FAFSA email question - use parent or student email for first-time application?

You MUST use your daughter's email. The system requires separate accounts for students and parents. Your daughter will need her own FSA ID linked to her own email. You'll create your own parent FSA ID with your email. Trust me, I tried using my email for both last year and it created a HUGE mess that took weeks to fix.

The previous commenter is correct - your daughter needs her own email address for her FSA ID. It's a security measure to verify her identity separate from yours. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, they're very strict about this. However, there's a solution to your notification concern - have her set up email forwarding from her account to yours, or set up her email on your phone so you can monitor it. Just make sure she knows her login info because she'll need it throughout college.

went thru this last month w/ my son. def use her email but make sure its one she ACTUALLY uses. my son had to confirm stuff through email links they sent and we almost missed deadlines cause he never checks his old gmail account lol

Use the student's email. My daughter and I set up email forwarding so I got copies of everything. Works perfectly and keeps the accounts separate like they're supposed to be. Good luck with your FAFSA journey!

I had the EXACT same concern last year! The official answer is that your daughter needs her own email for her FSA ID, and you need your own for your parent FSA ID. The system is designed to create separate, verified digital identities for each person involved in the application. What I did was set up my daughter's college email to forward to both her phone AND my email. That way she maintains ownership of her FSA ID (which she'll need for all 4 years of college), but I don't stress about missed notifications. BTW, make sure both of you save your FSA ID information somewhere secure. You'll need it every year, and recovering lost FSA IDs is a total nightmare with the verification process.

the student email thing is annoying but u need separate emails for each person. waited on hold with fafsa for 3 hours trying to fix this when i used my email for both me and my kid. dont make my mistake lol

Financial aid advisor here! This is one of the most common questions I get from parents. The student MUST use their own email for their FSA ID, and you'll use your email for your parent FSA ID. This is a federal requirement for the 2025-2026 FAFSA and is non-negotiable. The reason is security and identity verification. Each FSA ID is tied to a unique Social Security Number and email address. If you use the same email for both accounts, it creates conflicts in the system that can delay processing of the application or even flag it for additional verification. Here's what I recommend to parents concerned about notifications: 1. Have your student create or use an email they can access, and set up email forwarding to your account 2. Have them add the studentaid.gov domain to their safe senders list 3. Set calendar reminders to check for FAFSA communications regularly 4. Both of you should save your FSA ID information (username, password, challenge questions) in a secure location Keep in mind that your student will need their FSA ID throughout college for annual FAFSA renewal, accessing loan information, and eventually for loan repayment, so it's good practice for them to take ownership while you provide support.

Update: We got it figured out! My daughter set up email forwarding to my account and we made sure to save all her FSA ID information securely. She even set up the studentaid.gov app on her phone so she gets push notifications. Thanks everyone for your help!

Glad to see you got it sorted out! The FSA ID system can be confusing at first but it really does make sense once you understand the security reasons behind it. Your daughter having the app is smart - those push notifications are super helpful for deadlines. Just a heads up that when it comes time for FAFSA renewal next year, the process will be much smoother since you'll already have everything set up properly. Good luck with the rest of the application process!

As someone who just went through this process with my twins last fall, I can definitely confirm what everyone else is saying - each person absolutely needs their own email for their FSA ID. I made the mistake of trying to use my email for one of my daughters initially and it created such a headache! One thing I'd add that really helped us: we created a shared family calendar with all the FAFSA deadlines and important dates. That way even though the emails go to their individual accounts (with forwarding set up), we all stay on top of when things are due. Also, make sure your daughter knows her email password by heart - she'll need to log in independently for verification steps throughout the process. The good news is once you get past this initial setup hurdle, the rest of the FAFSA process becomes much more straightforward. You've got this!

Just wanted to chime in as another parent who went through this last year! The separate email requirement definitely caught me off guard initially too. One thing that really helped us was having my daughter create a completely new email address specifically for college and financial aid stuff - something professional that she'll be comfortable using for the next 4+ years. We made it something like firstname.lastname.2025@gmail.com so it's clearly hers but also appropriate for official correspondence. This way we didn't have to worry about her forgetting to check an old email she never uses, and she could easily remember the login since we created it together. The email forwarding setup has worked perfectly for keeping me in the loop while maintaining the separate FSA IDs the system requires.

As a financial aid counselor who's helped hundreds of families through the FAFSA process, I wanted to jump in with some additional clarification since this is such a common source of confusion. The separate email requirement isn't just bureaucratic red tape - it's actually designed to protect both you and your daughter throughout her entire college journey. Here's something many parents don't realize: your daughter's FSA ID will be her primary way to access federal student aid information for potentially decades, not just during college. She'll use it to check loan balances, apply for income-driven repayment plans, and even access tax benefits related to education. Teaching her to manage this responsibility now (with your support through email forwarding) sets her up for financial independence later. One pro tip I always share: have your daughter write down the security questions and answers you choose together in a physical notebook that you both can access. I've seen too many students get locked out of their accounts years later because they can't remember the name of their first pet or their favorite teacher from childhood. The FSA ID recovery process can take weeks and potentially delay important financial aid deadlines. Also, make sure she uses a password she'll actually remember but that's also secure. A combination of a meaningful phrase plus numbers/symbols that relate to her graduation year or college plans often works well.