportunities ($2,500/year each) - One daughter received a $2,000 state grant - Both qualified for unsubsidized federal loans at much better rates than private loans - One private college offered $8,000/year in institutional aid (they required FAFSA for consideration) The process took me maybe 45 minutes total once I had our tax documents ready. For the amount of aid we received, that's probably the best hourly "wage" I've ever earned! Also, some important timing advice: many states and colleges have limited funding that's distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Even if you think you won't qualify for much, getting your application in early can make the difference between getting something versus nothing.
Wow, that's really encouraging to hear! Your experience with twins is especially helpful since I'm worried about the costs of potentially having multiple kids in college at similar times (though mine are a few years apart). It sounds like even at the $120k income level, there are still meaningful opportunities for aid. I had no idea that work-study and better loan rates were still available at higher income levels - I was focused entirely on whether we'd qualify for grants. The point about timing is really important too. I'm definitely going to mark my calendar to submit the FAFSA as early as possible when we get to that point. Thanks for breaking down exactly what you received - it really helps to see concrete examples rather than just general advice. Did you find that having twins in college at the same time helped with the aid calculation, or has that benefit been eliminated with the new SAI system?
Unfortunately, the multiple students in college benefit was eliminated with the new SAI system that started in 2024-2025. This was actually one of the biggest changes from the old EFC system. Previously, having twins in college would have roughly halved our expected family contribution, but now each student is calculated independently. However, we still received aid for both girls - it's just that the formula doesn't give that automatic "sibling discount" anymore. Some individual colleges may still consider multiple students in their own institutional aid calculations, but the federal formula doesn't account for it. Despite this change, I still strongly recommend filling out the FAFSA for each child. The work-study, loan options, and state/institutional aid opportunities are still very much available. Plus, you never know how individual colleges will structure their own aid - some are more generous than others regardless of the federal calculation.
Join the conversation
UPDATE: I finally got through to FSA after trying for hours! The agent confirmed it's a known issue and said my application data is still in their system. They're manually resetting something on their end and said it should be visible again in 24-48 hours. They gave me a case number to reference if I have further problems. Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions!
great!! so glad you got through to someone who could help! definitely check back in 2 days and let us know if it worked
Excellent! Make sure to document that case number and the name of the representative you spoke with. If it's not resolved in 48 hours, call back and reference that information to avoid starting over.
Wow, what a relief to see you got it resolved! I'm dealing with the exact same issue right now - my FAFSA disappeared but I get the "existing application" error when trying to start over. This thread has been SO helpful! I was panicking about my March deadline but now I know it's a known system glitch and not something I did wrong. Going to call FSA first thing tomorrow morning and ask for that manual reset. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this community is amazing! 🙏
I'm so glad this thread helped you too! It's definitely scary when your FAFSA just vanishes like that. When you call tomorrow, make sure to specifically ask them to check for a "phantom application" or "validation error" - those seem to be the technical terms they use for this issue. Also, if the first person you talk to doesn't know what you're talking about, politely ask to speak with someone else or have it escalated. Some agents seem more familiar with this particular glitch than others. Good luck and definitely update us on how it goes!
Join the conversation
Update on your issue: I was curious so I asked my friend who works in financial aid. She said sometimes these flags happen when parents had Perkins loans from the pre-electronic era because those were managed by individual schools, not centrally. When they migrated that data to the central system years later, name mismatches occurred. Ask specifically if you had Perkins loans!
That's exactly what I had!! Perkins loans for my undergrad degree. This is so helpful - at least now I know what might be causing it. Thank you for checking with your friend!
I'm dealing with something similar right now! My SSN got flagged when I tried to help my son with his FAFSA application. Turns out I had old Stafford loans from the 80s that were never properly updated when I got married and changed my name. The FSA representative told me that pre-electronic records often have these issues because the data migration wasn't perfect. What helped me was getting a letter from Social Security confirming my name change history - they can provide an official document showing all names associated with your SSN. Also, be prepared that this might take a few weeks to resolve, so start the process ASAP if your daughter has upcoming deadlines. The good news is once it's fixed, it stays fixed! Hang in there - the bureaucracy is frustrating but you'll get through it.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience! It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one dealing with this. I'll definitely get that letter from Social Security - that sounds like exactly what I need. My daughter's deadlines are in about 6 weeks, so I'm hoping that's enough time. Did you have to physically go to a Social Security office or were you able to request the name change history letter online or by phone?
Join the conversation
I'm dealing with the exact same thing right now! My son's FAFSA has had that red exclamation mark for about 2 weeks now, and like you, I can't find any actual error messages anywhere. The status just says "processing" and I've been driving myself crazy checking it multiple times a day. It's so frustrating that they don't make it clearer what these symbols actually mean. Reading through everyone's responses here is really helpful though - sounds like this is just how their poorly designed system works and we just have to wait it out. The new FAFSA portal is definitely not user-friendly at all!
I totally understand the anxiety of checking multiple times a day! I've been doing the same thing with my daughter's application. It's such a relief to know we're not alone in this confusion. The responses here have really helped me realize that the red exclamation mark seems to be more of a design flaw than an actual error indicator. I'm going to try to resist the urge to keep checking obsessively and just give it another week or two. Hopefully both our kids' applications will process soon! This whole experience has definitely made me appreciate how much simpler the old system was, even if it wasn't perfect.
I'm going through this exact same nightmare with my daughter's FAFSA! That red exclamation mark has been taunting me for weeks now. After reading all these responses, I feel so much better knowing it's not just us dealing with this confusing interface. It sounds like as long as the status says "processing" and there aren't specific error messages listed anywhere, we're probably okay to just wait it out. The fact that schools are receiving the data (as mentioned by Gabriel) is really reassuring. I'm definitely going to check that messages tab that Alicia mentioned - I had no idea that even existed! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. It's crazy that we all have to become detectives just to figure out if our financial aid applications are working properly. Here's hoping all our kids' applications process soon so we can stop obsessing over cryptic red symbols!
Eloise Kendrick
One last important point that hasn't been mentioned yet - the Parent PLUS loan process has two steps: 1) the application/credit check and 2) completing a Master Promissory Note (MPN). Make sure you do both or the funds won't disburse. Many parents complete the application but forget the MPN step, causing disbursement delays. Both steps are done on studentaid.gov.
0 coins
JaylinCharles
•Thank you for this crucial reminder! I would have probably missed that second step. Will make sure we complete both the application AND the MPN.
0 coins
Liam O'Connor
As someone who just went through this process last semester, I want to emphasize timing - don't wait until the last minute! Even though the application only takes 20 minutes, the credit check results can sometimes take a few days, and if there are any issues, you'll want time to resolve them or explore alternatives. Also, once approved, it can take 1-2 weeks for the funds to actually disburse to your daughter's school. With 6 weeks until her tuition is due, you're in good shape timing-wise, but I'd recommend starting the application within the next week or two just to be safe.
0 coins
Amara Okonkwo
•This is excellent advice about timing! I was getting worried about the 6-week deadline, but it sounds like we're actually in a good position if we start soon. Quick question - if there are issues with the credit check, what are the most common problems families run into? I want to be prepared for potential hiccups so we can address them quickly if needed.
0 coins