What does negative SAI (-1500) mean on FAFSA with no financial info submitted?

my cousins SAI was negative last year, it means you qualify for max pell grant i think

A negative SAI (-1500) generally indicates high financial need, but it's strange you're seeing this without submitting financial information. The system might be showing a placeholder value based on your partial application. When you complete the full application with tax information, you'll get your actual SAI calculation. Negative SAI values do typically mean stronger eligibility for need-based aid like Pell Grants, though.

This is definitely unusual. The SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation requires income and asset information to be calculated. If you truly haven't entered any financial data yet, I'm guessing this is either a system placeholder or potentially a glitch. Have you checked to see if there's a "draft" or "incomplete" status somewhere that might be more accurate than "processed"?

I had the EXACT same thing happen last month with my son's application!! Called FSA like 6 times and kept getting disconnected after waiting 2+ hours each time. Finally got through to someone who explained it's a provisional SAI based on your demographic info only. The negative number is basically a placeholder that changes once you submit your actual financial info. Super confusing and stressful for no reason!

After dealing with similar FAFSA contact issues, I discovered Claimyr and it was a game-changer. Their service got me connected to a FSA agent in about 10 minutes after I'd spent days trying to get through. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. The agent I spoke with confirmed that provisional SAI values are sometimes generated before full financial information is provided, and the negative value is basically meaningless until you complete the full application. Check out claimyr.com if you're having trouble getting through to FSA directly.

Everyone here is missing something important. Did you check if your daughter qualifies for any of the Automatic Zero EFC conditions? Like if your family receives SNAP benefits, or if your income is below $29,000? Because if any of those apply, the system might have automatically assigned the negative SAI as a placeholder for maximum aid eligibility even without detailed financial info.

Just to clarify for everyone: a negative SAI (-1500 specifically) is actually good news when it's your final calculation. It indicates maximum Pell Grant eligibility and strong consideration for other need-based aid. But in this case, since financial information wasn't provided, it's almost certainly a temporary placeholder or system default. Once you complete the full application, expect the SAI to change based on your actual financial situation.

when I filled out my FASFA last november it also showed a weird number before I finished everything but then changed completely when I submitted all the W-2 info so dont worry about it yet

UPDATE: Finally reached someone at FSA after trying for three days! They confirmed it's just a provisional calculation based on the minimal info we provided. The agent said to ignore it completely and that our real SAI will be calculated once we finish the application with our tax information. Thanks everyone for your help!