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!

BTW does anyone know if you get more financial aid for trade schools vs regular college? my younger son is trying to decide between community college or trade school for electrical work

UPDATE: I decided to try what @profile4 suggested and manually entered our tax info by selecting "unable to link to IRS" even though we technically could. It was a pain entering everything manually, but the system accepted it! Now it shows our application is complete, and we got a new email saying our SAI calculation is in process. Fingers crossed this finally works! Thanks everyone for your help and preventing me from giving up on my son's education over a stupid technical glitch.

Thanks everyone for the helpful info! I just called the culinary school, and they ARE on the TOPS eligible list (it's connected to a community college). The financial aid office also confirmed their priority deadline is February 15, 2025. So our plan now is: 1. Complete FAFSA as soon as it opens December 1 2. Set up the Louisiana Award System account 3. Verify with her high school that they'll submit all TOPS requirements 4. Double-check everything for accuracy to avoid verification delays Am I missing anything else?

My nephew did the TOPS thing and it was a DISASTER. They kept changing requirements and he lost funding after freshman year. Don't count on it staying consistent for all 4 years. Make sure you have a backup plan!!!

One important thing to note is that after making any corrections, there will be a processing period before your updated SAI is calculated. This typically takes 3-5 business days, though it can sometimes take longer during peak periods. Since you mentioned scholarship deadlines, make sure you plan for this processing time. Also, for future reference, if you're making multiple corrections, it's best to make them all at once rather than submitting several separate correction requests, as each new submission restarts the processing clock.

Thank you everyone for the helpful responses! We successfully made the correction through my son's student account yesterday. He was able to access both his own income section and could have changed our parent information too if needed. We both had to re-sign with our FSA IDs after making the change. Now we're just waiting for the updated SAI calculation. Fingers crossed it processes quickly since one of his scholarship applications needs the updated info by next Friday!

Thank you everyone for all this helpful info! I just created an account on studentaid.gov and started my FAFSA application. You were right that it's pretty straightforward once you're on the official site. I'm going to ask my financial aid office about workshops too. Really appreciate all the advice - this has been stressing me out for weeks!

Great job taking action! One last tip: create an FSA ID for both yourself and your parent (if you're a dependent student) before starting the actual FAFSA. It can take 1-3 days for the IDs to be fully activated, and you need them to sign electronically. Good luck!