Who fills out FAFSA - student or parent? First-timer needs quick answer

The student is the primary applicant who creates the FSA ID and fills out the FAFSA. The student will enter their information first, then add parent information later in the application. Parents don't create their own separate FAFSA application - they're contributors to the student's application. Your daughter should be the one creating the account with her information. Hope that helps!

my daughter did it herself but needed all our tax info and i had to do the parent part. its confusing but the student is the one who applies but parents have to do stuff to

For 2025-2026 FAFSA the student creates the account and is the "you" in most cases. BUT parents need their own FSA ID to sign electronically as a contributor. So both of you need FSA IDs but hers is the primary account. The new FAFSA is really different from previous years so a lot of old advice online is wrong now.

OMG we were SO confused about this too!!! We actually created the account under my husband's name and had to start all over. The student MUST be the one to create the account and FSA ID. Then parents create separate FSA IDs to be contributors. The student is considered the "applicant" but parents provide all the financial info unless student is independent (rare for undergrad). Don't make our mistake!!

Just to clarify some technical details: The student creates their FSA ID at studentaid.gov first. Then they start the FAFSA application as the student applicant. During the application, they'll reach a section where they add contributor(s) - typically parent(s). Each contributor needs their own FSA ID to electronically sign the FAFSA. The student still completes most of the application, but parents need to provide accurate financial information and sign. For dependent students (which most undergrads are), parental information is required to calculate the Student Aid Index (SAI), which determines aid eligibility.

To answer the question about parents - if both legal parents live together (married or unmarried), both need to create FSA IDs and provide information. If parents are divorced/separated, only the parent the student lived with more during the past 12 months (plus that parent's spouse if remarried) needs an FSA ID. The non-custodial parent doesn't need an FSA ID for FAFSA, though they might for the CSS Profile if required by certain schools.

Try calling Federal Student Aid directly at 1-800-433-3243 if you get stuck or need verification. Fair warning though - wait times can be ridiculous. I spent 3 hours on hold last month trying to fix an issue with my parent's FSA ID.

and watch out for the stupid verification process, my kid got randomly picked for it and we had to upload a bunch of extra stuff

Verification happens to about 25% of FAFSA filers, chosen either randomly or due to discrepancies in your application. It's not necessarily bad luck - just part of the process for some. If selected, you'll need to provide additional documentation to verify your financial information. Just keep all your tax documents organized so you can easily upload them if needed. The most important thing right now is getting the application started correctly with your daughter as the applicant.

Just wanted to add a helpful tip for when you're filling it out - have your 2023 tax returns ready along with bank statements and investment account info. The new FAFSA can auto-populate some tax info using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, but you'll still need other financial documents handy. Also, don't panic if the system seems slow or kicks you out - it's been having issues this year. Just save frequently and be patient. Good luck with your daughter's application!