FAFSA results taking forever - when will colleges receive our 2025-2026 applications?
Has anyone heard ANYTHING about when colleges are getting our FAFSA info? We submitted 4 applications for my family (2 in college, 2 starting next fall) back on December 15th, and the studentaid.gov site just says 'processing' for all of them. No SAI scores yet, no confirmation they've been sent to schools. Called our top-choice university yesterday and they said they haven't received ANY FAFSA data for 2025-2026 applicants yet! Is the whole system backed up? Anyone have their results sent to schools already or know when this is supposed to happen?
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Anthony Young
Nope, nothing here either. Applied January 3rd for my daughter and it's still showing as processing. Her school's financial aid office told her they're expecting a 'batch transfer' of FAFSA data sometime in early February, but couldn't give an exact date. Apparently the whole system is backed up because of the new FAFSA simplification changes. Super frustrating since scholarships deadlines are coming up soon and those require knowing your aid eligibility.
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Aurora Lacasse
•Early February?! That's ridiculous. My son's housing deposit is due February 15th and we need to know if we can afford the school before paying that $750 non-refundable fee. Why would they change the whole system during application season?
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Charlotte White
The Department of Education announced they're experiencing delays with the new FAFSA system rollout. The first batch of applications should be transmitted to colleges in late January, with continuous processing afterward. Some key points to know: - They're prioritizing processing chronologically (first submitted, first processed) - Your SAI score should be visible before your information is sent to schools - Colleges are aware of the delays and many are extending their financial aid deadlines - If you need to check on your specific application, you can call Federal Student Aid at 1-800-433-3243 Remember that all schools received notification about these delays, so they should be adjusting their timelines accordingly.
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Admin_Masters
•thx for this info! was worried my app got lost in the system or something. good to know its just slow for everyone!
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Aurora Lacasse
•Thank you for the detailed info. Do you know if we'll get some kind of notification when our applications are sent to schools? I keep checking studentaid.gov daily but nothing changes.
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Matthew Sanchez
My niece got her SAI score yesterday! She applied on December 10th, so maybe they really are going in order? It was showing as "processing" for over a month, then suddenly the SAI appeared. Her status now says "Processed - Sent to Schools" so I think they're finally starting to move things along.
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Ella Thompson
•This gives me hope! We submitted on December 12th so maybe we're next in line. Did your niece get any email notification when her status changed or did she just happen to check the website?
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Matthew Sanchez
•No email at all! She just happened to check the site yesterday and noticed it had changed. I'd recommend checking your account daily at this point if you applied in December.
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JacksonHarris
I work in a university financial aid office, and I can confirm we haven't received ANY 2025-2026 FAFSA data yet. The Department of Education informed all schools that the first batch of data should arrive in the last week of January, with regular transmissions following. Because of this delay, most schools are adjusting their priority deadlines and scholarship timelines. If you have urgent deadlines approaching (like housing deposits), contact your school's financial aid office directly. Many institutions are setting up alternative verification processes to conditionally award aid while waiting for official FAFSA data.
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Aurora Lacasse
•Thank you! I'll call the school tomorrow about the housing deposit situation. Do you have any insight on why they'd launch a completely new system during the middle of application season instead of waiting until next year?
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JacksonHarris
•Great question! The implementation of the FAFSA Simplification Act was actually delayed multiple times. It was originally scheduled to launch for the 2023-2024 aid year, then pushed to 2024-2025, and finally implemented for 2025-2026. The Department of Education was under Congressional mandate to implement these changes, even though many in higher education advocated for a slower rollout. The changes themselves are positive (simpler form, better access for low-income students), but the timing and execution have created these unfortunate delays.
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Jeremiah Brown
Anyone else having trouble even getting through to the Federal Student Aid helpline? I've been trying for THREE DAYS to speak with someone about our application status. Every time I call, I wait on hold for 45+ minutes and then get disconnected! So frustrating when we have scholarship deadlines coming up that require our FAFSA information.
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Ella Thompson
•I had the exact same problem! After getting disconnected 4 times, I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through. It's this service that holds your place in the phone queue and calls you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of frustration. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Got connected to a real person in about 20 minutes and they confirmed our application was in the system and should be processed soon.
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Jeremiah Brown
•Thank you! I'll check that out. At this point I'll try anything to get some answers. Did they tell you when your application might be processed?
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Ella Thompson
•The agent I spoke with didn't give me an exact date, but confirmed our application was "in the queue" and that they're processing December applications now. She said to keep checking the studentaid.gov site daily.
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Matthew Sanchez
THIS IS SO DUMB! They completely redesign the system, delay the release by MONTHS, and then still can't process applications in a timely manner?? My daughter can't commit to a college until we know what aid she'll get. She might have to take a gap year at this rate! ðŸ˜
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Admin_Masters
•i feel u. my sons stressing about picking a school with no idea what we can afford. system is totally broken
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Aurora Lacasse
•I know, right? And the schools act like we're being difficult when we tell them we can't make a decision yet. Not everyone has $70k sitting around to pay for a year of college without knowing what aid is coming!
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Anthony Young
Just a quick update - my daughter's application status changed to "Processed" this morning! We applied Dec 14th, so it looks like they're making progress through the December applications now. Still no SAI score showing though, which is weird.
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Aurora Lacasse
•That's great news! I just checked and one of our four applications (my oldest son's) now says "Processed" too! Applied Dec 15th. Still nothing on the other three though. Progress is progress I guess.
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Charlotte White
For those still waiting, here's what to expect in the coming weeks: 1. Your status will change from "Processing" to "Processed" 2. Your SAI should appear on your dashboard 3. Schools will receive your data within 3-5 days after processing 4. Most colleges will begin sending financial aid packages 2-3 weeks after receiving FAFSA data If you have specific deadlines approaching, don't hesitate to contact your schools directly. Most institutions are being flexible this year given the nationwide delays.
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Aurora Lacasse
•Thank you for this timeline! Just one more question - will we receive an email notification when our SAI is calculated, or do we need to keep checking the studentaid.gov site manually?
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Charlotte White
•While the system is supposed to send email notifications, many users report not receiving them. I'd recommend checking your studentaid.gov account directly at least every few days to be safe. You can also sign up for text alerts in your communication preferences which seem to be more reliable than the emails.
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StarGazer101
Just wanted to chime in as someone who's been through this process before (though not with the new system). The waiting is absolutely brutal, especially when you're trying to make major financial decisions. One thing that helped us last cycle was creating a spreadsheet with all the schools' adjusted deadlines and financial aid timelines. Most schools have posted updated information on their websites about FAFSA delays - it's worth checking each school's financial aid page for their specific policies this year. Also, if you haven't already, make sure you have your FSA ID saved and check that all your schools are listed correctly in your FAFSA. Hang in there everyone - this too shall pass!
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