FAFSA verification delay might force us to find alternative payment for fall semester - help!

same thing happened with my daughter last yr. dep of ed is ALWAYS behind!! took 9 weeks for verification to clear after we submitted everything. school gave us a payment extension but we had to sign some extra form saying we'd pay if loans didn't come thru. have u asked about payment plan options?

I work in a financial aid office (not at your son's school), and I can provide some context. The Department of Education is currently dealing with a major backlog of verification reviews, particularly for Parent Plus loans. This is happening because of the new FAFSA implementation and changes to the SAI calculation system. Here's what you should do: 1. Contact the school's financial aid office and ask specifically about their "pending aid" policy. Many institutions will allow students to start classes with a portion of the balance due if there's documented evidence that aid is coming. 2. Request a formal payment extension with the exact verification case number you received from the Department of Education. 3. Ask if they offer an interest-free payment plan for the short term while verification is pending. 4. Get everything in writing, especially any promises about how pending aid will be handled. Don't panic yet - this is unfortunately common this year, and most schools have processes to accommodate these Department of Education delays.

dont listen to financial aid office they ALWAYS say that to scare u!! my nephew got same message but then money came thru right before semester started. they just trying to pressure u bcuz they need $$$. DON'T pay out of pocket they just tryna get double $$$

Have you tried directly contacting the Department of Education to check on your verification status? My daughter was in a similar situation last fall, and we spent WEEKS trying to get through on their phone lines. We finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got us through to an actual human at the FSA office in under 20 minutes. The agent was able to tell us exactly what was causing the hold-up and gave us documentation we could take to the financial aid office. You can see how it works in their demo video: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ It was honestly worth it because once we knew what the specific issue was, we could address it directly rather than just waiting in the dark. The school ended up giving us an extension once we showed them we were actively working with the Department of Education to resolve the verification issue.

This is a challenging situation, but you have several options to consider: 1. Private student loans: Your son could apply for private student loans to cover the gap while waiting for the Parent Plus loan verification. Once the federal loan comes through, you can use those funds to pay off the private loan. 2. Tuition installment plan: Most schools offer monthly payment plans that divide tuition into manageable installments, often with minimal or no interest. 3. Emergency aid: Some institutions have emergency financial aid funds specifically for situations like yours. Have your son visit the financial aid office in person to inquire about these resources. 4. Verification escalation: Ask the financial aid office if they can submit an escalation request to the Department of Education. This sometimes speeds up the verification process. 5. Provisional enrollment: Some schools will provisionally enroll students while verification is pending, with an agreement that they'll be dropped if funding doesn't come through by a certain date. I recommend documenting all communications with the financial aid office and Department of Education. Having a paper trail is crucial if you need to request exceptions or extensions.

unpopular opinion but mayb consider letting ur son take a gap semester if the $ doesn't come thru in time... i had to do this and worked full time for 4 months, saved up enough to cover half my tuition then when fafsa finally came thru in January it felt like free $$ lol. not ideal but better than going into crazy debt with private loans just to start on time imo

Have you considered reaching out to your local congressman or senator's office? This might sound strange, but when my FAFSA was stuck in verification hell last year, my dad contacted our senator's constituent services office. They have staff dedicated to helping with federal issues, including Department of Education problems. The senator's office made an inquiry on our behalf, and magically our verification was completed within a week after being stalled for over a month. It's worth a shot if things continue to drag on.

I'm so sorry you're going through this stress! As someone who just went through a similar situation with my daughter's FAFSA verification, I wanted to share what worked for us. We were stuck in "extended review" for 8 weeks, but here's what finally moved things along: 1. We called the school's financial aid office weekly (not to be annoying, but to show we were actively engaged) and asked them to document each call in our file. 2. We submitted a hardship letter explaining our specific timeline constraints and financial situation - the school forwarded this to the Department of Education as part of our case. 3. Most importantly, we asked the school about their "aid pending" enrollment option. They let us register for classes and defer 75% of the tuition payment until October 15th, with just a small enrollment deposit required upfront. The verification finally cleared in week 9 (mid-August), and the Parent Plus loan funded just in time. Don't give up hope, and definitely explore all the payment deferral options others have mentioned here. The schools really do understand this is happening to lots of families this year due to the FAFSA system changes.