My cousin had this problem and her college financial aid office actually helped her fix it. Have you tried going directly to your school? Sometimes they have direct lines to FSA that work better than the public numbers.

I just went through this exact same nightmare last month! The key is persistence and timing. I had success calling at 7:55 AM EST (5 minutes before they officially open) - somehow got through faster that way. When you do get connected, ask to speak with a "FAFSA Data Correction Specialist" specifically - regular customer service reps can't always make SSN changes. Also, make sure you have your FSA ID login info ready because they'll need to verify your account while you're on the phone. They fixed mine in about 15 minutes once I reached the right person. Don't give up - your financial aid is too important! The system is frustrating but it IS fixable. One more tip: if you get disconnected, call back immediately. Sometimes they can see you were just on a call and prioritize reconnecting you.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Ava. Losing a parent is heartbreaking, and having to navigate these financial complexities during such a difficult time must feel overwhelming. I wanted to add a perspective that might help with your CSS Profile concerns. While it's true that CSS schools will see the inheritance as an asset if you still have it when filing, many financial aid offices are actually quite experienced with inheritance situations and understand that they don't always represent improved ability to pay for college. A few additional thoughts that might help: **Consider the appeals timeline**: Most CSS Profile schools allow you to submit appeals even after you've already filed your initial application. This means you can file your CSS Profile accurately reflecting your situation at that moment, then immediately submit a detailed special circumstances appeal explaining the inheritance and how you've used/plan to use the funds. **Focus on cash flow impact**: When writing your appeals, create a simple before/after comparison showing your monthly income and expenses. Emphasize that while you've eliminated some debt payments, you now have new expenses (property taxes, insurance, maintenance) and your actual monthly cash flow available for college expenses hasn't improved significantly. **Don't underestimate institutional aid budgets**: Many CSS Profile schools have substantial institutional aid funds specifically for situations like yours. They'd rather work with a family who's being transparent about a temporary asset situation than lose a student who's been contributing to their community. The fact that you're being proactive and honest about this situation will work in your favor. Financial aid officers can usually tell the difference between families trying to manipulate the system and families dealing with legitimate life circumstances. Hang in there - this is absolutely manageable with the right approach and documentation.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Ava. What you're going through is incredibly difficult - dealing with grief while trying to navigate these complex financial aid implications. I wanted to share something that might provide a bit of relief regarding the timing: since your mother passed in March 2025 and you're inheriting the assets now, this actually gives you some strategic advantages for your daughter's college applications. For schools she's applying to for fall 2025 entry, the CSS Profile will ask about current assets, but you have time to make informed decisions about how to handle the inheritance before filing. The key is documentation and transparency. Here's what I'd suggest focusing on immediately: 1. **Get professional advice fast**: Meet with both a tax advisor and fee-only financial planner who can help you understand all your options for the annuity distributions and tax implications. 2. **Document your current financial situation**: Before you do anything with the inheritance money, create a complete picture of your finances - income, expenses, debts, assets. This baseline will be crucial for your appeals. 3. **Research each school's policies**: CSS Profile schools vary widely in how they handle special circumstances. Some are much more flexible than others. The silver lining is that you found out about these implications now rather than after already filing everything. You still have time to make strategic decisions and prepare strong appeals with proper documentation. Your situation is exactly why schools have professional judgment processes. Don't lose hope - with the right approach, many families in similar circumstances maintain significant aid.

I'm new to this community but your story hits close to home - we're facing a similar nightmare with our FAFSA this year. Reading through all these responses has been both educational and heartbreaking to see how many families are getting blindsided by these formula changes. Based on everything shared here, it really sounds like having your son graduate (so no longer splitting the contribution between two students) is likely the biggest factor in your $8,400 increase rather than the free lunch program change. The fact that they eliminated this sibling adjustment without clearly communicating the impact to families is just cruel. I wanted to add one suggestion that helped us - when you do get through to the financial aid office, ask specifically about their "emergency financial hardship" programs in addition to the professional judgment review. Some schools have separate funds for students whose aid changed dramatically due to policy shifts beyond family control. Also, if you have any documentation of your son's college expenses from last year (tuition payments, etc.), keep those handy as proof that your family was genuinely supporting two students and budgeted accordingly. This whole situation is so unfair to middle-class families who are already stretching every dollar. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the appeals process works out for you. Your daughter is lucky to have such a fierce advocate - don't give up!

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this stressful situation! As someone new to this community, I've been following this thread closely and it's clear that the FAFSA Simplification Act changes have really blindsided many families this year. From everything that's been shared here, it sounds like the elimination of the sibling-in-college adjustment is likely the primary cause of your $8,400 increase rather than the free lunch program changes. That policy shift seems to be hitting families particularly hard when they go from multiple students to just one. I wanted to add a suggestion that might help while you're working through the appeals process - check if your daughter's school participates in any tuition payment plan programs. Even if you can't reduce the actual SAI amount, spreading the payments over 10-12 months instead of paying per semester can make a huge difference for family cash flow. Also, don't forget to look into your state's grant programs. Many states have expanded their need-based aid in response to these federal changes, and some have specific programs for continuing students facing unexpected financial hardship. The advice about using Claimyr to reach FSA and asking about the special circumstances review for the multiple-student policy change sounds really promising. I hope those options provide some relief for your family. Your dedication to your daughter's education is inspiring, and I'm rooting for you to find a solution that keeps her college dreams on track!

As a newcomer to this process, I'm finding all this information incredibly valuable! My son is a sophomore in high school, so I have a bit more time to plan, but I'm already feeling overwhelmed by all the details. One thing I'm still confused about - if we have multiple children and UTMA accounts for each, do we report ALL of those accounts on each child's FAFSA, or only the account belonging to the child applying? Also, I keep seeing mentions of the CSS Profile being different from FAFSA for custodial accounts. Should we be planning our strategy around both forms from the beginning, or focus on FAFSA first and worry about CSS Profile later? I'm also wondering about 529 plans - we have both UTMA accounts AND 529 plans for our kids. How do those interact with each other in terms of financial aid impact? Sorry for all the questions, but this thread has been so educational that I don't want to miss anything important while I still have time to plan ahead!

As a parent just starting to research FAFSA for my daughter who's a junior, this thread has been incredibly enlightening! I had no idea about the snapshot concept vs. looking back at historical data. One question I haven't seen addressed yet - what about timing if you have a child whose birthday falls during the school year? My daughter turns 18 in November of her senior year, so she'd be a minor when we first file FAFSA in October but an adult by the time she starts college. Does this affect how we report the UTMA accounts or when they transition from parent to student assets? Also, I'm curious about the verification process that several people mentioned. Is there any way to reduce your chances of being selected, or is it truly random? The thought of having to provide months of bank statements is pretty intimidating, especially if we do make some legitimate large purchases before filing. Thank you to everyone who has shared their experiences - this is exactly the kind of real-world guidance that's so hard to find elsewhere!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for this incredibly informative discussion! I'm currently helping my stepson with his 2025-2026 FAFSA, and we have a grandparent-owned 529 plan situation that had me completely confused until I found this thread. Reading through all these experiences has been so reassuring. We withdrew $9,500 from his grandfather's 529 plan last fall, and I was panicking about how to report it. The fact that multiple people have confirmed this doesn't get reported anywhere on the FAFSA under the new simplified rules is such a relief! I especially appreciate the practical tips shared here - like keeping organized records for tax purposes even though we don't report it on FAFSA, and understanding that the key factor is account ownership rather than who benefits. The spreadsheet idea for tracking multiple family 529 accounts is brilliant too. It's wonderful to see how the FAFSA Simplification Act has actually made things better for families instead of more complicated. This policy change seems like such a win for encouraging grandparent involvement in education funding without the previous penalties. Thanks again to everyone who shared their knowledge and experiences - this community is incredibly helpful for navigating these complex financial aid questions!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to express my gratitude for this incredibly thorough and helpful discussion! I'm currently navigating my first FAFSA experience with my daughter for 2025-2026, and we have a very similar situation with her great-aunt's 529 plan. We used about $7,200 from the account last year for her tuition, and I was completely lost about how to handle this on the FAFSA. After reading through everyone's experiences and explanations, I now understand that since my daughter's great-aunt owns the 529 plan (not us), we don't need to report these distributions anywhere on the FAFSA under the simplified rules. What really helps is seeing so many different family situations - grandparents, great-grandparents, and now great-aunts - all being treated the same way under these new rules. The key insight that it's about account ownership rather than family relationship or who benefits makes so much sense. I'm also really appreciating the practical advice shared here about keeping good records for tax purposes and understanding the difference between FAFSA reporting and tax reporting. This community has made what felt like an overwhelming process so much more manageable. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and experiences - it's making a real difference for families like mine who are new to this process!