How to update email address on FAFSA when student no longer has access to original email?

Same thing happened with my son last year! Call the Federal Student Aid Info Center at 1-800-433-3243. They can verify her identity and help update the email. But be prepared to wait on hold for like 2 hours lol.

She'll need to verify her identity through FSA before they can update the contact info. They'll probably ask for her name, DOB, SSN, and maybe the address on file. If she created an FSA ID, make sure she has that username too (even if she can't access the account). They might also ask security questions she set up originally.

I was in the EXACT same boat last month!!! My community college email got deleted after I transferred and I couldn't get into my fafsa account AT ALL. I spent THREE DAYS trying to get through on that 800 number. Kept getting disconnected or waiting forever. SO FRUSTRATING!!!!!

I help students with FAFSA issues at our college's financial aid office. Here's the official process: 1. Call 1-800-433-3243 (have the student's SSN, DOB, name ready) 2. Request an email update due to no longer having access 3. They'll verify identity (usually with DRN number or additional security questions) 4. Once verified, they can update the email on file 5. After that, your daughter can request a password reset to the new email Important: Make sure she's calling from the phone number listed in her FAFSA application if possible, as this makes verification easier.

The DRN (Data Release Number) is a 4-digit number that appears on her Student Aid Report (SAR). If she has a printed copy of last year's SAR or confirmation page, it would be there. If not, don't worry - the FSA agent can verify her identity through other means like her SSN, DOB, address, and security questions.

I tried calling that 800 number for TWO WEEKS and could never get through!!! Either got a busy signal or was on hold for 2+ hours before getting disconnected. The system is completely broken. I ended up using a service called Claimyr to get through to a human - https://claimyr.com - they have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Basically they hold your place in line and call you when an agent is available. Saved me HOURS of frustration and I finally got my email changed.

UPDATE: We finally got this resolved! I checked my parent portal first but couldn't see her email info there. We tried calling the 800 number several times with no luck (busy signals or 90+ minute hold times). Got frustrated and tried the Claimyr service that was mentioned here. It actually worked - they called us back when an agent was available. The FSA agent verified her identity using her name, SSN, birthdate, and the address we had listed on the previous FAFSA. They changed her email to her current university one, then we were able to reset her password. Now we can access everything and finish her renewal application. Thanks everyone for the help!

For anyone finding this thread later - I recommend all students use a permanent personal email (like Gmail) for their FAFSA and FSA ID, never a school email. School emails eventually expire when you graduate or transfer, which causes exactly this problem. Also, save your SAR as a PDF each year and keep your DRN number somewhere safe!

As someone who just went through this nightmare myself, I feel your pain! One tip that helped me - if you have any old paperwork from when she first submitted her FAFSA (like printed confirmation pages or emails forwarded to a parent's account), those might have her DRN or other helpful info. Also, try calling right when they open at 8am ET - I had better luck getting through early in the morning rather than during peak hours. The whole system really needs to be updated to handle this common situation better!

This is such a common issue and it's really frustrating how difficult they make it to resolve! I work at a university and see this happen to students constantly. One thing that might help while you're waiting to get through to FSA - check if your daughter's high school still has any record of forwarding her old emails or if they kept any FAFSA-related documents on file. Sometimes guidance counselors will have copies of important financial aid paperwork. Also, if she filled out any scholarship applications that required FAFSA info, those applications might have her DRN or other verification details. It's worth checking every possible source for that information before spending hours on hold!

I just wanted to add another option that worked for my family - if you have access to your daughter's college student portal, sometimes they have a direct line to their financial aid office that can help coordinate with FSA on behalf of enrolled students. My son's college actually had a financial aid counselor call FSA while he was in their office, which seemed to get better results than us calling individually. They already had all his enrollment info and could verify his student status, which helped speed up the identity verification process. It might be worth calling her college's financial aid office first to see if they offer this kind of assistance - especially since you mentioned the priority deadline is coming up. They're usually very motivated to help students get their FAFSA issues resolved quickly!

This is exactly what happened to my nephew last year! Another tip that might help - if your daughter filled out the FAFSA using her high school computer or library, sometimes those institutions keep temporary files or printouts of important documents. Also, check if she has any old text messages or screenshots on her phone from when she originally submitted - students often screenshot confirmation pages. The college financial aid office suggestion is spot on too - they have dedicated FSA liaisons who can sometimes resolve these issues in minutes rather than the hours it takes individuals. Don't give up, this is way more common than it should be and there are definitely solutions! The system really needs to be redesigned to handle email changes more easily.