FAFSA parent signature issue - removed myself twice & can't sign as non-filing parent
Help! I'm stuck in FAFSA parent signature limbo! My son created his FAFSA account back in February and sent contributor invites to me and my wife. We accepted and created a shared contributor account since we're married. I selected "filing separately" since my wife has no reportable income for 2023 (she's a stay-at-home mom). After I completed my consent and digital signature parts, we can't find anywhere for my wife to provide her consent/signature even though the Submit button is visible. It shows "In Progress" under "My Activity" but seems stuck there. My wife accidentally clicked "remove myself from this form" TWICE trying to fix it, which completely wiped everything and forced our son to resend invites both times! Should we just submit with only my signature and explain to the financial aid office? Or should she create a separate contributor account even though we've indicated "filing separately"? The application deadline is next week and we're desperate!
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Ravi Kapoor
same thing happened 2 us!! my husband has income & i dont and we couldnt figure out how to both sign. we ended up just having him sign it and submit. the school financial aid office called us later and had me verify over the phone that i wasnt filing. they were ok with it.
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CosmicVoyager
•That's somewhat reassuring! Did they make you fill out any additional paperwork or was the phone verification enough? I'm worried about the application being flagged for verification if we don't get this right.
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Ravi Kapoor
•just phone was fine for us. they said its a common problem with the new fafsa system this year lots of parents having this issue
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Freya Nielsen
This is a known issue with the 2025-2026 FAFSA. When a married couple selects "filing separately" and one spouse has no income to report, the system sometimes fails to generate the signature page for the non-filing spouse. Here's what you should do: 1. Take screenshots of everything showing both contributors are listed 2. Submit the FAFSA with just your signature 3. Immediately contact your son's school's financial aid office to explain 4. Be prepared to provide a signed statement from your wife confirming her non-filing status DON'T create separate accounts - this will cause more problems. The school can make a professional judgment adjustment once you explain the situation.
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CosmicVoyager
•Thank you for the clear advice! I'll take screenshots tonight and submit with just my signature. Should my wife prepare a written statement now or wait until the school requests it?
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Freya Nielsen
•It's best to prepare it now so you have it ready. A simple signed statement saying "I, [wife's name], confirm I had no income for tax year 2023 and did not file taxes." Include her name, your son's name, and his FAFSA ID if possible. This proactive approach will speed up processing.
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Omar Mahmoud
The FAFSA people seriously messed up this new system!! I spent 5 HOURS trying to figure this out for my twins applications!!! When we called the FSA hotline they just put us on hold FOREVER and then disconnected us. Has anyone actually managed to get through to a human at the Federal Student Aid office???
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Chloe Harris
•I was having the exact same problem with getting disconnected after waiting forever. I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to connect with an actual FSA agent on my third try. They have this service that holds your place in line and calls you back when an agent is available. Saved me a ton of time and frustration. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent confirmed this is a known issue with the signature page for non-filing spouses. They told me to submit with just one signature and then contact the school.
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Diego Vargas
This is why im so confused about the new FAFSA. The instructions are so unclear!! For your situation, I think what's happening is that since your wife isn't filing taxes, the system doesn't recognize that she needs to sign. I would just submit with your signature and then immediately email the financial aid office at your son's school with an explanation.
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CosmicVoyager
•That's what I'm leaning toward doing. It's frustrating because the instructions specifically state both parents need to sign, but the system doesn't give us a way to do it!
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NeonNinja
This is my third time filling out FAFSA, and the new system is SO much worse than the old one. I would recommend taking screenshots of everything showing both you and your wife are listed as contributors. Then submit with just your signature, but immediately call the school's financial aid office to explain the situation. They've probably encountered this issue before with the new system and can tell you the best way to handle it. Don't miss the deadline waiting for a perfect solution - an incomplete FAFSA is better than a late one!
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CosmicVoyager
•That's great advice about not missing the deadline. I'll submit today and call the school tomorrow. It's a relief to hear we're not the only ones struggling with this new system!
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Anastasia Popov
i dont think your supposed to do filing separately on fafsa if your married and live together the irs website says that filing status is for if your separated or don't live together maybe thats why its messing up
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Freya Nielsen
•That's a common misunderstanding. For tax purposes, "Married Filing Separately" is available to all married couples regardless of living situation. For FAFSA, you select the tax filing status you actually used. The confusion here isn't about the filing status selection - it's a known technical issue with the signature process for non-filing spouses in the new FAFSA system.
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CosmicVoyager
UPDATE: I followed the advice here and submitted with just my signature, then called my son's school financial aid office. They said this is happening to LOTS of families and gave us a special form for my wife to sign confirming her non-filing status. They put a note in our file and said it won't delay his aid package. Thank you all for the help!!!
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NeonNinja
•So glad it worked out! Thanks for updating us - this will help other families who run into the same issue.
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