FAFSA won't accept international parent address - stuck in submission process

Don't panic! I went through this exact situation with my parents who live in Argentina. The international address issue is a common problem with the FAFSA system. Here's what you need to do:\n\n1. Don't use your old US address - that could create verification issues later\n2. For the country field, make sure Mexico is selected first before entering other address details\n3. Leave the \

Thank you so much for these tips! I tried the 00000 zip code trick and the system finally accepted it! Now I'm trying to figure out if I should help my parents create FSA IDs or just do the paper signature option. How long did the paper signature take for your family? I'm worried about missing deadlines.

the same thing happend to my cousins family last yr when they moved to costa rica. they just used a relatives US address for the fasfa. nobody ever checked and he got his aid no problem

This is risky advice. If your brother gets selected for verification (which about 30% of FAFSA filers do), using a false address could cause major problems. Your brother could lose all aid and potentially face penalties for providing false information on a federal form. Better to solve the international address issue properly.

OMG THE FAFSA SYSTEM IS COMPLETE TRASH!!!! I had the EXACT SAME PROBLEM with my dad who lives in Canada now. I spent FIVE HOURS on hold with the Federal Student Aid hotline trying to get help. When I finally got through, they just told me to \

If you're still having trouble getting through to someone at Federal Student Aid, I recently discovered a service called Claimyr that really helped me. Instead of waiting on hold forever, they call and wait in the queue for you, then call you when an agent is ready. Saved me hours of frustration. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ\n\nI used it last week when I needed to speak to someone about my verification issues and got through in about 45 minutes instead of the 3+ hours I was facing on my own.

Financial aid advisor here. The FAFSA system does have limitations with international addresses. Here are the official solutions:\n\n1. For electronic signatures: Parents living abroad CAN create FSA IDs regardless of their location. They'll need their SSN if they have one. If they don't have SSNs, they cannot create FSA IDs and must use the signature page option.\n\n2. For the signature page: Print it from the FAFSA confirmation page, have parents sign it, and mail it to the address on the form. This typically adds 5-7 business days to processing time.\n\n3. For address formatting: Select \

This is really helpful information! My parents do have SSNs since they lived and worked in the US for 25 years before retiring. I'm going to help them create FSA IDs today. One more question - do they need to report their Mexican bank accounts on the FAFSA or just their US accounts? They still have both.

my parents live in canada and we had this exact problem!!! what worked for us was using the paper signature option. just print out the signature page and mail it to your parents, then they sign it and mail it back to the address on the form. took about 2 weeks total with mail time to canada and back but it worked fine

The real issue here is that the FAFSA system was never designed with international families in mind, which is ridiculous considering how global our world is now. I've been helping students with FAFSA for 15 years, and this problem has never been properly addressed by Federal Student Aid.\n\nOne workaround I've seen some families use successfully: If your parents still have a US bank account or financial presence, you can sometimes use the address associated with that account. But as others have pointed out, you need to be careful about verification.\n\nThe paper signature method is your safest bet, but given your timeline concerns, I'd suggest also reaching out directly to the financial aid offices at the schools your brother is applying to. Many schools have internal processes to deal with these FAFSA delays and can note your account so scholarship deadlines aren't affected. They might be able to use estimated information while waiting for the official SAI calculation.

That's a great idea about contacting the schools directly! I didn't think about that. I'll email Portland CC's financial aid office today and explain the situation. Hopefully they're more helpful by email than they were on the phone!

why not just have ur parents make a fsa id? thats what my mom did when she was in the philippines for 6 months. she just made an account using her phone and signed electronically. way easier than paper forms.

We tried that first but when creating the FSA ID it also asks for an address and kept rejecting the Mexican address. But someone above mentioned they need to select

UPDATE: I got it working! For anyone with international parent issues on FAFSA, here's what finally worked:\n\n1. Had my parents create FSA IDs first (separately from the FAFSA process)\n2. When creating the FSA ID, selected \

Great news! And thanks for posting your solution - this will help others with the same problem. One more tip: make sure your parents keep their FSA ID credentials somewhere safe. They'll need them again next year for the renewal FAFSA and many people forget their login info between applications.

As someone who just went through this nightmare with my parents who moved to the Philippines, I feel your pain! The FAFSA international address system is absolutely broken. Here's what I learned after weeks of frustration: The key is doing the FSA ID creation BEFORE starting the FAFSA. When your parents create their FSA IDs, they need to: 1. Select "Foreign Country" in the address section (not trying to force it into US format) 2. Enter their Mexican address exactly as it appears on official documents 3. Use "00000" for the zip code field (this is the standard workaround) Once they have working FSA IDs, the FAFSA signature process becomes much smoother. Also, definitely contact your brother's school's financial aid office directly - many schools are understanding about FAFSA delays caused by international address issues and can work with preliminary information while you sort this out. Don't give up! The system is frustrating but there are ways to make it work without compromising your brother's aid eligibility.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now with my parents who recently moved to Germany! The FAFSA system's handling of international addresses is incredibly frustrating. Based on what I've learned from this thread and my own research, here are a few additional tips that might help: 1. Make sure your parents have all their financial documents ready in USD amounts before starting the FAFSA - the system won't accept foreign currency figures 2. If they're still getting rejection errors even with the "Foreign Country" selection, try clearing your browser cache completely and starting fresh 3. Consider doing the application during off-peak hours (early morning or late evening) when the system might be less overloaded Also, I second the advice about contacting the school directly. When I explained our situation to the financial aid office, they actually flagged my account and said they could work with estimated SAI calculations while waiting for the official FAFSA processing. This took so much pressure off the tight deadline situation. Hang in there - it's a broken system but you'll get through it! Your brother is lucky to have someone advocating for him like this.

I'm so glad I found this thread! I'm currently helping my sister with her FAFSA and we're facing the exact same issue with our parents who moved to Costa Rica last year. Reading through everyone's experiences and solutions has been incredibly helpful - especially the tip about creating FSA IDs first with the "Foreign Country" option and using 00000 for the zip code. One thing I wanted to add that might help others: if your parents are having trouble navigating the FSA ID creation process due to language barriers or tech difficulties, many local libraries have volunteer programs that help with government forms and applications. I took my mom to our local library last week and one of the volunteers there was actually familiar with FAFSA international address issues and walked us through the whole process. Also, for anyone worried about deadlines - don't panic! Most schools understand that FAFSA processing can take longer for international situations. When I called my sister's college to explain our situation, they were super understanding and said they see this issue frequently. They put a note in her file and assured us that scholarship considerations wouldn't be affected as long as we submitted the FAFSA within a reasonable timeframe. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - it's made this whole process feel much less overwhelming!

This thread has been a lifesaver! I'm dealing with the exact same nightmare right now with my parents who retired to Portugal last month. The FAFSA system rejected their address about 15 times before I found this discussion. I just wanted to add one more tip that worked for us: when entering the international address, make sure you're not using any special characters or accents in the address fields. Even though my parents' Portuguese address has accented letters, I had to enter it using only standard English characters for the system to accept it. Also, for anyone still struggling - I found that calling the Federal Student Aid hotline first thing in the morning (like 8 AM EST) significantly reduced my wait time. I got through in about 20 minutes instead of hours, and the representative was actually helpful in walking me through the international address formatting. The FSA ID creation with "Foreign Country" selection and 00000 zip code trick mentioned above is absolutely crucial - do that FIRST before attempting the actual FAFSA. It saved me so much frustration once I figured that out. Thanks to everyone who shared their solutions here. It's ridiculous that we have to crowdsource solutions for what should be a straightforward government process, but at least we're helping each other out!

As a newcomer to this community, I just want to say how incredibly helpful this entire thread has been! I'm currently facing a similar situation with my parents who moved to Japan earlier this year, and I was completely lost trying to navigate the FAFSA international address issues. Reading through everyone's experiences and solutions has given me a clear roadmap to follow. The step-by-step advice about creating FSA IDs first with the "Foreign Country" option, using 00000 for zip codes, avoiding special characters, and calling during off-peak hours is exactly what I needed. I had no idea about any of these workarounds before finding this discussion. What really stands out to me is how supportive everyone has been in sharing their hard-won knowledge. It's frustrating that families have to become experts in system workarounds just to complete what should be a straightforward federal form, but the willingness of community members to help each other navigate these challenges is really inspiring. I'm going to start with the FSA ID creation process tomorrow morning and will definitely update this thread if I discover any additional tips that might help other families dealing with international parent addresses. Thank you all for creating such a valuable resource for those of us struggling with these FAFSA complications!

As someone who just went through this exact situation with my parents who moved to Ireland last year, I completely understand your frustration! The FAFSA system's handling of international addresses is absolutely terrible and outdated. Here's what finally worked for me after weeks of trying different approaches: 1. Have your parents create FSA IDs BEFORE starting the FAFSA application. This is crucial - don't try to do it during the FAFSA process. 2. When creating the FSA ID, select "Foreign Address" or "International" option (the exact wording might vary), then select Mexico as the country FIRST before entering any other address information. 3. Use the standard Mexican address format but enter "00000" in the zip/postal code field - this is a known workaround that many families have used successfully. 4. Avoid any special characters, accents, or symbols in the address fields - stick to basic English letters and numbers only. 5. Try doing this early in the morning (around 8 AM EST) when the system is less overloaded. Also, definitely contact Portland CC's financial aid office again, but try emailing instead of calling. In my experience, the email responses are often more detailed and helpful. Explain your situation and ask them to flag your brother's account so scholarship deadlines aren't affected while you're dealing with the FAFSA international address issues. Don't give up - this system is broken but there are workarounds that do work! Your brother is lucky to have you advocating for him.

I just wanted to chime in as someone who recently went through this exact nightmare with my parents who moved to New Zealand! The FAFSA international address system is incredibly frustrating, but all the solutions shared in this thread are spot-on. What really helped me was following the advice about creating FSA IDs first - I cannot stress this enough. Don't even attempt the FAFSA application until your parents have working FSA IDs with their international address properly formatted. One additional tip I discovered: if you're still getting error messages even after using the "00000" zip code workaround, try logging out completely, clearing your browser cache, and then logging back in. Sometimes the system gets "stuck" on previous formatting attempts and won't accept the correct format until you start with a completely fresh session. Also, I found it helpful to have all the financial documents converted to USD and organized before starting. The process goes much smoother when you're not stopping to calculate currency conversions in the middle of the application. Your brother is so fortunate to have someone like you fighting through this bureaucratic mess for him. The system definitely needs to be updated for international families, but in the meantime, the community solutions shared here really do work. Don't give up - you're almost there!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so grateful to have found this thread! I'm currently dealing with the exact same situation - trying to help my cousin with her FAFSA while her parents are living in Brazil. The international address rejection has been driving us both crazy for the past two weeks. Reading through all the solutions and experiences shared here has been incredibly enlightening. I had no idea about the FSA ID creation process needing to be done separately first, or the "00000" zip code workaround. The step-by-step guidance from everyone who's successfully navigated this process is exactly what we needed. What really strikes me is how this seems to be such a widespread issue, yet there's virtually no official guidance from Federal Student Aid on how to handle international parent addresses. It's frustrating that families have to rely on community knowledge and trial-and-error to figure out workarounds for what should be a standard part of the system. I'm planning to follow the advice about having her parents create their FSA IDs first thing tomorrow morning using the "Foreign Country" option, and I'll make sure to avoid any special characters in their Brazilian address. The tip about calling during off-peak hours is also something I'll definitely try if we need to speak with someone at Federal Student Aid. Thank you all for sharing your hard-won knowledge and creating such a supportive resource for families struggling with these FAFSA complications. I'll be sure to update this thread with our experience in case it helps other families dealing with similar international address issues!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for sharing such detailed solutions to the FAFSA international address problem! I'm currently helping my sister navigate this exact issue with our parents who moved to the Philippines last year for work. Reading through this thread has been incredibly valuable - I had no idea about the FSA ID creation needing to be done first with the "Foreign Country" option, or that using "00000" as the zip code was an accepted workaround. It's honestly shocking that such a common situation for military families, retirees, and international workers has no clear official guidance from Federal Student Aid. I'm planning to have our parents create their FSA IDs tomorrow morning using all the tips shared here: selecting the foreign country first, using standard English characters only (no special symbols), and doing it during off-peak hours. The advice about having all financial documents converted to USD beforehand is also really helpful - our parents still maintain accounts in both countries. One question for those who've been through this: did anyone have issues with the income reporting section when parents are earning foreign income? I'm wondering if there are additional considerations for tax document formatting when parents are filing US taxes but living abroad. This community has been such a lifeline for understanding these bureaucratic hurdles. I'll definitely share our experience once we get through the process to help other families facing the same challenges!