FAFSA signature mysteriously 'missing' after we signed in January - now application delayed?

This exact thing happened to my son last month! We had to log back in and re-sign the FAFSA - apparently there's some kind of glitch in their system where signatures sometimes don't get recorded properly even when you do everything right. Make sure you're using the FSA IDs correctly (sometimes parents mix up their FSA ID with the student's). When you go back in to re-sign, take screenshots of the confirmation page as proof.

Thanks for the response! That's so frustrating that this is a known issue. We definitely used the right FSA IDs because we set them up together that same day. I'll try re-signing tonight. Did your son's financial aid get delayed because of this, or did they process it quickly once you fixed the signature issue?

gotta love the dept of education lol. happens ALL THE TIME. their system is garbage. good luck getting someone on the phone to fix it

I tried calling the Federal Student Aid number this morning and was on hold for 47 minutes before I had to hang up for a work meeting. So frustrating!

I work in a college financial aid office, and this is unfortunately a common issue. There are a few possibilities for what happened:\n\n1. Sometimes the signatures appear to go through but don't properly save in the system (technical glitch)\n2. You may have signed the wrong academic year (2024-2025 vs. 2025-2026)\n3. If you made corrections to the FAFSA after initially signing, new signatures are required\n4. Browser compatibility issues can sometimes prevent proper signature recording\n\nThe good news is this is fixable. Log in at studentaid.gov, check the 'Action Required' section, and follow the signature prompts. This should only take about 5 minutes to correct. Your daughter's SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation will begin once both signatures are properly received.

Thank you so much for this detailed explanation! We definitely signed for the correct year, but we did make a small correction to my husband's W-2 information about a week after the initial submission. That must be why it's asking for signatures again. I had no idea we needed to re-sign after making corrections! I'll take care of this tonight.

If you need to get this resolved quickly, I recommend using Claimyr to get through to a Federal Student Aid agent without the horrible wait times. I was dealing with a similar signature verification issue and was getting nowhere after days of trying to call. Used the service at claimyr.com and they got me connected to an agent in about 10 minutes. They have a video demo of how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ\n\nThe agent was able to verify exactly what happened with our signatures and guided me through fixing it while on the phone. Saved me days of stress since my daughter's housing deposit deadline was approaching.

is this legit? sounds kinda sketchy to pay someone just to make a phone call for you

They don't make the call for you - they help you skip the hold time so you can talk directly to the FSA agent yourself. It's basically a system that waits on hold so you don't have to. I was skeptical too, but when you're facing financial aid deadlines and can't get through on the phone, it's worth it.

After you re-sign, it usually takes 3-5 business days for the signature to process, then another 5-7 days for your SAI calculation to be sent to schools. Make sure you contact your daughter's financial aid office directly to let them know you've fixed the signature issue! Sometimes they can expedite the process on their end if they know you've resolved the problem, especially if there are scholarship deadlines coming up.

That's really good advice about contacting the school directly - I wouldn't have thought of that! Her university has a May 1 deadline for accepting the financial aid package, so hopefully this won't cause her to miss that. I'll give the financial aid office a call tomorrow after we get the signatures fixed tonight.

The same thing happened to my FAFSA! It's so annoying how they make the system so complicated. I missed out on a scholarship because of delays due to their mistake, not mine. The whole FAFSA process is broken. They say they

I'm sorry that happened to you. For future reference, if you ever face a similar situation where FAFSA delays are affecting scholarship eligibility, you can request an exception from the scholarship committee with documentation of the FAFSA issues. Many schools have appeal processes specifically for circumstances beyond the student's control.

UPDATE: We logged in last night and found the signature page. You were right @profile2 - it was because we made that correction to the W-2 info. We both signed again and got confirmation numbers. I also called my daughter's school this morning to let them know we fixed the signature issue. They said they'd make a note in her file and that her financial aid package should be processed within 7-10 days once they receive the completed FAFSA. Thanks everyone for your help!

Excellent! That timeline sounds accurate. The school can't finalize her financial aid package until they receive her SAI from the Department of Education, but having that note in her file helps. If you don't see any updates in your studentaid.gov account within 5 business days, I'd recommend checking back in with them.