FAFSA multiple child timing question - can I submit parent portion for one without the other?

You can absolutely complete the parent portion for your daughter without waiting for your son. Each student's FAFSA is a separate application, even though the parent information will be the same for both children. The system doesn't require all your children to submit at the same time. When your son eventually completes his portion and sends you the parent invite, you'll enter the same financial information again (though the system might help pre-fill some of it). The good news is that your children's aid calculations won't affect each other - each FAFSA is processed independently.

Don't wait on your son!!! My daughter almost missed out on first-round housing because we waited for my son to get his act together lol. Each kid has their own separate FAFSA.

One thing to keep in mind - make sure you're listing BOTH children as college students in the household section when you fill out each FAFSA. The number of family members in college significantly impacts your SAI calculation and potential aid amounts. It's one of the most important factors in determining aid eligibility.

I went through this last year and the FSA website was a NIGHTMARE. Kept getting errors when trying to link my parent portion to my second child, then got locked out completely. Ended up spending 3 days trying to reach someone at Federal Student Aid. Finally found Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual FSA agent in about 15 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent confirmed each student's application is separate, but they told me to make sure I used identical parent information on both FAFSAs to avoid verification flags.

its totally fine do them separate my 3 kids all did fafsa different months didnt matter. just make sure u use same exakt numbers for both kids parent sections or they might get flagged for verfication which is a huge pain

Here's something important to understand about the 2025-26 FAFSA that differs from previous years: The new FAFSA uses what's called a "Student Aid Index" (SAI) instead of the old EFC. With multiple students, each student gets their OWN SAI calculation. Under the old system, the EFC would be divided among multiple students, but that's NOT how the new system works. Each student gets their complete SAI, but the formula does factor in multiple students by applying a "multiple in college" adjustment to your contribution calculation. So yes, complete your daughter's FAFSA now - the benefit of having multiple students will still be factored in even if your son's application is submitted later.

Wait I thought they got rid of the sibling discount on the new FAFSA? Wasn't that one of the big controversial changes?

Thank you all for the helpful responses! I'm going to go ahead and complete my daughter's parent portion now without waiting for my son. I'll make sure to indicate that there will be 2 college students in our household for 2025-26. And I'll be extra careful to use identical financial information when I eventually do my son's FAFSA to avoid verification issues. This has been so much more helpful than the information on the studentaid.gov website!

Great advice everyone! Just wanted to add one more thing that helped me when I went through this with my twins last year - create a simple document or spreadsheet with all your financial information (AGI, taxes paid, assets, etc.) before you start either FAFSA. This way you have one master reference that ensures you enter identical information for both children. I also included the dates I completed each section so I could track my progress. Made the whole process much smoother and eliminated any worry about inconsistent data entry!

As a parent who just went through this process, I can confirm what everyone else is saying - definitely submit your daughter's FAFSA parent portion now! Don't wait for your son. I made that mistake with my older two kids a few years back and almost missed priority deadlines. One thing I'll add that I learned the hard way: when you're filling out the household information, make absolutely sure you count your son as being "in college" for the 2025-26 academic year, even though he's currently just a sophomore in high school. The FAFSA is asking about the upcoming academic year (2025-26), not the current year. This is a common mistake that can cost families thousands in aid eligibility. Also, keep detailed notes of every number you enter - bank account balances, investment values, the exact date you're using for asset reporting, etc. When you do your son's FAFSA later, you'll want those figures to match exactly to avoid verification headaches.