FAFSA reprocessing raised my SAI by $7,000 - how is this possible?

This happened to several of my students this year. The Department of Education made corrections to the SAI formula in January, which triggered automatic reprocessing for many applicants. Unfortunately, the adjustments have affected families with certain income and asset profiles more than others, particularly those with multiple income sources or certain types of investments.

Yeah mine went UP too after reprocessing! But only by like $2k. $7k seems extreme. Did you double check that you didnt accidentally report something wrong on your initial application? sometimes the system catches errors during reprocesing

The FAFSA reprocessing this year is primarily affecting applicants in three categories: 1. Families with business income or farm assets 2. Households with significant retirement contributions in the base year 3. Families with multiple students in college simultaneously Which category do you fall into? The formula adjustments are correcting how these factors are weighted in the SAI calculation. Unfortunately, the Federal Student Aid office hasn't been transparent about exactly which elements of the formula changed.

lolol welcome to FAFSA hell 😡 they do this EVERY YEAR. your not supposed to be able to plan or understand anything. thats how they keep us poor ppl confused and desperate

Hey, I actually had the same panick attack last week! My SAI jumped from 9k to 14k after reprocessing. I spent HOURS trying to get through to someone at Federal Student Aid to explain what happened. After getting disconnected 4 times I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual FSA agent within 20 minutes. They have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent explained that business income is now being calculated differently and confirmed my original info was correct. She helped me submit a correction with additional context about our business expenses that brought my SAI back down somewhat.

Contact your college financial aid office IMMEDIATELY! When I had a similar issue last year (not as big an increase as yours though), my school helped me file a Professional Judgment appeal based on the reprocessing. Many schools have special consideration processes for exactly this situation. Don't wait - especially with that March 1 state grant deadline approaching.

Small business owners have been disproportionately affected by this year's SAI formula adjustments. The primary changes involve: 1. How business depreciation is factored into available income 2. The treatment of business losses against other income sources 3. New calculations for how retirement contributions from business income are counted I recommend requesting an itemized SAI calculation from Federal Student Aid, which will show exactly which numbers changed between your original and reprocessed applications. You can then use this documentation to request a professional judgment review from your schools.

Has anyone had any luck getting their SAI actually lowered after reprocessing? Or are we all just screwed this year 😭

UPDATE: I finally got through to someone at Federal Student Aid! They explained that the reprocessing mainly affected how they calculate our small business income. Apparently they're now counting some depreciation expenses that weren't counted before, and something about how retirement contributions are factored in. I've emailed the detailed calculation to all my schools and have appointments with two financial aid offices next week. One school already emailed back saying they have a special appeal process for exactly this situation! Feeling slightly less panicked now.

I'm so glad you were able to get through to someone and get some clarity! This whole situation really highlights how confusing and stressful the FAFSA process can be, especially when changes happen after you've already submitted everything. Your update gives me hope that there are actual solutions available through the appeals process. For anyone else dealing with similar SAI increases after reprocessing, it sounds like the key steps are: 1) Get the detailed calculation from Federal Student Aid, 2) Contact your schools' financial aid offices immediately, 3) Ask specifically about "professional judgment review" and "special circumstances appeal" processes, and 4) Come prepared with all your tax documents including business schedules. Thanks for sharing your experience - it's really helpful to see that there's light at the end of the tunnel even when these massive SAI jumps happen!

This whole FAFSA reprocessing situation is honestly terrifying for so many families right now. I've been working with students affected by these formula changes, and Diego, your $7K increase is unfortunately not uncommon for families with small business income. What's particularly frustrating is that the Department of Education implemented these changes mid-cycle without clear communication about what specifically was being adjusted. For anyone else reading this thread who might be dealing with similar increases: document EVERYTHING. Save screenshots of your original SAI, print out the reprocessing notification email, and gather all your tax documents including every schedule and form. The professional judgment appeals that others have mentioned here really do work, but you need to be prepared with comprehensive documentation. Also, don't just focus on your top choice schools - contact ALL the schools you've applied to. Some have more generous professional judgment policies than others, and this could actually influence your final college decision. The appeals process can take several weeks, so time is really critical right now. Hang in there, Diego - sounds like you're on the right track with those financial aid office appointments!