What does 'FAFSA Correction In Progress' status mean? Do I need to take action?
I just signed the correction section for my 2025-2026 FAFSA today, and now my status shows "In Progress" (see screenshot). This is my first time submitting corrections, so I'm confused about whether I need to do anything else. The parent contributor shows "Accepted Invitation" which makes me think they still need to sign something? My SAI score was way too high initially because of a tax reporting error, so I'm really anxious about these corrections going through properly. Anyone know if I need to take additional steps or just wait at this point?
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Jabari-Jo
You're in the waiting stage now. "In Progress" means the system has registered your signature for the correction but is waiting for processing. This is normal! The correction follows these steps: Started → Submitted → Processed. You're between Started and Submitted right now, which usually means either: 1. Your parent contributor needs to sign (they've accepted the invitation but may not have signed the correction yet) 2. The system is queuing your correction for submission Double-check that your parent completed their signature process specifically for the CORRECTION (not just the original FAFSA). If they have, then you just need to wait for processing which typically takes 3-5 business days.
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Seraphina Delan
•Thank you!! That makes sense. I'll check with my mom to see if she signed the actual correction. I'm so worried about this tax error getting fixed, as it could mean thousands in aid difference.
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Kristin Frank
ur def waiting for parent to sign. the status shows they accepted invite but thats just step 1, they gotta sign the correction too. my dad took FOREVER to do this part and my correction sat for like 2 weeks until i literally had to sit next to him while he signed it lol
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Seraphina Delan
•Ugh that's what I was afraid of. I'll call my mom right now. Did your correction go through quickly after your dad finally signed it?
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Kristin Frank
•yea it was pretty fast after that, like 2-3 days and my SAI changed. follow up w ur parent asap!!
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Micah Trail
The status tracker shows you're still in stage 1 of the correction process. Looking at your screenshot, it appears your parent has accepted the invitation to contribute, but they likely need to complete their section and sign the correction. This is a common confusion point with the new FAFSA. For corrections to be properly submitted, every contributor needs to: 1. Review the corrected information 2. Electronically sign the correction Until all required signatures are obtained, the correction remains "In Progress" and won't advance to the "Submitted" stage. Once all signatures are received, it typically takes 3-7 business days for processing and to receive your updated SAI calculation.
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Seraphina Delan
•Thank you for the detailed explanation! I just spoke with my mom and she thought accepting the invitation was enough. She's going to log in and complete her signature tonight. Fingers crossed this gets my SAI corrected soon!
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Micah Trail
•You're welcome! That's exactly what happens with many families - confusing the invitation acceptance with the actual signature. Once she signs tonight, you should see the status change to "Submitted" within 24 hours. Then the countdown for processing begins!
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Nia Watson
I had this EXACT problem last month!!! The whole correction process is SO CONFUSING. My status was stuck on "in progress" for THREE WEEKS because my dad thought he already signed everything!!!! So frustrating!!!!
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Seraphina Delan
•Three weeks?! That's terrible! Did you eventually get it fixed? Did your SAI change?
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Nia Watson
•Yes finally got it fixed when I literally watched over his shoulder while he signed it properly. My SAI dropped by like $3800 after the correction which meant I qualified for way more aid! Don't give up on this!!!
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Alberto Souchard
This "in progress" limbo is infuriating. I spent WEEKS trying to reach someone at Federal Student Aid to explain why my correction wasn't moving forward. Turns out my parent's signature wasn't properly recorded even though they thought they signed it! The system never notified either of us about this. By the time we figured it out, we almost missed priority deadlines at two schools. The whole system is designed to frustrate students.
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Katherine Shultz
•If anyone's struggling to reach FSA by phone, I discovered a service called Claimyr that connected me to an agent in under 15 minutes when I was dealing with my correction issues. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. Saved me hours of hold time when I was panicking about my correction not processing. Their site is claimyr.com - definitely worth it for urgent FAFSA issues when you can't get through the normal way.
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Marcus Marsh
im confused...why is it showing the parent accepted the invitation but then you still need more signatures? the new FAFSA sucks so much lol
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Jabari-Jo
•There are actually two separate steps: 1. Accepting the invitation = Parent agrees to be a contributor on your FAFSA 2. Signing the correction = Parent reviews and approves the specific changes being made It's confusing because they look similar in the interface. The first one is just saying "yes I'll participate" while the second one is the legal signature approving the actual data changes. Both are required for corrections to process.
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Seraphina Delan
UPDATE: My mom just signed the correction properly and now the status has changed to "FAFSA Correction Submitted" instead of "In Progress"! Thanks everyone for your help. Now I guess I just wait for processing and hope my SAI gets adjusted correctly.
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Micah Trail
•Great news! Now that it's submitted, you should see it processed within 3-7 business days. Your SAI will be recalculated based on the corrected information, and both you and your school(s) will receive notification when the correction is processed. If your school has already created a financial aid package, they'll likely revise it after receiving your corrected FAFSA information.
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Seraphina Delan
•That's such a relief! The mistaken income entry was making my SAI about $7,500 higher than it should be, which would have meant much less aid. Fingers crossed the correction fixes it!
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Anderson Prospero
•Awesome update! So glad you got it sorted out. A $7,500 difference in SAI is huge - that could easily mean several thousand more in Pell Grant eligibility alone. Make sure to keep checking your status over the next week and don't hesitate to follow up with your schools once the processing is complete. They sometimes need a gentle nudge to update aid packages after corrections come through.
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Javier Torres
Congrats on getting it submitted! Just wanted to add for anyone else reading this thread - if your correction involves tax information changes like yours did, make sure you have documentation ready in case your school's financial aid office requests verification. Sometimes when there are significant SAI changes from corrections, schools will ask for tax transcripts or other proof to verify the corrected information before finalizing your aid package. Better to have everything ready so there are no delays once your correction processes!
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Evelyn Kelly
•That's really helpful advice! I hadn't thought about needing documentation ready. Since my correction was fixing a pretty significant tax reporting error, I should probably gather my tax transcripts and W-2s now so I'm prepared if my school asks for verification. Do you know if most schools automatically request verification for large SAI changes, or is it more random?
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