This is absolutely NOT recommended and could cause serious problems. Creating multiple FSA IDs or submitting multiple FAFSAs is flagged in the system and can trigger a fraud investigation. Always work through the official correction process.

Great news! Glad you got it resolved. When the correction processes, your school should receive the updated information automatically, but I'd still follow up with your financial aid office in about a week to make sure they have the correct SAI calculation.

Will do! They told me the corrected SAI should be available within 5 days after the processing completes. Fingers crossed this doesn't affect my aid package too much!

Yes, there are some differences between the old EFC and the new SAI calculation. The SAI can actually go as low as -1500 (which wasn't possible with EFC), but they also adjusted some of the protection allowances and assessment rates. In general, middle-income families might see a higher SAI than they would have had with the EFC, while some lower-income families might benefit from the changes. If yours seems significantly off, there might be an error in the application data.

Great news! Glad you got it sorted out. Definitely follow up if you don't see the SAI within a week. Sometimes you need to be persistent with these things.

Awesome! Glad you were able to get through and get clear instructions. The 3-5 business days timeframe is usually accurate in my experience.

That's really helpful too! I'll start gathering all that information now so we're prepared. Is there a checklist somewhere of everything we'll need?

Yes, studentaid.gov has a checklist under "Applying for Aid" section. You'll need 2023 tax returns, W-2s, current bank statements, investment records (except retirement accounts), and records of untaxed income. The new FAFSA directly imports tax data from the IRS if you consent, which simplifies things considerably.

Oh no, that sounds awful! I'm getting more nervous now. I hope they've fixed some of those issues for this year's application!

The Federal Student Aid office has actually made several system improvements for the 2025-26 cycle based on feedback from last year's problems. They've expanded server capacity and simplified some of the more problematic sections. While no system is perfect, there should be fewer technical glitches this time around.

Unfortunately, that's correct. Federal student aid (including Pell Grants) can only be used at eligible institutions, and very few foreign universities participate in the Federal Student Aid program. The FAFSA site does mention this in their FAQ section, but it's not prominently featured in the application process itself. I'd recommend: 1. Check if her specific UK university is on the Federal School Code List (unlikely but possible) 2. Look into private loans designed for international study 3. Research UK-specific scholarships for international students 4. Contact the international student office at her chosen university for funding options Sorry you're just finding this out now. It's a common point of confusion.

Deep breath! This is manageable. Here's what you need to know: 1. Submit one FAFSA per student (one for each twin) 2. Canadian schools generally don't use FAFSA (they have their own financial aid systems) 3. On each FAFSA, list all the US schools they're applying to 4. If one twin attends a US school and one attends a Canadian school, it won't affect each other's aid The twin attending a US school can use their FAFSA for federal aid. The twin attending a Canadian school likely can't use federal aid unless their specific Canadian institution participates in the US federal aid program (very few do). I recommend contacting each Canadian school directly to ask about their financial aid process for US students.