has anybody noticed if putting different email addresses for each kid makes the processing faster or slower?? wondering if that matters

my son's fafsa got rejected THREE TIMES even though we entered everything right! turned out his social security number had a typo that i didnt catch. double check all the basic info before submitting!

Here's an update: I spoke to a financial aid administrator yesterday who explained that there are actually THREE different processing steps happening now: 1. The initial submission verification (which generates the first "processed" email) 2. The data matching verification (where they compare your information with IRS and other systems) 3. The final SAI calculation (which is when your application is truly complete) She said at least 40% of applications are getting stuck between steps 2 and 3 right now. The good news is that colleges are aware of these issues and many are extending their priority financial aid deadlines. You might want to check with your daughter's school to see if they've announced any extensions due to the FAFSA delays.

UPDATE: Finally got through to FSA this morning! The problem was that my husband's social security number had an incorrect digit in the system, even though we entered it correctly on our form. They said their OCR system sometimes misreads numbers during processing. The agent fixed it immediately and said our application should be fully processed within 3-5 business days. Thank you everyone for your help and suggestions! This forum saved my sanity.

Update from someone who's been through this process multiple times: if you've already received aid offers from schools, you don't necessarily need to panic. Even if your SAI changes slightly after the review, many schools won't adjust your financial aid package unless there's a substantial change (usually over 10-15% difference in your SAI). Some schools have a policy of honoring their initial aid offer even if your FAFSA gets adjusted later, especially if you're close to the deposit deadline. If you're really concerned, contact the financial aid offices at the specific schools rather than just FAFSA.

UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at FSA this morning! Apparently the review was triggered because my employer submitted a corrected W-2 in February (there was a small error in reported retirement contributions that changed our AGI by about $200). The agent said the review is standard procedure when tax documents get amended, and that such a small change wouldn't impact our SAI enough to change aid offers. She marked our file as urgent since we're approaching decision deadlines, and said the review should be completed within 5-7 business days. Thanks everyone for your advice!

my daughter's financial aid advisor told us the whole system is still buggy. even if everything looks fine now, print out confirmation pages of EVERYTHING and keep checking the status every couple weeks. my niece thought her fafsa was all done but then 2 months later got an email saying there was a problem with the parent section that needed fixing.

To provide some additional clarity: Under the FAFSA Simplification Act, the 2025-2026 application simplifies the parent contribution process for married couples filing jointly. When spouses file taxes jointly, the primary financial information is collected from whichever parent was entered first in the application. The system generates an accurate Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation using the household's joint tax information without requiring both parents to individually submit information. Your daughter's application is processing correctly based on what you've described.

Just wanted to mention that the FAFSA website has been having tons of issues this application cycle. My daughter and I had to try 5 different times over several days before we could get through all the sections properly. So frustrating! Keep trying and don't submit until you can enter all your information correctly.

UPDATE: Success! After trying multiple browsers and getting nowhere, I used Claimyr to reach an FSA agent (took about 20 minutes to get connected). The agent confirmed there's a known glitch affecting some renewal applications. They had me create a new FAFSA ID and start a fresh application rather than using the renewal option. This time all sections appeared correctly including the income questions! For anyone else experiencing this: DO NOT SUBMIT without income information. It's absolutely required and your application will either be rejected or flagged for verification, which will significantly delay your aid. Better to start fresh than submit incomplete info. Thank you all for your help!