FAFSA SAI skyrocketed from 1681 to 75978 after divorce - need urgent help finding the error!

Hi there, this definitely sounds like there's a major data entry error happening. I went through something similar with my own FAFSA after my divorce. The most common mistakes I've seen with post-divorce FAFSA applications are: 1. Accidentally including the ex-spouse's income somewhere in your submission 2. Entering your income in the wrong field (like putting your AGI in both the parent and student section) 3. Decimal point errors when entering income (typing $35,000.00 as $350,000.0) 4. Forgetting to update your household size correctly 5. Asset valuation errors (retirement accounts getting counted as regular assets) I'd specifically check the income and tax sections very carefully. Did you use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool or manually enter your tax information?

Based on what you're describing, there's almost certainly a major error in how assets or income were reported. With that kind of SAI jump, I'd bet you accidentally reported a retirement account as a regular asset or made a decimal error as @FinAidAdviser mentioned. I'd recommend going through the application with a fine-tooth comb, specifically looking at: - Cash/savings/checking amounts - Investment values (make sure retirement accounts are NOT included) - Business assets (if applicable) - Real estate values besides your primary home Also, double-check that you didn't accidentally include your ex-spouse's information anywhere. The FAFSA can be extremely confusing after a divorce. You should only be including your personal income and assets now.

the same exact thing happened 2 my brother when he got divorced!!! the fafsa ppl counted his 401k as an asset and his SAI went from like 2000 to like 60000 overnight!! he had 2 submit a correction form and explain that it was a retirement account. took forever to fix but they finally did. good luck!!!

I spent 2 hours on hold with the FSA helpline last month trying to fix a similar issue after my divorce. They kept disconnecting me before I could talk to anyone who could actually help with my SAI calculation questions! Was so frustrating I almost gave up. Eventually used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual human at FSA who could help. Their video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ shows how it works. Once I got through, the agent walked me through exactly where I was making mistakes on the asset reporting - turns out I was double-counting some income and also incorrectly including retirement assets. The call saved me around $15,000 in expected family contribution.

They don't ask for any FAFSA login info or anything like that - they just help connect your call to FSA faster so you can talk to an actual FSA representative who can help with specific calculation questions. Totally get the skepticism though - I was hesitant at first too!

The FAFSA system is COMPLETELY BROKEN for divorced parents!!!!! I've been dealing with this nonsense for 3 years now. Every single year I have to fight with them about how my income is calculated. They keep trying to count my ex's income even though we've been divorced for years! The whole system is designed to punish single parents. My daughter almost lost her scholarship because of their incompetence. DEMAND to speak to a supervisor when you call - the regular agents have no idea how to handle divorce situations!!!!!

Just to clarify - the way retirement assets should be reported on FAFSA is: - 401k, 403b, traditional IRA, Roth IRA = NOT reported (excluded completely) - Regular investment accounts, 529 plans, UGMA/UTMA accounts = SHOULD be reported as investments - Value of businesses with fewer than 100 employees = typically excluded - Primary home value = NOT reported - Other real estate = SHOULD be reported The most common mistake is reporting retirement accounts as investments. Based on what you've shared, I'm almost certain that's what happened. When you make your correction, make sure you're only including non-retirement investments.

just wondering... did you maybe also accidentaly put ur income down twice? like once in ur section and once in the students section? my cousin did that and her SAI was crazy high until she fixed it

After reviewing all the discussion, it sounds like you have two likely culprits: incorrectly including your retirement accounts and possibly a duplicate entry of income. When you submit your correction: 1. Verify all income is ONLY entered in the parent section (unless your daughter has her own income) 2. Exclude the 401k entirely from investments 3. Double-check household size is correct (just you and your daughter = 2) 4. Verify your filing status is correct (head of household most likely) If after correcting these items your SAI is still unusually high, you should definitely get on the phone with an FSA agent who can review your specific application. The corrections should significantly reduce your SAI back to something closer to last year's number.

I'm a financial aid counselor and I see this exact scenario SO often after divorces! The retirement account mistake is definitely the most common culprit - that $42k 401k being counted as an investment would absolutely cause your SAI to skyrocket like that. One additional thing to check that I haven't seen mentioned yet: make sure you're using the correct tax filing status. After divorce, you should likely be filing as "Head of Household" rather than "Single" if your daughter is your dependent. This can make a significant difference in the SAI calculation. Also, when you make your correction, be patient with the processing time - it can take 3-5 business days for the new SAI to be calculated and appear in your account. Don't panic if it doesn't update immediately! You're definitely on the right track now with everyone's help. The fact that your SAI was reasonable last year tells me your financial situation hasn't dramatically changed, so this is almost certainly a data entry error that can be fixed.

I went through this exact same nightmare two years ago! My SAI jumped from around 2,000 to over 80,000 after my divorce, and I was absolutely panicking. Just like everyone else has mentioned, it was the retirement accounts that got me - I had included my 401k and Roth IRA values in the investment section when they should have been completely excluded. A few additional tips from my experience: - When you submit your correction, print out a copy for your records before hitting submit - If you have any 529 college savings accounts, those DO count as parent assets (learned that the hard way) - Make sure your bank account balances are accurate as of the day you're filing, not some random date It took about a week for my corrected SAI to process, but it went back down to a reasonable number. The whole experience taught me to be extra careful with every single field on that form. You've got this - sounds like you've identified the main issues and have a solid plan to fix them!