Update: I tried the Claimyr service that someone suggested, and I FINALLY got through to a real person at FSA! The agent confirmed there was a mismatch between my SSN in their system and what the Social Security Administration had on file (even though I was entering it correctly). They did the "verification override" mentioned above and manually updated my account. My signature went through this morning and our FAFSA is now complete! Thank you all for the help - I would have never figured this out from the automated emails they kept sending.

my brothers having the same issue but with his own ssn not matching. he tried making a new fsa id and that didnt work either. this whole simplified fafsa is a joke its way more complicated than before

Just wanted to add - while you're waiting for verification, make sure your son has gathered all the other information he'll need for the application. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, you'll need 2023 tax information (which is different from previous years where you used prior-prior year tax info). Also make sure you have records of any untaxed income and current asset information (bank accounts, investments, etc.) ready to go. The new FAFSA pulls some tax info directly from the IRS, but you'll still need to answer questions about assets manually.

UPDATE: Our verification just went through! It took exactly 3 days. Now we're able to complete the parent contribution section without any issues. Thanks everyone for your help and reassurance!

UPDATE: IT WORKED!!! I followed @practical_solution's advice - waited 24 hours, used incognito mode, and clicked submit again. The system showed a weird error message at first, but then refreshed to Stage 2! My son's status now shows "FAFSA Form Submitted" with today's date. No need to re-sign or re-enter anything. THANK YOU to everyone who responded with suggestions. For anyone else having this issue - definitely try the 24-hour reset method before starting over.

So glad to hear it worked for you! One more tip for future reference - take screenshots of your confirmation page and save the confirmation number. The new system has been known to occasionally revert statuses, and having proof of submission can save you headaches later.

Just to follow up on the twins question - while the SAI calculation is the same for both students, remember that each daughter needs her own separate FAFSA application. Make sure you're completing individual applications for each twin, even though much of the information will be identical. The system will recognize they're from the same household when calculating financial need.

One important point to remember: while you must report all assets from both you and your husband, the FAFSA does exclude certain assets from consideration. Retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc.), the value of your primary residence, and small family businesses are not reported. Make sure you're not over-reporting by including these protected assets.

To answer your follow-up question about income-contingent repayment for Parent PLUS loans: you would need to consolidate your PLUS loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan first. Then you could apply for Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR), which is the only income-driven plan available for Parent PLUS loans. Under ICR, your payment would be the lesser of: 1. 20% of your discretionary income (adjusted gross income minus 100% of poverty guideline) 2. What you would pay on a 12-year fixed payment plan, adjusted according to income Since your income varies, they would use your most recent tax return to calculate the initial payment, and you can request recalculation if your income changes significantly.

When you consolidate Parent PLUS loans, the new interest rate will be the weighted average of your original loans' rates, rounded up to the nearest 1/8th of a percent. So it's typically very close to what you were already paying. The term length can change based on the repayment plan you select, ranging from 10-30 years depending on loan balance and plan type. Consolidation does reset any progress toward forgiveness programs, but since Parent PLUS loans have limited forgiveness options anyway, this is less of a concern. One benefit: consolidation can give you access to ICR, which caps payments at 20% of discretionary income and offers forgiveness after 25 years of payments.