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Thank you all for the incredibly helpful information! Just to make sure I have everything straight: 1. Use 2023 tax return for 2025-26 FAFSA 2. Have my son create his FSA ID early 3. For our changed financial situation, complete FAFSA first, then contact each school individually 4. Use the FAFSA Simulator to get an early estimate of our SAI 5. Make sure to mention multiple children in college when talking to financial aid offices 6. Pay extra attention to parent/contributor sections to avoid delays This has been so much more helpful than anything I've found on the official websites. I feel much more prepared now!
You've got it exactly right! And don't forget to save copies of all your 2023 tax documents now so you're not scrambling to find them later. Good luck with your son's applications!
As someone who just went through this process with my oldest, I can confirm everything mentioned here is accurate! One additional tip: if you're planning to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) to automatically import your tax info, make sure you've filed your 2023 taxes using the EXACT same name and address that's on your FSA ID. Even small discrepancies like middle initials or apartment numbers can cause the DRT to fail, and then you'll have to enter everything manually. Also, keep in mind that if you filed an amended return for 2023, you might not be able to use the DRT and will need to enter the information manually from your tax documents. Starting early like you're doing is definitely the smart approach!
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One final note - make sure your son completes his contributor information promptly. All contributors must submit their information before the FAFSA can be processed. If he delays, it will hold up your daughter's entire financial aid package. The school's priority deadlines for financial aid are important - missing them can mean less aid for your daughter.
That's good to know! I'll make sure to sit down with him and get this done right away. I don't want my daughter to miss out on aid because of delays. Thanks everyone for all your help on this confusing topic!
Just went through this exact situation last month! Had the same confusion with my 20-year-old who works but lives at home. Here's what I learned: if you're providing free housing, you're almost certainly providing more than 50% support even if he pays for other things. Housing costs are usually the biggest expense when you calculate fair market rent value. I ended up including my son (household size 4 in your case) and yes, he had to provide his tax info as a contributor. It was awkward but necessary. Don't risk verification by trying to exclude him if you truly provide majority support - the delays aren't worth it!
This is really helpful to hear from someone who just went through it! I'm definitely leaning toward including my son now. Quick question - when your son had to provide his tax info as a contributor, did he need to create his own FSA ID or could you enter his information for him? Just trying to figure out the logistics of getting him involved in this process.
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This doesn't solve your immediate issue, but for anyone else reading this - if you have to make corrections to your FAFSA, make sure you're extremely careful. Many students are finding that correcting one thing is causing their entire application to get pushed to the back of the line for processing. Only make absolutely necessary corrections right now!
I'm so sorry you're going through this - it sounds absolutely exhausting! I'm a new member here but dealing with similar FAFSA nightmares. One thing that helped me was creating a detailed log of every call attempt (date, time, how long on hold, outcome) and sending that to both my school's financial aid office and my congressman's office. It shows the severity of the situation and some schools are being more flexible when they see documented proof of the system failures. Also, if your school has a student ombudsman or dean of students office, they might be able to advocate for you with enrollment services about the deposit deadline. Sometimes they have more pull than regular financial aid staff. Hang in there - this isn't your fault and you're definitely not alone in this mess!
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Update: FINALLY saw movement! Our application from March 17th just updated today with a processed date of March 25th. So there's a roughly 8-day processing time happening right now. Check your portals everyone!
That's encouraging! I just checked ours and it's still showing as processing, but hopefully that means we'll see movement in the next day or two. Did you get your SAI score right away once it processed?
Yes! The SAI score appeared immediately once the status changed to processed. And I already got an email from one of my daughter's schools saying they received the FAFSA data, so it seems to be moving through the system quickly once it gets processed.
Just wanted to add my experience - submitted March 19th and still stuck in processing. This thread is actually making me feel better knowing it's not just us! I've been refreshing the portal obsessively every day. My son has to commit to his college by May 1st and we really need to know what financial aid he's getting. Going to try contacting the schools directly like some of you suggested. Thanks for sharing all this info - at least now I know we're not alone in this mess!
Emma Wilson
One more tip - when you're communicating with financial aid offices, be very specific about the dollar amount difference. For example, "Our 2023 income was $85,000, but $14,000 was temporary COVID hazard pay. Our projected 2024 income is $71,000." This specificity helps financial aid officers process your appeal more efficiently. Also, start this process early! Many schools have deadlines for special circumstance appeals, and they can run out of institutional funds if you wait until late in the cycle.
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Javier Gomez
•This is really helpful advice. I'll make sure to be very specific about the amounts and timing. I'm feeling much more prepared now - thank you all for the guidance!
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Ava Williams
Just wanted to add another perspective as someone who went through this process recently. When my daughter applied for the 2024-25 school year, we had a similar situation with my spouse's temporary pandemic-related income boost in 2022. A few things that really helped us: 1. Create a simple one-page summary document showing the income comparison (2023 vs projected 2024) that you can attach to each school's appeal 2. Keep copies of EVERYTHING - pay stubs, employer letters, tax forms. Some schools asked for additional documentation weeks later 3. Don't be discouraged if one school denies your appeal - each has different policies and available funds We ended up getting adjustments from 3 out of 5 schools she applied to, which made a huge difference in her final aid packages. The key is being organized and persistent. Good luck!
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