Student unable to sign FAFSA, but parent section submitted - strange error message?

My son had the EXACT same problem last week!! So frustrating. It turned out he needed to clear his browser cache and cookies, then restart the browser completely. For some reason the FAFSA website gets buggy when there's cached data. Also tell her to make sure she's using Chrome or Edge - we had problems with Firefox.

This is a known issue with the new 2025-2026 FAFSA student signature pages. According to the Federal Student Aid office, the problem usually happens when there's incomplete information in one of the previous sections. Even though it LOOKS complete, sometimes the system doesn't register all the answers. Have your daughter go back through each section one by one and click "Save" at the bottom of each page, even if she already completed them. Pay special attention to the sections about her citizenship status and selective service (if applicable). Those are often the culprits.

someone told me if u use different devices it can cause this. like if she started on laptop then tried to sign on her phone. my cousin had this issue and had to start completely over lol

OMG Im having the SAME PROBLEMS!!! Been trying for THREE DAYS and cant get past this stupid error!! So annoying when parents part works fine but student section is broken!!!

This is actually a fairly common issue with the new FAFSA system. Here's what I recommend: 1. First, try the browser cache clearing that was suggested 2. If that doesn't work, have your daughter check if her FSA ID is properly linked to her Social Security Number - sometimes there's a verification issue there 3. Make sure all demographic information exactly matches what's on her Social Security card 4. Try completing the FAFSA in one sitting without switching devices 5. Double-check that the email verification was completed for her FSA ID If none of that works, unfortunately you'll need to contact FSA directly. The phone lines are extremely backed up right now with the new application issues.

You might want to try Claimyr if you need to speak with someone at the Federal Student Aid office. I was stuck on hold forever trying to fix a similar signature issue, then discovered this service that holds your place in line and calls you back when an agent is available. Saved me hours of waiting! Their site is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. It was such a relief to actually talk to someone who could help with the signature error.

This might sound odd, but check if your daughter's name has any special characters or if it's particularly long. My daughter has a hyphenated last name, and the system kept giving the same error until we realized the hyphen was causing problems with the signature page. We had to make sure her name was entered EXACTLY the same way across all sections of the application.

did u try turning it off and on again lol sometimes that actually works with fafsa

UPDATE: I just checked the Federal Student Aid Twitter account, and they've acknowledged there's an issue with the student signature page that they're working to fix. It's affecting a lot of people applying this week. They suggest trying again in 24-48 hours if the other troubleshooting steps don't work.

Did you guys manage to fix this? My niece is having the exact same problem now and I'm trying to help her figure it out.

I'm so glad to hear this community exists! I'm a college freshman whose little brother is about to apply for his FAFSA next year, and reading through these posts is already teaching me so much about potential issues to watch out for. The browser compatibility problems seem to be a recurring theme - I'll definitely make sure he uses Chrome from the start and sticks to one device throughout the process. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and solutions!