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Has anyone found any clear information about how they calculate the SAI with parental assets? I know they have some kind of protection allowance, but the numbers I'm seeing online are from previous years. Our family has some savings for emergencies and my mom is worried it will prevent me from getting any aid at all.
Yes, there's a protection allowance for parents' assets in the SAI formula. For 2025-2026, parents' assets are assessed on a sliding scale starting at 12% above the protection amount. The protection amount varies based on the parents' age and whether they're married or single. Roughly, if your parents are in their 40s-50s, the protection amount is around $10,500 for single parents and $21,000 for married parents (these numbers adjust annually). Assets above that amount only count partially against your aid eligibility. Definitely don't empty savings accounts - the formula is designed to protect reasonable emergency savings.
Update: I just found another really useful section on the site that explains the differences between the SAI and old EFC calculations. For those confused about the changes, there's a whole comparison chart at studentaid.gov/help-center/answers/topic/fafsa/article/sai-vs-efc that breaks it down. Apparently some types of income are treated completely differently now!
i just remembered that my kids account last year got verified faster after we called and mentioned the deadline. might be worth trying that?
UPDATE: Just wanted to update everyone who helped. My daughter called the Federal Student Aid Info Center this morning (had to try several times to get through) and explained the situation. They verified her identity and were able to add the schools directly! No need to wait for the account verification. The representative said the schools should receive her FAFSA information within 3-5 business days. Such a relief! Thanks for all the help and suggestions.
just wondering im in similar situation but were doing the css profile too for some schools. does anyone know if the preliminary estimates include css profile info or just fafsa? thx
Great question. Schools that require the CSS Profile typically will want that data for even preliminary estimates, as it collects more detailed financial information than FAFSA. If you've completed the CSS Profile already, they can use that information while waiting for your FAFSA to process. If you haven't completed it yet, I would prioritize doing so if you want accurate preliminary estimates from those institutions.
Update: I called three schools today based on the advice here. Two were really helpful! They asked for our AGI from last year's taxes, number of people in household, and number in college. One school gave us a rough estimate range, and the other actually walked through specific amounts for different types of aid they'd likely offer. The third school refused to give any numbers without the processed FAFSA. Now I need to call the other two tomorrow. I also tried the Net Price Calculators as suggested, but the information they asked for was pretty basic and I'm not sure how accurate the results will be. At least it's a starting point though!
I just checked my FSA account and saw they updated my payment count! It looks like they're still counting payments during this period as long as you're making them on time. Maybe try logging in again to see if your account shows the same?
UPDATE: I finally got through to an FSA representative (used that Claimyr service someone mentioned - it actually worked!) and got some clarification. You all were right - the SAVE program legal challenges don't affect payment counting for existing IDR plans. The agent confirmed all my payments are still being counted, including recent ones. She helped me submit a payment count review since I'd had multiple servicers, and recommended I keep all my payment confirmations just in case. Such a relief! Thanks everyone for your help and advice. This whole system is still frustrating, but at least my timeline isn't being extended.
Malik Davis
UPDATE: I got through to someone at FSA using that Claimyr service another commenter suggested. It worked surprisingly well - I got a call back in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold forever. They found our application in their system! Apparently it was flagged for a verification issue unrelated to the signature problem. The agent reset something on their end and said it should reappear in our account within 24 hours. I'll update again tomorrow to let everyone know if it worked. Thanks for the help, everyone!
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Isabella Santos
•omg thats amazing!! i wish id known bout that b4 we redid everything. let us know if it works!!
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CosmicCruiser
•My brothers FAFSA had the same thing happen but we didn't get it fixed and had to redo everything. Was a huge pain getting all the tax stuff again since parents had to find all there documents again. Hope yours comes back!
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Malik Davis
FINAL UPDATE: Our application is back! It showed up this morning with a status of "Processing" and all our information intact. The agent was right - they hadn't lost our data after all. Such a relief not having to start over. For anyone else having this problem, definitely try contacting FSA directly before assuming you need to start over. And that Claimyr service was definitely worth it to avoid the hold times.
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Omar Hassan
•Great news! Glad it worked out. This new FAFSA system has been causing so many similar problems. Just a reminder to everyone - once your application is processed, download and save a PDF copy of everything for your records.
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