FAFSA stuck after adding parent contributor - can't open 2024-2025 form in My Activities

omg same EXACT thing happened to me last week! thought it was just my crappy internet but its def the site. try logging out completely, wait like 20 min, then log back in. worked for me but took 3 tries.

I had this issue too but for me it was because my mom hadn't finished her part even though she accepted the invite. The system gets stuck in this weird state when the parent accepts but doesn't complete their section. Try having your dad log in to see if he has pending tasks.

The new FAFSA is having tons of technical issues. My daughter had something similar happen when she added me. What fixed it for us was both logging out, then I (the parent) had to log in FIRST and complete my entire contribution section. Only after I submitted my part could she access the form again. It's completely backward from how it should work but that's the workaround.

This is a known issue with the 2024-2025 FAFSA. When a contributor is added but hasn't completed their section, the main applicant sometimes gets locked out. Here's what you need to do: 1. Have your parent log in and complete ALL their sections 2. After they submit, wait approximately 24 hours (the system needs to sync) 3. You should then be able to access the form again If this doesn't work, you may need to contact Federal Student Aid directly. They can manually reset your application status.

I had to call the Federal Student Aid office to fix this exact problem. Took me 3 days of trying to get through on their phone lines. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get past the wait times - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. The FSA agent told me this is happening because there's a background verification process that sometimes gets stuck when multiple users are working on the same FAFSA. They had to manually reset my application status on their end.

There's actually another workaround I found that might save you some time. If you go to the FSA website (not through the app) and click on "Start a New FAFSA" instead of trying to access your existing one, it'll detect that you already have one in progress and ask if you want to continue it. That bypass worked for me when I had the same issue with my application freezing after adding my stepdad as a contributor.

Just want to share my experience since I see a lot of parents here… my son added me as a contributor last month & we had this exact same issue. In addition to the form not opening, my son got an email saying there was an "error with your contributors" but no explanation. We had to start a COMPLETELY NEW FAFSA which was so annoying after already filling out half of it!!!! This new system is a disaster.

UPDATE: We fixed it! Thanks everyone for your help. What worked was having my dad log in and complete his ENTIRE contributor section. After he submitted his part, I waited about 2 hours, then I tried the tip from @profile4 about using the "Start a New FAFSA" link, and it worked! I was able to access my application again and continue where we left off. No data was lost thankfully. For anyone else with this issue, make sure your contributor completes their ENTIRE section before you try to continue.

Wow, this thread is incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with the exact same issue right now - added my mom as a contributor yesterday and now I'm completely locked out of my FAFSA. Reading through all these responses, it sounds like the key is making sure the parent contributor completes their ENTIRE section first. I'm going to have my mom log in tonight and finish everything on her end, then try the "Start a New FAFSA" workaround tomorrow. It's so frustrating that this is such a common problem with the new system - you'd think they would have fixed these bugs by now! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and solutions.