FAFSA application submitted 3/12 - still processing after 5 weeks. Normal waiting time?

omg mine took like 8 weeks last year lol the system is sooo slow

Processing times are much longer this year because of the FAFSA Simplification Act changes. The Department of Education has been struggling with implementing the new system. While they initially said 3-5 business days for processing, many applicants are seeing 4-8 week delays. You should contact your school's financial aid office immediately and let them know your FAFSA is still processing. They often have protocols for this situation and may be able to extend your aid deadline.

try calling ur school financial aid office instead of emailing. they might be able to do something called professional judgment to give u aid while waiting. worked for my roomate last semester

The processing delays this year are unprecedented due to the new FAFSA system rollout. For context, my daughter submitted hers in February and we just got the SAI score this week (so about 9 weeks total). Here's what I recommend: 1. Contact your school's financial aid office immediately 2. Ask specifically about a "pending FAFSA accommodation" 3. Document all communications in writing 4. Provide proof of your FAFSA submission date 5. Ask if they can make a preliminary aid offer based on last year's information Many schools are aware of these delays and have processes in place. Don't panic yet!

I was in the exact same situation and tried calling Federal Student Aid for THREE DAYS and kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally used a service called Claimyr that got me through to a live FSA agent in about 10 minutes - claimyr.com. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent confirmed my application was in the system but stuck in processing. They put a note on my account to expedite review. Got my SAI score 4 days later! Might be worth trying if you're desperate.

Everyone's saying wait but that's TERRIBLE ADVICE!! The 2025-2026 FAFSA rollout has been a COMPLETE DISASTER and if you just sit around waiting you could lose your financial aid package!!! The Department of Education doesn't care about students AT ALL - they're just covering up how badly they've messed up this launch. I've heard from multiple people that applications from March are STILL sitting there untouched. You need to CALL YOUR SCHOOL and raise hell until someone helps you. Ask for the director of financial aid if necessary. This isn't just a "wait and see" situation!!!

UPDATE: I want to thank everyone for their advice! I called my school's financial aid office this morning and explained my situation. They were actually super understanding and said they've had dozens of students in the same position. They're putting a note in my file to hold my aid package for an additional 3 weeks while my FAFSA processes. I'm also going to try the Claimyr service to see if I can get through to FSA directly. Will update again when I have more news. Thanks again everyone!

Great to hear your school is being accommodating! Just wanted to add that you should also check if your FAFSA application shows any error flags when you log into studentaid.gov - sometimes applications get stuck because of missing signatures or verification issues that aren't immediately obvious. If you see any red flags or messages asking for additional documents, addressing those might help speed up processing. Also keep checking every few days since the system updates can be sporadic. Good luck with the Claimyr service too!