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One last suggestion - check if there's a discrepancy between the parent information on the FAFSA and your FSA ID. For example, if your name is "Robert" on your FSA ID but entered as "Bob" on the FAFSA, or if there's even a small spelling difference in your address, the system might not recognize you as the same person who needs to sign. These types of small mismatches are causing a lot of the signature issues this year.
So glad you got it fixed! Now save screenshots of EVERYTHING including the confirmation number. Trust me on this - with all the glitches this year, having proof of submission with timestamps has saved multiple families I know when their applications mysteriously "disappeared" from the system weeks later.
Another thing to consider - if your daughter does enlist and then decides to use her military education benefits later, having FAFSA on file can actually help! Many veterans use both GI Bill AND traditional financial aid. My nephew is doing this now and gets way more support than his battle buddies who only use GI Bill.
Thank you all for the advice! I'm definitely going to complete the FAFSA now just to be safe. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. We'll plan to submit as soon as it opens in December so we don't miss any priority deadlines if she does end up going to college instead of the Air Force.
Great decision! One last tip: make sure you and your daughter both create FSA IDs before December 1st, as that process can sometimes take a few days for verification. That way you'll be ready to submit as soon as the application opens.
The whole FAFSA thing is COMPLETELY BROKEN this year!!!! My son's has been "processing" since JANUARY and he still hasnt got his SAI score!!! Meanwhile his friends who applied in MARCH already got theirs?? Make it make sense!! I'm so tired of this whole process I could SCREAM
Sometimes browser issues can cause the "in progress" status to get stuck. Try clearing your cache and cookies, then log back in. Also, try using a different browser altogether - I've had better luck with Chrome than Safari for FAFSA stuff. The new 2025-2026 FAFSA is particularly buggy with its "in progress" vs "submitted" statuses. If you've actually completed everything, sometimes it takes 24-48 hours for the status to update to "submitted" on its own.
YES!! Thank you all SO MUCH for your help! It turned out I had missed the school selection for my second daughter AND needed to e-sign again for both applications. Once I did that, I found the final "Submit FAFSA Now" button on the confirmation page. Both applications now show "submitted" status! Such a relief!!!
Harold Oh
my cousin works in finanical aid and she said most schools actyally have all the data they need to make a basic aid package but they wait for everything to be official so they dont have to deal with adjustments later. its all about reducing their workflow not helping students
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Dominique Adams
•This is partially true. Many schools can create estimates based on SAI, but final packages require the complete ISIR (Institutional Student Information Record) from the Department of Education. However, in situations like this with significant delays, schools should be willing to provide preliminary estimates. It's not always about reducing workflow - there are compliance considerations too.
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Laila Prince
UPDATE: Thanks to everyone's advice, we've made progress! All three scholarship organizations agreed to extend their deadlines to May 15th after I sent them news articles about the FAFSA delays and a letter from my daughter's high school counselor. Both universities have also agreed to provide preliminary aid packages by the end of this week. I also tried Claimyr as suggested and got through to the Federal Student Aid office in about 25 minutes. The agent confirmed there was an issue with our FAFSA data transmission to schools and has fixed it. The schools should receive everything within 3-5 business days. This community has been incredibly helpful - thank you all for helping us navigate this stressful situation!
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Louisa Ramirez
•So glad to hear this worked out! Would you mind sharing which articles about the FAFSA delays you sent to the scholarship organizations? My niece is in a similar situation and that documentation could help her too.
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Laila Prince
•Sure! I sent them the Education Department's own press release about the delays from February, plus articles from the Washington Post and Chronicle of Higher Education. I also included screenshots of the Federal Student Aid social media posts acknowledging the widespread issues. The more official-looking documentation, the better!
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