Hey Nia! Just wanted to add that it's also worth setting up an FSA ID if you haven't already - you'll need it every year to electronically sign your FAFSA. And pro tip: bookmark the official FAFSA website (studentaid.gov/fafsa) because there are a lot of scam sites that look similar and charge fees for something that's completely free. Your financial aid office is also a great resource if you run into any issues during the application process. Good luck with your spring semester!

As someone who just went through the FAFSA process for the first time this year, I can confirm everyone here is right - it's definitely once per academic year! I was super stressed about it too because all the deadlines and requirements seemed so confusing at first. One thing that really helped me was creating a calendar reminder for December 1st with a note about what tax documents I'll need (2023 tax returns for the 2025-26 FAFSA). My financial aid counselor also mentioned that even though the FAFSA opens in December, some state aid programs have earlier deadlines, so it's worth checking if your state has any specific requirements. Thanks for asking this question - I bet a lot of students have the same confusion!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to add my voice as another newcomer who's been lurking here while dealing with this exact same account creation nightmare. I've been stuck on that spinning loading screen for 6 days now and was honestly starting to think there was something wrong with my computer! This thread has been an absolute godsend - seeing all these recent success stories after the emergency maintenance has given me so much hope. It's incredible how this community has basically crowdsourced a solution to what should be a simple government website function. I'm planning to wake up early tomorrow (around 5:30am) and try the winning formula that's worked for so many: Chrome incognito + personal Gmail + VPN completely off + stable connection. The fact that multiple people have broken through using this exact combination is really reassuring! It's honestly insane that we need a PhD in troubleshooting just to start a FAFSA application in 2025, but I'm so grateful for everyone here sharing practical solutions instead of the generic "restart your browser" advice you get everywhere else. This community is amazing - you've all been more helpful than any official support channel! Will definitely report back with hopefully another success story to add to this incredible thread. Thank you all for being such lifesavers! 🙏✨

Just wanted to jump in as another newcomer who's been silently following this thread while struggling with the exact same issue! I've been trying to create my FSA ID for the past 4 days and that loading screen has been my nemesis. Reading through all these success stories, especially the recent ones after the emergency maintenance, has been incredibly encouraging. It's amazing how this community has basically become the unofficial tech support for the FAFSA website! I'm definitely going to try the proven combo tomorrow morning around 6am: Chrome incognito + Gmail + VPN off + stable connection. The consistency of people succeeding with these exact steps gives me real hope. It's wild that in 2025 we need a community playbook to access a government website, but I'm so grateful everyone here has shared their real solutions. This thread should honestly be featured in the official FAFSA help section - you've all been more helpful than any official support! Will update tomorrow with hopefully another success story to add to this amazing collection. Thank you all for being such a supportive community! 🤞

As a newcomer to this community and the FAFSA process, I'm incredibly grateful for this comprehensive thread! My daughter is a high school senior and we're about to begin the 2025-2026 FAFSA journey. Reading through everyone's experiences with the contributor invitation issues has been both enlightening and reassuring - it's clear this is a systemic problem with the new design, not something families are doing wrong. I'm definitely bookmarking the "Apply for Aid" > "Complete a FAFSA Form" solution that's worked for so many people here, along with all the other valuable tips about checking browser pop-up blockers, ensuring email addresses match exactly, and having tax documents ready to avoid timeouts. It's amazing to see how this community rallies together to help each other navigate such a complex and stressful process. Knowing there are proven workarounds and such supportive people here makes me feel much more confident about tackling our FAFSA. Thank you to everyone who shared their struggles and solutions - you're truly making this overwhelming process more manageable for families like mine!

As a newcomer to this community and the FAFSA process, I want to thank everyone for creating such an incredibly helpful resource! My son is a high school senior and we're just beginning our 2025-2026 FAFSA journey, so reading through all these real experiences has been invaluable. It's both frustrating and reassuring to see how common the contributor invitation issues are - frustrating because it shows the system has serious design flaws, but reassuring because I now know these aren't user errors and there are proven solutions. I'm definitely saving the "Apply for Aid" > "Complete a FAFSA Form" workaround that worked for so many of you, along with all the other great tips about browser settings, email matching, and document preparation. This community support makes what seemed like an impossible process feel much more manageable. I'll be sure to come back and share our experience once we get through it - hopefully to help the next family dealing with these same challenges!

Thank you all for sharing your experiences! This is incredibly helpful. I'm planning to schedule dedicated sessions next week for the three students I mentioned. Based on what everyone has shared, I'll make sure to have them bring their parents, use Firefox or Edge browsers, complete everything in one session, and have all the documentation ready beforehand. It's reassuring to hear that while the system isn't perfect, it's significantly better than last year's disaster. I'll also reach out to our local college financial aid offices to let them know these students might need estimated packages while verification processes. Really appreciate this community - you've saved me and these students a lot of headaches!

Just wanted to add my experience from this year - I helped my neighbor's daughter submit her 2025-2026 FAFSA last month with the exact same situation (mom has ITIN, no SSN). We followed the process everyone mentioned here: selected "No" for SSN question, entered all zeros, completed everything in one Firefox session with mom present. The application went through smoothly and they got their SAI back in about 8 days with no verification requests! It's definitely much better than the nightmare stories from last year. The key really seems to be having all the parent info consistent and completing it without interruption. Hope this gives you confidence to move forward with your students - the system actually works now!

As someone who's been lurking in this community for a while but just created an account, this thread has been incredibly educational! I'm in a similar situation with my daughter starting college this fall, and I had no idea about the interaction between 529 funds and the American Opportunity Tax Credit. Reading through all these responses, it seems like the strategic approach of using $4,000 from regular savings first to maximize the AOTC, then using 529 funds for remaining expenses makes the most sense. @Sophie Hernandez's step-by-step breakdown was especially helpful. I'm definitely going to follow @Ella Cofer's advice about contacting our school's financial aid office directly to understand their specific policies. One question I have is about timing - should I wait until we receive the final tuition bill to make these decisions, or is it better to plan this strategy out in advance? Also curious if anyone has experience with how this plays out when you have multiple kids in college at different times and need to preserve some 529 funds for the younger ones.

As a newcomer to this community, I'm amazed by how helpful and detailed everyone's responses have been! I'm facing a very similar situation with my daughter starting college this fall, and I honestly had no idea there were so many strategic considerations beyond just having the money saved up. The advice about using $4,000 from regular savings first to maximize the American Opportunity Tax Credit is something I definitely wouldn't have known about otherwise - that's potentially $2,500 in tax savings that would have been lost! @Sophie Hernandez's step-by-step approach makes so much sense, and @Ella Cofer's perspective from working in financial aid is invaluable. I'm definitely going to contact our school's financial aid office directly to understand their specific policies. One thing I'm curious about - for those who've been through this process, how far in advance did you finalize your funding strategy? Should I be making these decisions now, or is it better to wait until we get the actual semester bills to see the exact amounts?