Shocking SAI increase on 2025-26 FAFSA despite no changes in our situation

same thing happened 2 my son!! our SAI went from 6500 to 19700 with NO changes in income or anything else. the financial aid office told us its bcuz of the new FAFSA formula they're using starting this yr. something about them weighting income differently now? idk but its a MESS

That's terrifying! Did your financial aid office give you any hope that it might be adjusted? Or are we just stuck with these crazy high numbers? My daughter will have to drop out if this stands.

This is happening to many families with the 2025-26 FAFSA. The formula changed significantly compared to previous years. The new SAI calculation puts more weight on income and less on assets, but also removed some key protections for middle-income families.\n\nA few important points:\n1. The \

Thank you for this explanation. I'm going to double-check all our numbers tonight to make sure we didn't make any errors. Is there any specific part of the application that could cause such a huge jump? I'm wondering if I accidentally entered something wrong.

The whole new FAFSA system is a DISASTER! My daughter's SAI went up by $12,000 with identical income. We even had LESS in our savings this year! Called FSA three times and got disconnected EVERY SINGLE TIME. They clearly don't want to explain why they're cutting aid to hardworking families while giving more to others. The entire system is RIGGED against middle class families who actually saved for college!!!

PREACH!! 👏 middle class families always get screwed. too \

I've reviewed hundreds of FAFSAs this year, and there are several specific changes in the 2025-26 formula that are causing these SAI increases:\n\n1. The small business/farm protection was reduced\n2. The Income Protection Allowance was recalibrated \n3. The multiple student discount was significantly reduced\n4. Untaxed income is now weighted differently\n5. The contribution from non-custodial parents changed\n\nBefore panicking, I strongly recommend:\n- Comparing your actual income numbers from both applications\n- Checking if your family size or college count changed\n- Verifying if you have different retirement or asset values reported\n- Looking at whether your state residency information is correct

We do have a small business that we reported both years. Could that be part of the issue? I thought I entered everything the same way but maybe the protection changed like you mentioned. I'm going to review everything again tonight.

This happened to me too but then my SAI actually went DOWN after it finished processing! It was showing 22k during the

Oh my gosh, this gives me so much hope! I'm going to wait until it's fully processed before completely panicking. Thank you for sharing this!

Have you been trying to call Federal Student Aid about this? I was having the EXACT same issue last month with a mysterious SAI increase. Spent days trying to get through on their main line with no luck. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual FSA agent in about 15 minutes. They've got a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ\n\nThe agent explained exactly what was happening with my daughter's weird SAI calculation - turns out there was a glitch in how they were counting my retirement assets. Worth a shot if you're stuck on hold forever like I was.

I used this too. Got through right away when I'd been trying for days. The agent explained that the new formula is hitting small business owners especially hard because of how they calculate the protection allowance now.

just wait until its fully processed. mine changed like 3 times during processing some weerd glitch in there system probly

Thanks, I really hope that's the case with ours too. The waiting is killing me!

If your daughter has a small business reported on the FAFSA, that's likely the culprit. The 2025-26 FAFSA significantly reduced the small business protection formula. Previously, family-owned businesses under a certain value were partially protected from the SAI calculation. Now, a much higher percentage counts toward your expected contribution.\n\nAdditionally, check if you reported multiple students in college. The 2025-26 FAFSA reduced the benefit of having multiple students enrolled simultaneously.\n\nFinally, once processing completes, immediately contact your school's financial aid office for a professional judgment review. Bring documentation showing your circumstances are unchanged from the previous year when you received a much lower SAI. Many schools have set aside additional institutional funds specifically for families hit hardest by the formula change.

Yes! We do have a small business, and we have another child in college. Sounds like we got hit with both changes. I'll definitely request a professional judgment review. Do you know what specific documentation I should prepare to make the strongest case?

For your professional judgment review, bring:\n\n1. Tax returns from both years showing stable income\n2. Business financial statements showing no significant growth \n3. Documentation of all children enrolled in college\n4. A detailed letter explaining your situation and why the new SAI doesn't reflect your ability to pay\n5. Any major expenses that affect your ability to pay (medical bills, elder care costs, etc.)\n\nMost importantly, don't wait! Schools have limited professional judgment funds, and they're distributed first-come, first-served. I've seen several families get significant adjustments when they provided thorough documentation early in the process.

Thank you SO much for this detailed advice. I'm going to start gathering all these documents this weekend. I really appreciate everyone's help - feeling much less panicked now that I have a plan of action.

I'm going through the exact same nightmare! Our SAI jumped from $8,200 to $24,600 and I've been losing sleep over it. Reading through all these comments is actually really helpful - sounds like the new formula changes are hitting a lot of families hard, especially those with small businesses or multiple kids in college. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service to get through to FSA since I've been on hold for hours with no luck. And I'm going to start gathering documents for a professional judgment review right away. It's somewhat comforting to know we're not alone in this mess, even though it's still terrifying. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and advice!

This is such a relief to find this thread! My family is experiencing the exact same thing - our SAI more than doubled from last year despite no changes in our financial situation. I was starting to think we had made some terrible mistake on the FAFSA. Reading all these responses has been incredibly helpful, especially learning about the formula changes and that there might still be hope once processing is complete. I'm definitely going to try contacting FSA through that Claimyr service since I've had zero luck getting through on the phone, and I'll start preparing for a professional judgment review just in case. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and advice - it's scary but at least we know we're not alone in this!

I'm going through the exact same nightmare right now! Our SAI jumped from $5,800 to $18,400 with literally zero changes to our income or assets. I've been panicking for weeks thinking we made some huge error on the application. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been such a relief - at least now I understand it's these new formula changes hitting families across the board, not just us screwing something up. The advice about waiting for full processing before completely freaking out gives me some hope, especially after hearing from people whose numbers actually went DOWN after processing completed. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service to get through to FSA since I've been stuck on hold for hours with no luck. And I'm starting to gather documents for a professional judgment review this weekend - sounds like getting that submitted early is crucial. Thank you everyone for sharing your stories and advice. It's still terrifying but at least now I have a plan instead of just sitting here panicking!

OMG this is happening to us too! Our SAI went from $4,200 to $16,800 and I've been absolutely sick about it. My daughter is a junior and we were counting on similar aid to what we got the past two years. Same job, same income, actually LESS in savings than last year because of inflation eating into everything. I was convinced I must have fat-fingered some number on the application but reading all this makes me realize it's the new formula changes. The timing is just awful - we're already stretched so thin and now this. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service because calling FSA has been impossible. And I'll start getting those professional judgment documents together ASAP. Thank you all for sharing - it helps so much to know we're not alone in this mess, even though I wouldn't wish this stress on anyone!

This thread has been such a lifesaver! My family's SAI jumped from $6,800 to $19,200 and I was convinced we'd somehow ruined my son's college prospects. Same income, same assets, but apparently we got hit by multiple formula changes - we have a small family business AND two kids in college, so sounds like we lost protection on both fronts. I've been stress-eating for weeks over this! Reading everyone's experiences here has given me actual hope instead of just panic. I'm downloading that Claimyr service right now since I've literally never gotten through to FSA on the phone, and I'm going to start gathering all those professional judgment documents this weekend. The advice about getting that submitted early seems crucial. Thank you all for sharing your stories - knowing we're not alone in this mess makes it feel manageable instead of just catastrophic. I'll definitely update you all on how it goes!

This thread has been such a godsend! Our SAI skyrocketed from $3,900 to $15,600 with literally identical financial circumstances - I was starting to think I'd somehow destroyed my daughter's future by messing up the FAFSA. We're a single-income family and I've been working extra shifts just to keep up with inflation, so seeing that number was absolutely crushing. But reading everyone's experiences here has given me so much hope and actual concrete steps to take instead of just panicking. I'm definitely going to try the Claimyr service since I've wasted entire days trying to get through to FSA, and I'm starting on those professional judgment documents tonight. It's both heartbreaking and reassuring to see so many families going through this - heartbreaking that the system is failing so many hardworking parents, but reassuring that we're not alone and there are potential solutions. Thank you all for sharing your stories and advice. I'll update everyone on how it goes!

I'm so sorry you're going through this nightmare! Your story sounds exactly like what happened to us - our SAI went from $4,100 to $14,800 with zero changes to our income or assets. I was convinced I had made some catastrophic error on the application and spent weeks going line by line trying to find my mistake. Reading through all these responses has been such a relief to realize it's these new formula changes hitting families across the board, not individual screw-ups. The advice about waiting for full processing before completely panicking has given me some hope - especially hearing from people whose numbers actually decreased once everything finished. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service since I've been stuck on hold with FSA for literally hours with no success. And I'm starting to gather documents for a professional judgment review this weekend based on everyone's recommendations. It's terrifying but at least now I have a concrete action plan instead of just sitting here in panic mode. Thank you for posting this - it's connected so many families dealing with the same crisis and given us all hope and direction!

This is absolutely terrifying to read but also somewhat reassuring to know we're not alone! Our SAI jumped from $7,400 to $22,100 with literally no changes - same income, same assets, everything identical. I've been having panic attacks thinking about how we're going to afford my son's senior year with this massive increase. Reading about the formula changes affecting small businesses and multiple students makes sense now since we have both situations. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service tomorrow since I've been on hold with FSA for hours multiple times with no luck. And I'm going to start gathering all those professional judgment documents immediately - sounds like getting that submitted early could make all the difference. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences and advice. It's still scary as hell but at least now I have hope and a plan instead of just pure panic!

I'm so sorry you're going through this! The same exact thing happened to us - our SAI jumped from $8,500 to $25,200 with absolutely no changes to our financial situation. I was convinced I had made some horrible error on the FAFSA and kept checking every single line over and over. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - it's clear that the new 2025-26 formula changes are hitting middle-class families really hard, especially those with small businesses or multiple kids in college. The advice about using Claimyr to get through to FSA sounds promising since I've been stuck on hold for hours with no luck. I'm also going to start gathering documents for a professional judgment review right away based on what everyone's saying about submitting early. It's still terrifying not knowing if this will get resolved, but at least now I understand what's happening and have concrete steps to take. Thank you for posting this - it's connected so many families dealing with the same crisis!

This thread has been such a lifesaver for me! Our SAI jumped from $6,200 to $18,900 with absolutely zero changes to our financial situation - same income, same assets, everything identical. I was literally losing sleep thinking I had somehow destroyed my daughter's chances at college by making some terrible mistake on the FAFSA. But reading everyone's experiences here has shown me it's these new formula changes hitting families across the board, not individual errors. We also have a small business and two kids in college, so sounds like we got hit with multiple formula changes at once. I've been stuck on hold with FSA for hours multiple times with no luck getting through, so I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service first thing tomorrow. And I'm starting to gather all those professional judgment documents this weekend - from what everyone's saying, getting that submitted early could make all the difference. It's still terrifying not knowing how this will resolve, but at least now I have hope and concrete steps to take instead of just pure panic. Thank you all so much for sharing your stories and advice - knowing we're not alone in this mess and that there are ways to fight back gives me strength to keep pushing forward for my kids!