FAFSA spouse DOB entry keeps looping and won't accept information

omg same thing happened to me last week!! Try putting in the date with dashes instead of slashes (like 01-15-1990 not 01/15/1990). That worked for me after like 6 tries.

There's a known issue with the spouse information page in the current FAFSA system. The problem isn't actually with the date format but with how the system is validating the information against SSA records. Here's what worked for multiple students I've helped: 1. Sign out completely from your FAFSA account 2. Clear browser cache and cookies 3. Wait at least 30 minutes (the system needs time to reset your session) 4. Sign back in and go directly to the spouse information page 5. Enter the information but add your spouse's middle initial if you haven't already The system sometimes has trouble matching records without the middle initial. If that doesn't work, there might be a mismatch between your spouse's name as entered in the FAFSA and how it appears in Social Security records.

the whole FAFSA site is a JOKE. i got stuck for 3 weeks on the parent info section and missed my school's priority deadline. now i prob wont get as much aid. thanks alot dept of education!!1!

I had this exact problem and none of the normal troubleshooting worked. You know what finally fixed it? Using Claimyr to get through to an actual FSA agent on the phone. I was getting nowhere with the online system but the agent was able to see that there was a data verification error happening in my account. They fixed something on their end and then I could continue my application. The video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ shows how it works. After wasting days trying to fix it myself, getting through to a real person was the only solution.

This is a persistent issue with the redesigned FAFSA system. I can confirm a few additional troubleshooting steps that have worked for students I've advised: 1. Verify that you're using the EXACT name that appears on your spouse's Social Security card. Even small differences can cause the looping issue. 2. If your spouse has multiple last names or a hyphenated name, try entering it exactly as it appears on Social Security records (with or without spaces/hyphens). 3. Check if there might be a status issue - if your spouse is not a U.S. citizen, make sure you've selected the correct citizenship status before entering the DOB. 4. Try entering the full four-digit year of birth rather than two digits. If none of these solutions work, you'll need to speak with an FSA representative directly. They can manually override certain validation errors in the system.

i had to call FSA like 12 times to get this fixed last month when i was doing my fafsa. turned out my husbands birthday was wrong in their system somehow??? the whole site is messed up since they "improved" it lol

anyone know if this will affect my SAI calculation? like if the system keeps rejecting info will it calculate wrong??

To those still having issues: I've found that some browsers work better than others with the FAFSA site. Edge and Firefox seem to have fewer problems than Chrome. Also, make sure you're using a desktop/laptop rather than a mobile device when possible. The mobile experience often has more glitches. And remember to report any technical issues through the feedback link on the FAFSA site - they do actually use that data to fix problems.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Been stuck on the spouse DOB page for hours. One thing I noticed is that when I tried using Safari instead of Chrome, I got a slightly different error behavior - it actually showed me a brief validation message before looping back. The message mentioned something about "records verification" which makes me think it's definitely a backend issue with matching Social Security data like others have mentioned. I'm going to try the suggestions about the middle initial and name formatting. Really hoping the Department of Education fixes these technical problems soon because this is incredibly stressful when you're trying to meet deadlines!

I'm going through the exact same nightmare right now! I've been battling this spouse DOB loop for three days straight and I'm losing my mind. What's really frustrating is that the system worked fine for all my other information, but just completely breaks down on this one field. I've tried literally everything - different browsers, clearing cache, different devices, using dashes vs slashes for the date format, and nothing works. The most maddening part is that there's no actual error message, it just silently loops you back like nothing happened. I'm definitely going to try the suggestions about the middle initial and name formatting without hyphens. Has anyone had success getting through to FSA recently? I've been trying to call for days but keep getting disconnected due to high call volume. This whole redesigned FAFSA system feels like a complete disaster - how are students supposed to meet deadlines when the basic functionality doesn't even work?