FAFSA error with parent SSN causing signature loop - student's aid deadline in 1 week!

I dealt with almost the exact same situation with my son last year. The parent signature loop is a nightmare when there's an account conflict. Here's what worked for us: 1. Stop calling the regular FAFSA help line - they're reading from scripts and often give contradictory info 2. Request to speak specifically with the FSA ID resolution team (make it clear this is about conflicting accounts/SSNs) 3. Have your mom check if her name in the system has ANY differences from her Social Security card (hyphens, middle initials, etc.) 4. Ask them to completely remove BOTH accounts and create fresh ones with a new email The automatic processing message you got might be for the incomplete application (they process it even without signatures). When my son finally got through to the right department, they fixed it in about 15 minutes after months of frustration.

call ur school's financial aid offfice ASAP!!!! they can sometimes give u an extension on the deadlines while u sort this out. most schools have emergency procedures 4 fafsa issues. my brother had a similar issue (not exact same) and his college gave him 3 extra weeks to submit everything.

This is unfortunately a common issue with parental SSN errors. The system doesn't handle corrections well because SSNs are used as primary identifiers. A few technical points to understand: 1. When FAFSA "processes" an application, they're just acknowledging receipt, not approving it 2. The paper signature form is processed separately from the digital application, and they often don't update simultaneously 3. Once two accounts exist with conflicting SSN information, it requires manual resolution You need to escalate this to a Tier 2 specialist. Regular customer service reps lack the system access to resolve account conflicts. When you call, immediately ask for a "Federal Student Aid Resolution Specialist" and mention keywords "account merger" and "parent SSN correction." Also, document everything - get the name of every representative you speak with and case reference numbers if available.

OMG literally same thing happened to me!! The whole SSN digit mistake and then getting told to create a new account instead of waiting for corrections. Total disaster. I wasted like 3 weeks calling over and over. The thing that FINALLY worked was getting through to someone who actually knew what they were doing. But getting to that person feels impossible sometimes!

I went through this exact hell last year. Calling FAFSA is usually useless because you'll talk to a different person every time who gives different advice. I eventually got through the signature loop by having my father create a completely new FSA ID with a different email address. We had to wait 3 days for the new FSA ID to be usable, but then it finally worked. Have you tried having your mom create a totally new FSA ID? That might bypass whatever is happening with the existing accounts. Also, if you keep calling FAFSA, try using Claimyr (claimyr.com) - they'll hold your place in line and call you when an agent is available instead of making you wait on hold for hours. Saved me so much time and frustration! You can see how it works in their demo video: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ

SAI calculations won't even start until FAFSA has ALL required signatures. Even when the system says "processed" it just means they've received your form data, not that they've approved it or calculated your aid. Trust me, I work in a financial aid office and see this confusion ALL THE TIME.

Sorry you're dealing with this nightmare. I had a similar issue where the system kept rejecting my mom's information even though we were 100% sure it was correct. After weeks of back-and-forth, we discovered the problem was that my mom had legally changed her name 15 years ago, but the FAFSA system was somehow pulling her maiden name from somewhere. The only thing that worked was getting a live person at Federal Student Aid who had the authority to manually override the system. When you call, you need to use these exact words: "I need to speak with a Federal Student Aid Account Resolution Specialist regarding a parent SSN verification error case." If they try to give you general help, politely but firmly insist on speaking to a specialist. Once we got to the right person, they fixed it in one call. Don't give up - this can be fixed!

just got thru this last month. The paper signature form takes 2-3 WEEKS to process even though tracking says they received it. When u call the FAFSA number u need to specifically ask for a "signature resolution specialist" right away. Don't let them transfer u to general help. Also DONT MISS UR DEADLINE! Email financial aid office at ur school NOW and explain situation. Most will give u a temporary extension while u fix FAFSA!!

BTW if ur mom can't log in to her account anymore, it might be locked from too many failed attempts. That happened to my dad and we had to wait 30 days for it to unlock!!! But there's supposedly a way for them to manually unlock it if u get to the right person.

I feel your pain - I went through something very similar with my daughter's FAFSA last year. The SSN error created a cascade of problems that took months to resolve. Here's what I learned that might help you: 1. When you call tomorrow, ask IMMEDIATELY for the "Federal Student Aid Technical Resolution Department" - not just customer service. Tell them you have a "parent SSN correction case with signature authentication failure." 2. Have your mom gather ALL her identity documents before the call - Social Security card, driver's license, tax returns. Sometimes there are tiny discrepancies (like Jr. vs Junior, or missing middle initials) that cause the system to reject everything. 3. Get a case escalation number and ask for it to be flagged as "urgent due to approaching college deadline." This actually moves you up in their queue. 4. Most importantly - call your college's financial aid office TODAY if possible. Many schools have emergency procedures for FAFSA technical issues and can either extend your deadline or work with provisional aid calculations. Don't give up! This exact situation is more common than you think, and it IS fixable once you get to someone with the right system access. The key is persistence and using the right terminology so they route you to the technical specialists instead of general customer service. Keep us posted on how it goes!

I'm so sorry you're going through this FAFSA nightmare! I had a very similar issue with my parent's SSN being entered incorrectly, and it created this endless loop of signature problems. Here's what finally worked for me: The key breakthrough was when I got connected to what they call a "Federal Student Aid ID Resolution Specialist" (not regular customer service). When you call, say exactly this: "I need a Federal Student Aid ID Resolution Specialist for a parent SSN correction with duplicate account conflicts." Don't let them transfer you to general help. Also, I discovered that when they say your application was "processed," it doesn't mean approved - it just means they received the data. The signature issue is still blocking everything from moving forward. Two immediate things to do: 1. Contact your college's financial aid office ASAP and explain the situation - many have emergency extension procedures for technical FAFSA issues 2. Have your mom check if there are ANY tiny differences in how her name appears on different documents (hyphens, middle initials, Jr/Junior, etc.) - these small discrepancies cause major system conflicts I ended up having to get both accounts completely deleted and start fresh with new FSA IDs, but once I got to the right specialist, they resolved it in about 20 minutes after months of frustration. Don't give up - this is fixable! Keep pushing until you reach someone with actual system access to merge/delete the conflicting accounts.