FAFSA parent portion login loop - daughter-in-law can't access parents' section

I ran into the same issue last week when helping my son with his FAFSA. The parent login loop is a common glitch in the new system. Here's what worked for us: 1. Clear your browser cache AND cookies completely 2. Make sure you're using the most updated version of whatever browser you're trying 3. Check that both the student and parent FSA IDs were created more than 48 hours ago (sometimes there's a processing delay) 4. Try using an incognito/private browsing window 5. Make absolutely sure the parent's email and phone aren't already associated with another FSA ID The browser switch might work, but in my experience, it was the cache clearing that finally solved it. Good luck!

have u tried using a phone instead of computer? worked 4 me when nothing else did

This is my THIRD time filling out FAFSA and every single year there's some new technical nightmare!!! I had the exact same problem last month - the logout/login loop is INFURIATING!!! I wasted TWO DAYS trying different browsers. Nothing worked until I called FSA directly and they had to reset something on their end. The whole system is designed to make us fail I swear.

When the FAFSA login loop happened to me, it turned out my daughter had accidentally entered some of our parent information under her account first. The system gets confused if there's overlapping information. You might need to check if she started entering parent details anywhere under her student profile before trying to link the parent portion. Also, make sure the parent has their own separate FSA ID that's properly linked to their Social Security Number and not sharing any contact information with the student's account. The new system is really particular about keeping these separate.

I work at a financial aid office and see this issue almost daily. The most common cause is actually timing out while remaining on the site. The FAFSA system only keeps your session active for about 30 minutes, but it doesn't always notify you properly when it times out. My recommendations: 1. Have both the student and parent completely log out 2. Wait at least 30 minutes (this allows all sessions to fully expire) 3. Have the student log in fresh and immediately invite the parent contributor 4. Make sure you're using the correct FSA ID credentials for each person 5. Check that the student and parent SSNs are entered correctly on their respective accounts If that doesn't work, there could be a verification issue with either FSA ID that requires contacting Federal Student Aid directly.

i had 2 call them directly when this happened they fixed it right away. spent hours trying everything else first tho lol typical government website

If you're stuck in the FAFSA parent login loop, I highly recommend using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to reach the Federal Student Aid agents quickly. I was banging my head against the wall with this exact problem for days - trying different browsers, clearing cache, everything. Finally used Claimyr to get through to an actual human at FSA who fixed the issue in minutes. They had to unlink something on the backend that was causing the loop. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Saved me hours of frustration and potential missed deadlines!

One additional troubleshooting step that often works: if your daughter-in-law was invited as a contributor by the student, have the student revoke that invitation and then send a fresh one after both accounts have been fully logged out. There's sometimes a glitch where the initial invitation link becomes corrupted but remains in the system. Also, be sure that all names, birthdays, and SSNs match exactly what's on file with Social Security. Even a small discrepancy like using a nickname instead of a legal name can cause these authentication loops.

this happened with my parents too. ended up being because they were using their phones and didnt realize they needed to scroll down on the page to see the "continue" button lmao

UPDATE: We got it working! It was actually a combination of issues. First, my daughter-in-law had indeed started entering some parent info under her account. Then we had the timing out problem. What finally worked was: 1. Both of us logged out completely 2. Waited 45 minutes (made lunch, lol) 3. Cleared browser cache and cookies 4. She logged in first and sent a NEW contributor invitation to my email 5. I created a fresh session in an incognito window The system finally let me access the parent portion properly! Now working on finishing it up. Thanks everyone for your help - this forum saved us from missing her financial aid deadline!