UPDATE: Just want to let everyone know that the Federal Student Aid office just announced they're extending priority deadlines by 3 weeks for students experiencing verification issues like this. The announcement came out yesterday. Your daughter's school should be aware of this, but it might be worth mentioning when you contact them.

I went through something similar with my son's FAFSA last year. One thing that really helped was documenting every attempt to call - keep a log with dates, times, and how long you waited before getting disconnected. The financial aid office at his college was much more understanding when I could show them I'd made 12+ documented attempts over several days. Also, if you have a local Social Security Administration office, you might want to visit in person to get a verification letter confirming your daughter's correct SSN and name spelling. Sometimes having that official documentation speeds up the process when you finally do get through to FSA. The whole system is frustrating but you're definitely not alone in dealing with this!

my cousin works in rutgers financial aid office (not supposed to tell anyone lol) and she said theyre SWAMPED because the new FAFSA system sent them data in a format their software cant read properly. theyre literally having to manually review thousands of applications!!! she said absolutely call and be polite but persistent.

I'm dealing with the exact same situation! My daughter applied to Rutgers and several other schools, and we've heard back from everyone except Rutgers. It's so stressful trying to make decisions without knowing what kind of aid package they'll offer. What's really frustrating is that when I called last week, they couldn't even tell me if our FAFSA was in their system at all - just that they're "still processing applications from the Department of Education." Meanwhile, Montclair State and Stockton both sent aid letters weeks ago using the same FAFSA data! I'm going to try calling again this week and ask the specific questions people have mentioned here about whether they can at least see our FAFSA in their system. Fingers crossed we all hear something soon - this waiting is killing me!

Have you considered working out an arrangement with your ex where you alternate years for claiming your daughter? That way you both get tax benefits in different years. My ex and I do this - I claim our son on even years, he claims him on odd years. We put it in our custody agreement to make it official. For FAFSA, just make sure you're consistent about household size and can document the living arrangement if needed.

As someone who's been through this exact situation, I want to echo what others have said about documentation being key. I let my daughter's father claim her on taxes while I included her in my FAFSA household size, and it worked out fine - but I was prepared. One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is that you should also consider the timing. If you're filing for the 2025-2026 FAFSA, you'll be using your 2023 tax information. Make sure whatever arrangement you make with your ex is consistent with how you plan to handle future years too. Also, don't stress too much about verification - only about 30% of students get selected. But if you do, having a paper trail makes all the difference. I kept a simple log showing which days my daughter was with me vs. her dad, along with receipts for her expenses. It was tedious but worth it for peace of mind. The financial aid office at your community college should also be able to give you guidance specific to their processes if you run into any issues!

Update on timelines since you asked: For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, current processing times for international mailed signature pages are running about 3-4 weeks from receipt (not counting mail time). This is longer than usual because of all the issues with the new FAFSA rollout. Here's what I recommend for your situation specifically: 1. Complete the online portion of the FAFSA immediately (tonight if possible) 2. Use DHL/FedEx/UPS for the signature page - NOT regular mail 3. Select the "tracking" option and pay for the fastest service you can afford 4. Email each school's financial aid office with the tracking number once sent 5. Follow up with schools weekly until you confirm they've processed your application One small silver lining: For some schools, international students who demonstrate financial need sometimes have access to specialized funding sources that aren't as time-sensitive as the general financial aid pool. Make sure to ask each school specifically about this possibility.

Isabella, I completely understand your panic - I went through this exact situation last year when my daughter applied from Dubai! The stress is real, but you CAN get this done. A few additional tips that haven't been mentioned yet: **For FSA ID verification without SSN:** When you create your FSA ID as a non-SSN parent, you'll get an email confirmation immediately, but your account will show "pending verification" until they receive your signature page. Your daughter can still start and complete most of the FAFSA while your verification is pending. **Banking information:** Make sure you have your Singapore bank account details ready in the exact format the FAFSA expects. International account numbers sometimes cause system errors, so have screenshots of your bank statements showing the account number formatting. **Emergency contact strategy:** Create a Google doc with all your FAFSA information (FSA IDs, confirmation numbers, tracking numbers, etc.) that you can access from anywhere. Share it with a trusted family member in the US who can help follow up with schools if needed. **Time zone advantage:** Use Singapore's time zone to your advantage! When US financial aid offices open (their morning), it's evening for you. Plan to be available for phone calls during their business hours. You mentioned March 1st and 10th deadlines - if you start the FSA IDs tonight, you can realistically have the online portion submitted by this weekend. The physical signature will arrive later, but as others mentioned, most schools work with you on this timing. You've got this! The fact that you're being so proactive already puts you ahead of many applicants.

I went through this exact same situation last year and it was absolutely nerve-wracking! The identity verification after parent info changes is unfortunately becoming the norm with the new FAFSA system. Based on what I'm seeing in your thread, it sounds like you're actually making good progress - the fact that your status shows "Review Complete - Pending Processing" means you're almost done! A few things that helped me get through this: 1. Screenshot EVERYTHING - your verification status, submission confirmations, etc. Schools really appreciate having documentation when you request deadline extensions 2. Don't just email your schools - call them too. I found that talking to someone directly got me faster responses about deadline flexibility 3. Keep checking that verification status section daily (not the processing status) - once it moves to "Complete" your SAI should update within 2-3 business days You're so close to the finish line! Most schools have been really accommodating this year because they know the FAFSA delays aren't the students' fault. Hang in there!

I'm dealing with a similar verification situation right now and this thread has been incredibly helpful! I've been stuck in identity verification for about 10 days after updating my dad's tax information. Reading through everyone's experiences, I'm realizing I need to check that separate "verification status" section that Oliver mentioned - I've probably been looking at the wrong status this whole time! For anyone else going through this, I just want to add that my school's financial aid counselor told me they're seeing verification delays across the board this year, not just for students who made changes. She said they've already extended their priority deadline once and are prepared to do it again if needed. So definitely reach out to your schools ASAP - they're much more understanding about these delays than you might expect. The stress is real though! Scholarship deadlines are terrifying when you're stuck in verification limbo. Thanks to everyone who shared their timelines and tips - it really helps to know we're not alone in this process.