FAFSA household size vs tax dependents mismatch - did I just mess up our SAI calculation?

dont worry too much. ya the system doesnt know u have twins automatically. gotta tell it. family of 4 sounds right - 2 parents + 2 kids in college. u fixed it

You absolutely did the right thing by correcting this! The FAFSA doesn't automatically know your family composition - you need to explicitly tell it. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, the household size question is critically important because it directly impacts your SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation. A family of 4 with 2 college students will typically receive a more favorable SAI than a family of 3 with 1 college student, assuming all other factors are equal. The protection allowance increases with family size, which reduces the portion of income that's considered available for college expenses. Don't worry about the correction triggering a review. These types of adjustments are common and expected during the application process.

WATCH OUT!!! when i did this same thing last year they flagged our app for verification and we had to submit extra tax docs to prove family size... took FOREVER and almost missed scholarship deadlines

Your definitely right to change it to a family of 4! The FAFSA is super confusing with those household questions. We messed up our application THREE TIMES last year because of the household vs. tax dependent stuff. The trick is that FAFSA household size can be different from tax dependents - like if you support someone who isn't on your taxes. But in your case, since both kids are dependents AND in college, you need them both counted in household size. Good catch!!

Wait I'm confused now. I thought the question was asking if your CURRENT family size is different from what was on your 2022 taxes? Like if you had a new baby or someone moved out since 2022? That's how I interpreted it...

my college advisor told me this is literally the most common FAFSA mistake families make! the household size vs dependents thing is super confusing. you definitely want both your kids counted in the household size AND make sure to put "2" for the number in college question too

Update on potential impacts: Since you caught and fixed this before the application was fully processed, it shouldn't cause any delays. The system recalculates your SAI based on the corrected information. With twins both attending college simultaneously, you've actually hit what financial aid advisors call the "college sibling sweet spot" - where the formula significantly reduces each student's expected contribution because it recognizes the family resources are split between multiple students. This correction could improve your SAI by several thousand dollars depending on your income level. When colleges receive the corrected information, they'll use the updated SAI for their aid packages.

You absolutely made the right call fixing this! I went through the exact same situation with my twins two years ago and initially made the same mistake. The FAFSA system really doesn't make it intuitive that you need to manually specify your full household size when it differs from tax dependents. Here's what helped me feel more confident about the correction: I called the Federal Student Aid Information Center (1-800-433-3243) after making a similar change and they confirmed that corrections like this are completely normal and expected. They actually said they'd rather see families fix errors than leave them incorrect. The timing of your correction is perfect since you caught it before final processing. And yes, having two kids in college simultaneously should definitely work in your favor for aid calculations - the system recognizes that your family income needs to stretch across multiple tuitions. Don't let the verification horror stories scare you too much. While it's possible, most household size corrections don't automatically trigger verification, especially when the change makes logical sense (like accounting for twins both attending college).

You definitely did the right thing by correcting this! I work in a high school guidance office and see this exact mix-up all the time with families who have multiple kids applying for college. The FAFSA household size question is honestly one of the most confusing parts of the whole application. What you fixed is crucial - the system needs to know your true household composition to calculate your SAI accurately. With twins both in college, you should see a significant benefit in your aid eligibility compared to what it would have calculated with the incorrect family size of 3. One tip for peace of mind: log back in and double-check that both daughters' applications show consistent household information (same family size of 4, both listing each other as household members attending college). Consistency across applications helps avoid any potential flags during processing. You caught this at the perfect time - making corrections during the application process is totally normal and much better than trying to fix it after submission!

You handled this perfectly! As someone who just went through this same process last year with my daughter, I can tell you that correcting household size is one of the most common and necessary fixes families make on the FAFSA. The system absolutely cannot guess your family composition - you have to explicitly tell it. What you did - changing from 3 to 4 people - is exactly right for your situation with twins. And honestly, you're lucky you caught it when you did! I know someone who didn't notice this error until after their kid was already enrolled and had to go through appeals processes to get their aid recalculated. The "college sibling sweet spot" mentioned earlier is real. My neighbor has twins who are juniors now, and she always talks about how much better their aid packages were compared to families with just one kid in college. The formula really does account for the fact that your household income has to stretch across two tuitions simultaneously. Try not to stress about verification - while it's possible, most straightforward corrections like this don't trigger additional review. And even if they do ask for more documentation, you have legitimate twins attending college, so there's nothing questionable about your household size claim.

You absolutely made the right decision by correcting this! I'm a financial aid officer at a state university and I see this exact mistake constantly - families with multiple college-bound children who initially undercount their household size because the FAFSA wording is confusing. What you fixed is actually huge for your aid eligibility. The difference between a 3-person household with 1 college student versus a 4-person household with 2 college students is substantial in the SAI calculation. The formula gives you credit for both the larger family size AND the fact that you have multiple children in college simultaneously. Don't worry about the timing of your correction - this is exactly what the system is designed to handle. Making updates during the application period is completely normal and expected. The recalculated SAI should be significantly more favorable for your family's situation. Quick tip: Make sure both daughters' FAFSAs are consistent with the household information you just corrected. They should both show family size of 4 and both should indicate there are 2 household members attending college this year.

You definitely made the right choice fixing this! I made a similar error with my triplets (yes, triplets!) two years ago and it was such a relief when I caught it before final submission. The FAFSA household size vs tax dependents confusion gets SO many families - you're definitely not alone in this. What really helped me was keeping a simple list of who counts for FAFSA household size: parents + all children you support more than 50% (regardless of whether they're tax dependents) + anyone else living with you that you support more than 50%. In your case with twins both in college, that's clearly 2 parents + 2 kids = 4 people. The timing is perfect since you fixed it during the application window. And honestly, having multiple kids in college simultaneously is one of the few times the FAFSA formula actually works in families' favor! The system recognizes that your resources are stretched across multiple tuitions and adjusts accordingly. Don't let the verification warnings stress you out too much. Yes, it can happen, but straightforward corrections like yours rarely trigger it. And even if they do select you, having twins in college is pretty easy to document if needed. You've got this!

You absolutely did the right thing by correcting this! I'm a parent who went through the FAFSA process with my own kids, and the household size question trips up so many families - you're definitely not alone in making this initial mistake. The key thing to remember is that FAFSA household size includes everyone you provide more than half support for, regardless of whether they're claimed as tax dependents. With twins both attending college, you clearly have a household of 4 (you + spouse + both daughters), and the system needs that accurate count to calculate your SAI properly. Your timing for this correction is actually perfect - much better to fix it now during the application process than trying to sort it out later. And having two kids in college simultaneously should work significantly in your favor. The formula recognizes that your family income has to stretch across multiple tuitions and adjusts your expected contribution accordingly. Don't stress too much about potential verification. While it's possible, most routine corrections like this don't trigger additional review. You caught a legitimate error and fixed it with accurate information - that's exactly what the system is designed to handle. You're going to be fine!

You definitely made the right choice correcting this! I'm currently going through the FAFSA process for the first time with my oldest, and reading through all these responses has been incredibly educational. The household size question is so confusingly worded - I can totally see how you initially thought the system would automatically know about both twins. It's really reassuring to see so many people confirming that corrections like this are normal and expected. I was also worried about making any changes to our FAFSA once we submitted it, but it sounds like fixing errors during the application window is actually encouraged. The "college sibling sweet spot" concept mentioned by several people here gives me hope too since we'll likely have two kids in college overlapping for a couple years. Thank you for posting this question - your experience and everyone's helpful responses have probably saved other families from making the same mistake!

You absolutely did the right thing by fixing this! I'm a college student whose parents went through this exact same situation with my twin brother and me three years ago. They made the identical mistake initially - answered "No" thinking the system would automatically know we were both dependents, then panicked when they realized it only counted one of us in the household size. When they corrected it to show family of 4 with 2 in college, our SAI dropped significantly and we both qualified for much better aid packages. The "twin effect" is real - having two kids in college simultaneously really does help with aid eligibility because the formula recognizes your family's resources are split between multiple students. Don't worry about verification either. My parents were terrified about that too, but our applications went through smoothly without any additional review. The correction you made is logical and backed up by easily verifiable information (you clearly have twins both attending college). You caught this at the perfect time during the application window. Trust me, you saved yourself and your daughters from potentially missing out on thousands of dollars in aid eligibility. Both my brother and I are so grateful our parents caught and fixed this same error!

You made absolutely the right decision correcting this! As someone who's helped several families through the FAFSA process, I can tell you that the household size vs tax dependents confusion is probably the #1 mistake I see every year. The wording is genuinely confusing and the system definitely doesn't automatically know your family composition. Your correction from 3 to 4 people is spot-on for your situation. With twins both in college, you should see a meaningful improvement in your SAI calculation. The formula accounts for both the larger household size AND the fact that your income needs to cover two college students simultaneously - it's actually one of the few ways the FAFSA works in families' favor! Don't stress about the timing either. Making corrections during the application window is completely normal and much better than discovering this error after everything is processed. You caught it at exactly the right time to benefit your daughters' aid eligibility.

You absolutely made the right call fixing this! As a parent who went through the exact same panic last year, I can tell you that correcting household size is one of the most common FAFSA fixes families make. The system really doesn't make it intuitive that you need to manually input your complete family composition. What you corrected - going from 3 to 4 people - is crucial for your aid calculation. With twins both attending college, you've actually positioned yourself for what financial aid folks call the "multiple student benefit." The formula recognizes that your family income has to stretch across two tuitions simultaneously and adjusts your expected contribution accordingly. I was terrified about making corrections too, but it turned out to be completely routine. The system is designed to handle updates during the application period, and yours was caught at the perfect time. Don't let verification horror stories scare you - most straightforward household corrections like yours process smoothly without additional review. Your daughters should see much better aid eligibility with the corrected SAI calculation. Sometimes the scariest FAFSA mistakes are actually the ones that save you the most money when you fix them!