FAFSA parent contribution section skipped most financial questions - did I miss something?

same thing happened when I did my contributor section last week! I was all prepared with bank statements and everything and then it was just like...done? Felt super weird.

This is actually how the new simplified FAFSA works! The Department of Education made significant changes starting with the 2024-2025 application, and they've streamlined it even further for 2025-2026. They now pull most of your financial information directly from your tax return through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. If you authorized that data transfer, the system already has what it needs to calculate your Student Aid Index (SAI, which replaced the old EFC). They eliminated many of the questions about savings, investments under certain thresholds, and other assets for most families. It's part of the FAFSA Simplification Act. As long as you completed all the questions it presented and signed the form, you've done everything correctly.

Yes, the system should factor in multiple children in college through your tax information and the basic household questions. The new SAI formula automatically applies a divided contributor assessment when you have multiple students in college. That said, the formula IS different from the old EFC formula, so the aid amounts might not be directly comparable to what your son received. If you want to double-check that everything was submitted correctly, you can always log back into studentaid.gov and review your submission. After about 3-5 days, your daughter should be able to see the calculated SAI on her FAFSA dashboard.

I HATE THE NEW SYSTEM!! My son got WAY less aid with this "simplified" version last year because it doesn't account for our medical expenses or the fact that our income looked artificially high due to a one-time insurance payout. When I called to explain the special circumstances, I was on hold FOR 4 HOURS and then got disconnected. TWICE!!! The old system at least let you explain these things on the form. Now they make it "simpler" which really just means less fair for families with complicated situations!!!

If you're worried, you could try calling Federal Student Aid to confirm everything went through properly. My daughter was in a similar situation (felt too easy) but when we called they confirmed everything was submitted correctly. The issue is getting through to someone - I spent two days trying before I discovered Claimyr. It's a service that waits on hold with FSA for you then calls you when an agent picks up. Saved me hours of frustration! Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. Totally worth it to confirm everything was processed correctly.

I've been helping families with FAFSA for years, and yes, the new system is MUCH simpler! But don't worry - simple doesn't mean less accurate. The Federal Student Aid office found that most of those extra questions from the old form didn't significantly impact aid calculations for most families, so they eliminated them. The new formula puts more emphasis on income than assets for most families anyway. For middle-income families, assets below certain protection allowances don't even count in the calculation. So unless you have substantial investments or savings (usually over $10,000 for a family of four), those questions weren't affecting your aid eligibility much anyway. The one thing I do recommend is checking your daughter's SAI once it's calculated, and if it seems unusually high based on your financial situation, you might want to contact her school's financial aid office directly.

my cousin works in a financial aid office and he said they've been getting TONS of calls about this exact thing lol. its normal, the government finally realized no one needs to spend 2 hrs filling out complicated forms when they already have your tax info! pretty much the only people who need to worry about providing extra info are ppl with rental properties, business owners, or people with lots of investments outside retirement accounts.

Thanks everyone for the responses! I feel much better knowing this is normal with the new system. I'll keep an eye out for my daughter's SAI calculation to appear in her account. I appreciate all the helpful information - this community is great!

As someone who just went through this process myself, I can confirm what others have said - the simplified FAFSA really is that quick now! I had the same panic when I completed my son's contributor section in about 15 minutes after expecting it to take forever. The IRS data transfer really does pull most of what they need automatically. One tip though - make sure you save or screenshot the confirmation page after submitting, just for your records. It gives you peace of mind to have that proof of submission while you wait for the SAI to be calculated. The whole streamlined process is actually a huge improvement once you get used to it!