How to recover deleted parent contribution on submitted FAFSA - urgent help needed

omg this happened to my daughter too! we had to call FSA directly, dont try to add urself back or it makes things worse

You need to have your son log into studentaid.gov and go to the "Update FAFSA" form option, not "create new application." There should be a section where he can add contributors back. If he can't find it, he'll need to call the FAFSA helpline to get you re-added as a contributor. They might have to unlock that section of the form specifically. This happens more than you'd think, and it's fixable! Don't panic yet.

jsut create a new FAFSA application. delete the old one. thats what we did for my sons application when we screwed up the parent section.

I work in a college financial aid office, and this is a common issue. Here's what needs to happen: 1. Your son needs to call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243 2. They need to specifically request to have the parent contributor section unlocked 3. Once unlocked, you'll receive an email invitation to complete your portion again 4. After you complete it, your son will need to resubmit the FAFSA Important: do NOT create a new application as someone suggested. This creates duplicate applications in the system and can delay processing at your son's school. Also, make sure you use the EXACT SAME information (SSN, DOB, name) as before to avoid verification flags.

Tell your son to specifically mention that a parent contributor was "removed from a submitted FAFSA" and he needs that parent "re-added and the contributor section unlocked." Those are the terms the agents typically use in their system. Also have him ready with his FSA ID, your SSN (they'll need to verify it matches what was originally submitted), and the date the FAFSA was originally submitted. One more thing - wait times to speak with an agent can be extremely long right now (2+ hours). Be prepared to wait or try calling right when they open.

UPDATE: My son tried calling the 1-800 number THREE TIMES today. First wait was 1.5 hours before being disconnected, second was 45 minutes before the call dropped, and third time he got a message saying they're experiencing high call volume and to try again later. This is so frustrating!!! His school's priority deadline is in 12 days and we can't even get basic help.

defintely dont make a new application!!!! my daughters school financial aid office got SO confused when there were two FAFSAs and it delayed her whole package by 6 weeks!!!! just keep trying to get someone on the phone

Hey, has your son's school already downloaded his FAFSA data? If they have, you might want to contact the financial aid office directly and explain the situation. Sometimes they can work with incomplete FAFSA data if you provide them the correct information directly while you sort out the official FAFSA correction. Might help with the deadline issue at least.

FINAL UPDATE: We finally got through to FSA using that call service someone recommended. Took about 3 hours total but an agent was able to unlock my contributor section! I just finished redoing my portion and my son resubmitted. His SAI went back down to where it should be. For anyone else dealing with this - definitely DON'T create a new application, and be prepared for a long wait to get help. The agent said they're seeing this issue a lot with the new FAFSA.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm bookmarking this in case we run into similar issues. The new FAFSA system seems to have so many glitches this year. Really glad you were able to get it sorted out before the deadline - that must have been incredibly stressful with your son's college decision hanging in the balance. Thanks for sharing the solution and keeping us updated!