Finally submitted FAFSA after figuring out student vs parent signature process!
I've been going CRAZY trying to finalize my daughter's FAFSA for weeks! Kept getting error messages when trying to sign/submit. I spent HOURS on the studentaid.gov site looking for where to sign in MY parent portal. Turns out I was making a HUGE mistake - all corrections and signatures have to be done through my DAUGHTER'S account, not mine! Once I logged into her account, the signature page popped right up and we were able to submit immediately. If you're stuck in signature hell like I was, check whose account you're in! Such a simple fix after weeks of frustration. Application is finally submitted and now the waiting game begins... Anyone know how long SAI calculations are taking these days?
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Miguel Harvey
Omg THANK YOU for posting this!! I've been having the exact same problem for my son's application. Been trying to sign through my FSA ID portal for days with no luck. Going to try logging into his account right now!
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Finnegan Gunn
•Let me know if it works! I felt so stupid when I realized my mistake but honestly the website doesn't make it clear AT ALL which account should be used for what. The whole parent contribution section is so confusing.
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Ashley Simian
this happened to me too lol. the whole system is designed to confuse parents
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Oliver Cheng
•It's actually an important security feature. Since FAFSA contains sensitive financial information for both student and parents, each party needs to separately verify their identity and consent to sharing information. But I agree the interface could definitely be clearer about which actions need to be performed in which account.
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Taylor To
Great job figuring it out! This is a super common issue that trips up many families. Some important points for others who might be confused: 1. Parents create their own FSA ID but primarily use it for providing consent/signatures 2. Students own the FAFSA application - all corrections happen in THEIR account 3. Both student and parent must sign with their respective FSA IDs 4. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, SAI calculations are currently taking about 5-10 business days The new system is definitely causing confusion, especially with the parent/contributor role being handled differently than previous years.
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Ella Cofer
•Wait do I have to make an FSA ID too? My daughter already has one but I thought I just needed to give her my tax information? The instructions are so unclear!!!
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Taylor To
•Yes, both the student and at least one parent/contributor need separate FSA IDs. The parent FSA ID allows you to electronically sign the FAFSA and verify that you're providing consent to use your tax information. Without a parent signature, the FAFSA will remain incomplete and won't be processed.
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Kevin Bell
I spent over 3 weeks trying to get through to someone at Federal Student Aid about this exact problem! Kept getting disconnected or waiting forever. Finally discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual person at FSA in about 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. The agent explained exactly what you figured out on your own - all signatures and corrections happen in the student account, not the parent account. Would have saved me so much time if I'd known this earlier!
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Savannah Glover
•does this actually work??? i tried calling FSA like 12 times last week
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Kevin Bell
•Yes! I was honestly shocked it worked. I had previously spent hours trying to get through the normal way.
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Ella Cofer
UGHHH why do they make this so COMPLICATED??? I've been trying to figure out why my son's application keeps saying "missing parent signature" for TWO WEEKS!!! The whole parent portal thing is so confusing - do we need to manage our own separate accounts or not?? And don't even get me started on the contributor questions...my ex-husband refuses to participate and there's no clear guidance on what to do when a parent won't cooperate. This whole system feels designed to prevent students from getting financial aid.
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Taylor To
•For non-cooperative parents, you should look into a Dependency Override. While divorce itself doesn't qualify, if you can document that the parent refuses to provide information, some schools may consider special circumstances. Each college handles these differently, so contact the financial aid offices directly at each school your son is applying to.
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Ella Cofer
•Thank you so much! Will definitely call the schools. And I'll try logging into my son's account tonight to see if I can finally get this signature issue fixed.
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Finnegan Gunn
OMG the relief when that "submitted" confirmation finally appeared! I literally started crying. This year's FAFSA has been so much more stressful than previous years - all the new changes with the SAI replacing EFC, the contributor portal confusion, everything. At least we're done now. Fingers crossed for a good aid package! 🤞
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Ashley Simian
•lol i cried too when we finally got ours submitted last week. the parent/student account thing is so stupid
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