have u tried getting thru to the fafsa ppl directly? i had a similar issue last yr and i finally got help after i used that claimyr service (claimyr.com) to get past the hold times at FSA. they have a video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ basically they wait on hold for you and then call you when a real person picks up. i was able to get someone at FSA who explained all my options and even sent an official letter i could take to my financial aid office that helped with my situation. definitely worth trying since it's so hard to get answers about special cases!

I just went through this last semester with my FAFSA application! If your cousin is paying all her own bills and truly self-supporting, she should gather evidence of this - rent receipts, utility bills in her name, proof she's not claimed as a dependent on her parents' taxes (if possible). I brought all this documentation to my financial aid counselor and wrote a detailed letter explaining my situation. They initially said no to a dependency override, but when I asked for a Professional Judgment review instead and showed all my documentation of self-sufficiency, they were able to adjust my aid package. It didn't get me grants, but they found some institutional scholarships I qualified for that helped almost as much. Tell her not to give up after the first no!

Also important for the 2025-2026 FAFSA: you need to make sure you're using the right tax year information. They're looking for 2023 tax data, so make sure that's what you're accessing through the IRS tool. I've seen people accidentally try to pull the wrong year's data and get confused when it fails.

omg i had this same problem!!! what fixed it for me was using my EIN instead of SSN. im self employed and didnt realize that made a difference until someone at my school's financial aid office told me

my daughter had something similar, not with ssn but they said her date of birth was wrong 🙄 so ridiculous. anyway we got it fixed by going in person with her birth certificate. also make sure to keep checking both studentaid.gov AND your daughter's student portal at her university. sometimes the school processes things temporarily while waiting for the official correction

Quick follow-up question - did the email about the SSN error come directly from Federal Student Aid (studentaid.gov) or from the university? If it came from the university, they may already have procedures in place to help with this situation. Many schools have contingency processes specifically for FAFSA issues that arise right before classes start. Also, when you visit the financial aid office tomorrow, ask about a "conditional financial aid clearance" - this is a temporary approval some schools provide while FAFSA corrections are being processed.

Has anyone heard if this will affect current college students too? My son is already enrolled and relies on his financial aid package for sophomore year. Will this delay his fall aid disbursement??

UPDATE: Just got off the phone with my daughter's first-choice school. They're extending their decision deadline to June 1st and are creating estimated aid packages based on our CSS Profile and tax info we submitted directly. They hope to have those out next week, with final packages once the FAFSA data issue is resolved. They also said they're establishing an emergency grant fund for students who commit without full aid info and then discover a gap once official packages come through. I'm still frustrated with the whole situation, but at least schools seem to be trying to adapt.

Have you tried reaching out to ASU's financial aid office directly about an extension? When my son had FAFSA technical issues, Ohio State gave him a 2-week extension on their priority deadline since he could document that he'd been trying to resolve the issue. Worth asking about!

What a nightmare situation! This is exactly why I decided to do my FAFSA alone without parents. I declared myself independent (I'm 24 so I qualify) even though it probably meant less aid. The system is SO confusing when you have to deal with parent contributors! If I were you, I'd start over with a completely fresh application using a new email for your ex-husband's account. Yes, it's annoying to redo it all, but it's better than losing out on thousands in aid. ASU *might* be understanding about the deadline, but don't count on it - some schools are super strict.