How do I completely delete my FAFSA application and start over? Can't reach anyone!

Unfortunately, there's no way to completely delete a submitted FAFSA application. Once it's submitted, you need to make corrections to the existing form. You can do this by logging into studentaid.gov, clicking on "My FAFSA" and then selecting "Make FAFSA Corrections." You'll need to go through each section again and fix the mistakes. The good news is that corrections are processed pretty quickly (usually within 3-5 days), and your corrected SAI will be recalculated and sent to your schools. Just be really careful to fix ALL the errors so you don't have to do multiple corrections.

you cant delete it. i made same mistake last year when i put my stepdad as parent but he doesnt claim me on taxes. had to call like 50 times to fix it. its so annoying!!!!

There actually IS a way to delete your FAFSA, but it's not something you can do yourself. You have to call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243 and specifically request that they delete your application. They won't offer this option unless you specifically ask for it. However, I'm going to be honest - making corrections is usually faster and easier than trying to delete and resubmit. Corrections are processed within days, while a deletion request can take 1-2 weeks to process, and then you'd have to start over from scratch anyway. If you made a lot of errors, focus on fixing the income information first since that affects your SAI calculation the most.

Having worked in a college financial aid office, I can confirm you have two options: 1. Make corrections to your existing FAFSA (faster but more tedious if you have many errors) 2. Request a complete deletion by calling FSA (takes longer but gives you a clean slate) If you're having trouble reaching someone at FSA, try calling right when they open (8am Eastern) or in the last hour before they close (10pm Eastern). Those tend to have slightly shorter wait times. Also, schools only see your final processed FAFSA, not the correction history, so don't worry about that. They won't know if you made 1 correction or 100.

you know what helped me with my fafsa mess? i called my school's financial aid office instead. they couldn't delete my fafsa but they gave me a direct contact at the dept of education that actually answered!! saved me so much time, maybe try that

I was in the exact same position a few weeks ago! After trying to call FSA for days and getting nowhere, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual FAFSA agent in about 20 minutes instead of the 2+ hour wait. They have a video demo that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent was able to help me figure out exactly which sections needed corrections and explained how to properly report my parents' business income (which was my main mistake). Saved me so much stress trying to guess what I did wrong.

One more thing to consider: if you request deletion instead of corrections, it might delay your financial aid package. Schools typically start processing aid once they receive your first FAFSA submission. If it gets deleted, they'll have to wait for your new submission and then restart their process. If you're close to any priority deadlines for financial aid at your schools, I'd strongly recommend going the correction route despite how tedious it might be.

fyi my friend tried to delete hers and they said NO even tho she begged! they made her do corrections insted. the whole system is broke

Update from an FSA presentation I attended last week: For 2025-2026 FAFSAs specifically, they've actually improved the correction process. You can now make bulk corrections to certain sections instead of fixing each question individually. Once you log in to make corrections, look for the "Section Correction" option at the top of each page. This might make it easier than trying for the deletion route, which honestly is hit-or-miss depending on which agent you get.

Just to clarify on the deletion process from my experience - when FSA "deletes" a FAFSA, what they're actually doing is canceling the current submission rather than erasing all record of it. This means: 1. Schools will be notified your application was canceled 2. You'll need to submit a new FAFSA from scratch 3. Your new submission date will be whatever date you resubmit Since many schools distribute aid on a first-come, first-served basis for some funding types, this could potentially affect your aid package. The correction route preserves your original submission date, which is another advantage.

I went through something similar last year and here's what worked for me: Start with the corrections route first since you submitted early in January - that timing is valuable! Log into studentaid.gov and tackle the income sections first since those have the biggest impact on your SAI. If you find the corrections are too overwhelming after trying for a day or two, THEN consider calling for deletion. But honestly, the new section correction feature that @Natasha mentioned should make it much more manageable than the old question-by-question method. Also, keep a list of every change you make so you don't accidentally miss anything or create new errors. Good luck!

Hey Paolo! I've been through this nightmare too and wanted to share a few practical tips that might help speed up your corrections process: 1. Before you start making changes, print out or screenshot your current FAFSA so you can see exactly what's wrong vs. what it should be 2. If you mixed up parent income types (like business vs. W-2), focus on the parent tax return sections first - these drive most of your SAI calculation 3. The "View/Print FAFSA" option shows you a summary that makes it easier to spot errors than going page by page I ended up having to fix about 15 different fields last year and it took me about 2 hours total once I got organized. Way better than the weeks I spent trying to get through to FSA on the phone! Since you submitted in January, definitely stick with corrections to keep that early submission date. The schools will only see your final corrected version anyway.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now! My parents own a small business and I completely messed up how to report their income - put business profits in the wrong section and forgot to include some W-2 income. It's so confusing when your parents have multiple income sources! Based on everyone's advice here, I'm going to try the correction route first since I also submitted early. @Debra your tip about screenshotting the current FAFSA before making changes is genius - I was dreading having to figure out what I messed up in the first place. One question for anyone who's been through this - when you make corrections to parent income, does it automatically recalculate your SAI right away or do you have to wait for processing? I'm worried I'll submit corrections but won't know if I fixed everything correctly until days later.

Just wanted to add one more option that saved me when I was in a similar situation - if you're still having trouble getting through to FSA by phone, try their live chat feature on studentaid.gov! It's not always available, but when it is, the wait times are usually much shorter than calling. I used it last month when I needed help understanding which parent income fields to use for my divorced parents' situation. The chat agent was able to walk me through exactly which sections needed corrections and even stayed online while I made the changes to make sure I was doing it right. The chat is usually available during business hours (though not 24/7 like the phone line), but I found it way less frustrating than being on hold for hours. Might be worth checking before you dive into the corrections on your own!

I've been following this thread and wanted to share something that might help everyone dealing with FAFSA corrections - if you're worried about making more mistakes while fixing your original errors, consider having a parent or trusted adult double-check your corrections before you submit them. What I did was pull up my parents' actual tax documents (1040, W-2s, business tax forms, etc.) and went line by line comparing them to what I was entering in the FAFSA correction form. It took an extra 30 minutes but gave me peace of mind that I wasn't creating new errors while fixing the old ones. Also, for anyone with business income situations - the IRS has a really helpful publication (Publication 334) that explains how business income should be reported on FAFSA. It's free on their website and actually clarified a lot of confusion I had about what counts as "business profit" versus other types of income. Paolo, given that you submitted early in January and have priority deadlines coming up, I'd definitely echo everyone's advice to stick with corrections rather than deletion. That early submission date is valuable for aid consideration!

I just want to chime in as someone who went through this exact scenario earlier this year - you're definitely not alone in this! The FAFSA system can be incredibly confusing, especially when dealing with complex income situations. Based on all the great advice in this thread, I'd strongly recommend starting with the correction route since you submitted in January. That early submission date is gold for financial aid priority, and losing it by deleting could really hurt your aid package. Here's what worked for me: I set aside a full afternoon, gathered ALL our tax documents, and went through the corrections methodically section by section. Yes, it was tedious, but it was actually less stressful than the endless phone calls. The new "Section Correction" feature that @Natasha mentioned really does help if you have multiple errors in the same category. One thing I learned the hard way - if you're unsure about ANY correction, use Isabella's tip about the live chat feature before you submit. I made the mistake of guessing on a few fields and had to do a second round of corrections, which just delayed everything. You've got this! The correction process isn't as scary as it seems once you get started, and you'll have peace of mind knowing your SAI will be accurate for your schools.