FAFSA submitted Dec 9th but no SAI after 6 weeks - normal waiting time?

chill out, everyone is waiting forever this year. my son submitted in novembr and just got his SAI last week. they're super behind.

The FAFSA processing delays are definitely worse this year compared to previous cycles. According to the Federal Student Aid office, current processing times are running 4-8 weeks for applications without any errors or flags. If there are verification issues or missing information, it can take even longer. I recommend checking if your daughter's application shows any alerts or messages in the "Messages" section of her StudentAid.gov account. Also, check that all sections show as "completed" in the application summary. One tip: many colleges are aware of these delays and are extending their priority deadlines for financial aid. Have your daughter contact the financial aid offices at her schools to explain the situation. Most are being flexible this year given the widespread delays.

DONT RESUBMIT!!!!!!! That will 100% restart your waiting time and probably cause MORE problems!! The system is just completely overloaded right now. My twins both submitted in early December too and only one has gotten his SAI so far. The other one is still waiting.

After experiencing similar frustrations trying to reach FSA about my daughter's delayed application, I finally found a service called Claimyr that got me through to an actual FSA agent in about 10 minutes instead of waiting for hours or getting disconnected. They basically wait on hold for you and call you when an agent is ready to talk. I was skeptical at first but it worked perfectly and the agent was able to tell me exactly why our application was delayed (a mismatch between reported income and what they had on file). You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ or just go to claimyr.com. Seriously saved me so much time and stress.

My son is in the exact same situation! We submitted on December 7th and still nothing. The worst part is that we can't even tell if there's an error or if it's just in the queue. Our EFC last year was pretty high so I'm not even sure he'll qualify for need-based aid, but his state university requires the completed FAFSA for merit scholarships too. The whole system is a mess this year.

Just a heads up - I work in a college financial aid office, and we're seeing unprecedented delays this year. The Department of Education implemented significant changes to the FAFSA form and calculation methodology for 2025-2026, which has caused major processing backups. Most colleges are aware of these delays and many are extending their priority deadlines or making provisional aid offers based on prior-year information until the new SAI becomes available. Don't hesitate to contact the schools directly. Also, double-check that all contributors (parents) have completed their sections of the FAFSA. A common delay we're seeing is when a parent hasn't signed or verified their portion, but the system doesn't clearly flag this issue.

i literally got my SAI score this morning after submitting Dec 11, so yours should be coming any day now. the weird thing is that my brother submitted his like a week after me and got his SAI 3 weeks ago. makes no sense at all.

Update on my daughter's application: after speaking with the FSA agent (using the call service I mentioned), we found out her application was flagged for income verification even though there weren't any alerts showing in her account. Once we submitted the additional documentation, her SAI was calculated within 3 days. If you're close to your deadline, I'd definitely recommend trying to speak with an actual agent to see if there's an issue that's not being displayed in the online system.

I called our university's financial aid office yesterday about my son's delayed SAI, and they said they're accepting screenshots of the "FAFSA submitted" confirmation page as proof that students have completed their financial aid application requirements by the priority deadline. Then they'll process the actual awards once the SAI comes through. Might be worth asking your daughter's schools if they have a similar policy in place.

In response to your question about contacting FSA directly - yes, it can help, especially if your daughter's application might have an issue that's not displaying in the system. Many families are discovering their applications are stalled for verification or inconsistencies that aren't being clearly communicated. If you do manage to speak with an agent, ask them to check if the application is truly "in process" or if it's flagged and waiting for additional information. Also ask them to verify that all parental contributions and signatures are properly recorded in the system. By the way, most colleges have established workarounds for these delays, so don't panic about the deadlines. Just make sure your daughter communicates proactively with each school's financial aid office.