FAFSA submitted in May but school hasn't received it - delayed federal processing?
I submitted my FAFSA for the 2025-2026 academic year on May 1st, but my grad school financial aid office claims they still haven't received it from the Department of Education. It's been over 6 weeks! I've confirmed my application shows as 'processed' on studentaid.gov and my SAI score is displayed, but somehow the school says it's not in their system. Has anyone else experienced weird delays with FAFSA transmission to schools this year? I'm getting anxious because orientation starts in August and I have no idea what my financial aid package will look like. Called the Federal Student Aid hotline twice but got disconnected both times after 45+ minutes on hold. Help!
23 comments
Join the conversation
Paloma Clark
yep happening to tons of ppl. my cousin applied in april and his school just got it last week. the new system is a MESS this year
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•That's both reassuring and terrifying. Did your cousin have to do anything to push it through, or did it just suddenly appear at his school?
0 coins
Heather Tyson
This is unfortunately very common with the new FAFSA system rollout. The Department of Education has been experiencing significant delays in transmitting application data to schools. Here's what you should do: 1. Print a copy of your processed FAFSA confirmation page showing your SAI score 2. Email your financial aid office with this documentation and request they manually check for your application 3. Ask if they can proceed with a preliminary aid package based on your SAI while waiting for the official transmission Many schools are developing workarounds for this exact situation. The good news is that once they have your SAI score, they can often begin preliminary aid packaging even without the complete federal record.
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•Thank you so much for these practical steps! I'll email my confirmation page to the financial aid office today. Do you happen to know if grad schools are generally willing to do preliminary aid packages, or is that mostly for undergrad?
0 coins
Heather Tyson
•Grad schools are definitely doing this too! In fact, since graduate financial aid is typically less complex (fewer grant programs, more standardized loans), many grad schools find it easier to create preliminary packages. Just make sure to specify your program in the email so they apply the correct aid formulas for graduate study.
0 coins
Raul Neal
I'm having THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM!!! Applied April 15th and my school (also grad program) says they have NOTHING. I've called Federal Student Aid like 20 times and either get disconnected or they tell me "it's in the system" but can't explain why the school can't see it. I'm literally about to lose my housing because I can't prove I'll have aid to pay for the semester. This new FAFSA system is a COMPLETE DISASTER.
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•Oh no, I'm sorry to hear you're in an even worse situation! Have you tried physically going to your financial aid office? Sometimes in-person visits can make things happen faster.
0 coins
Raul Neal
•I went in person twice! First time they just told me to "keep waiting" and the second time a different counselor said she'd "put a note in the system" whatever that means. No progress so far. I'm considering taking out a private loan just to secure my housing, but those interest rates are insane!
0 coins
Jenna Sloan
After getting nowhere with FAFSA for weeks, I finally got through to an actual human at Federal Student Aid using Claimyr. It let me skip the phone queue and an agent fixed my transmission issue in about 10 minutes. Turns out there was a flag on my account because I had selected the wrong academic year initially and corrected it. The agent manually released my FAFSA to my selected schools while I was on the phone. You can check them out at claimyr.com - they have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Seriously saved me from losing my spot in my program.
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•I've never heard of this service before. How does it work? Did you have to provide a lot of personal information?
0 coins
Jenna Sloan
•It's pretty straightforward - you just give them your phone number and they call you when they've secured a spot with an agent. You only pay if they successfully connect you. I was skeptical too, but after weeks of frustration, it was worth it to actually talk to someone who could help. They don't need access to your FAFSA account or anything like that.
0 coins
Paloma Clark
•is this some kind of ad? seems sketchy tbh
0 coins
Christian Burns
I work at a university financial aid office (not yours obviously) and can confirm this is happening across the country. The Department of Education is sending data in batches, and some applications are getting stuck in limbo. Here's what's probably happening: Your FAFSA is processed in the federal system, but it's caught in what we call the "transmission queue." We're seeing delays of 3-8 weeks in some cases. Call your financial aid office and specifically ask them to check if they can see your FAFSA in their "pending records" rather than their "received records." Many schools can see applications in the pipeline even before they're fully transmitted. If they can see it pending, they might be able to start your aid package.
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•This is incredibly helpful context! I'll specifically ask about the "pending records" tomorrow. Thank you for the insider perspective.
0 coins
Sasha Reese
did u put the right school code when u filled out fafsa? i did mine wrong the first time lol and was waiting for weeks before i realized my mistake
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•Yes, I double-checked the school code when I submitted. The weird thing is the school shows up in my list of selected schools on the studentaid.gov portal, so it seems like it should be getting transmitted.
0 coins
Muhammad Hobbs
The issue might be related to the new Student Aid Index (SAI) system. The old Expected Family Contribution (EFC) formula was replaced, and many schools' systems aren't properly integrated with the new format. When I was having similar problems, I asked my school's financial aid office if they needed me to complete any supplemental forms specific to their institution. Turns out they had a separate graduate financial aid application that I needed to complete even though I had submitted my FAFSA. Maybe check your school's financial aid website to see if there are any program-specific forms you missed?
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•That's a really good point! I'll check if there's a separate grad school form. Though the financial aid counselor I spoke with specifically said they haven't received my FAFSA from the federal system, not that I was missing internal forms. But worth confirming!
0 coins
Heather Tyson
Just following up - were you able to contact your financial aid office with the confirmation page? Any progress?
0 coins
Evelyn Kelly
•Yes! I emailed them my confirmation page yesterday and called this morning. They were able to see my application in their "pending records" like someone suggested. The counselor said they can start putting together a preliminary aid package based on my SAI score while they wait for the full transmission. Such a relief! Thank you all for your help.
0 coins
Mateo Warren
That's fantastic news! I'm so glad the pending records approach worked for you. It's really helpful to know that emailing the confirmation page and specifically asking about pending records can get things moving. For anyone else dealing with this issue, it sounds like the key is being persistent and asking the right questions rather than just waiting for the system to magically fix itself. Thanks for updating us on what worked - this whole thread is going to be super useful for other people stuck in FAFSA limbo!
0 coins
Sean Flanagan
•Absolutely agree! This thread has been a lifesaver. I'm dealing with a similar situation for my undergrad aid and was just waiting around hoping it would resolve itself. Going to try the pending records approach first thing Monday morning. It's crazy how much more helpful this community has been than the actual federal helpline. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and solutions!
0 coins
Emma Swift
I'm going through the exact same thing and this thread has been incredibly helpful! I submitted my FAFSA in late April for grad school and it's been radio silence from my financial aid office. Reading through everyone's experiences, I think the key takeaways are: 1) Email your confirmation page showing your SAI score to your financial aid office, 2) Ask specifically about "pending records" rather than just received applications, and 3) Request a preliminary aid package based on your SAI while waiting for full transmission. It's reassuring to know this is a widespread system issue and not something we did wrong. Going to try these steps tomorrow morning. Thanks everyone for sharing your solutions!
0 coins