the whole system is BROKEN. i even wrote to my congressman and guess what?? NOTHING HAPPENED. good luck getting any real help from anyone in the system!!

To answer your follow-up question about correcting a FAFSA that's already submitted - yes, you can absolutely make corrections! Log into studentaid.gov, go to the FAFSA application section, and select "Make FAFSA Corrections." You can add your older daughter to your younger daughter's form this way. This is important to get right, as it directly affects how your SAI gets divided. Regarding the Statement of Non-Tax Filing - if you did file taxes, you don't need this form. It's only for people who weren't required to file. From your mortgage comment, I'm guessing you did file taxes, so you likely just need to submit your tax transcript instead. For the processing time on your younger daughter's application, unfortunately patience is required, but if it goes beyond 4-5 weeks, that's when you should start making calls to check on the status.

For those still waiting, here's what you can do: 1. Download and save your FAFSA confirmation page with submission date as documentation 2. Email your school's financial aid office with this confirmation and explain the processing delay 3. Ask your school about provisional financial aid packages based on estimated information 4. If you need to speak with FSA directly about your specific application status, be prepared with your FSA ID, confirmation number, and any reference numbers from previous communications Most schools are aware of the widespread processing delays and many have adjusted their internal deadlines accordingly. Don't panic - just keep documentation of your timely submission.

UPDATE: My application was JUST processed this morning! Literally just got the email. For anyone still waiting - hang in there, they are still working through the backlog. Thanks everyone for your help and advice through this stressful situation!

I just wanted to follow up - were you able to find your SAI or speak with someone at Federal Student Aid? Sometimes the system displays differently depending on your specific application circumstances. Also, make sure you're looking at the 2025-2026 FAFSA confirmation page, not a previous year's application.

An SAI of 2750 is generally considered to be in the low-to-moderate range, which is good news for your financial aid prospects. The lower your SAI, the more need-based aid you may qualify for. Many Pell Grant recipients have SAIs below 6000, so you might be eligible depending on your enrollment status and the cost of attendance at your chosen schools. Each school will use this number differently in their aid calculations, so you'll need to wait for your financial aid packages to see exactly what you qualify for. Congratulations on getting this resolved!

OMG I have twins too and FAFSA is the WORST for multiple kids! SO much duplicated effort. Why can't they just let us fill out ONE form for the family and then apply it to both kids???? I spent literally HOURS doing basically the same form twice. Such a waste of time!!!!

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I feel much more confident now. My husband will complete the contributor section for our daughter's application, and we'll make sure to list both twins as college students. We'll be careful to use the exact same financial information when we do our son's FAFSA next week. I appreciate all the advice from fellow parents who've been through this before!

My daughter's FAFSA has been "processing" for almost 3 months now lol. Every time I call they give me a different answer. One person said it was because we have rental property (we don't), another said it was because of her dependency status (she's clearly dependent). The whole system is broken this year and nobody seems to know what's going on.

Just a quick update based on what I'm seeing across multiple cases: if your SAI is being recalculated and you already received financial aid offers, the colleges will handle this in different ways: 1. Some will honor the original offer even if your SAI changes 2. Some will adjust only if the change is significant (usually >$2000 difference in SAI) 3. Some will recalculate everything, which could change aid amounts It really depends on the school's policies and how close you are to the decision deadline. The most important thing is to communicate directly with each financial aid office rather than waiting for the process to complete on its own.