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when i was doing fafsa for my twins i had similar issue. turned out i was looking at the 2024-2025 fafsa but needed to be in the 2025-2026 one! make sure your in the right aid year maybe?
Update from my earlier comment: There's actually a recently identified bug in the system where contributor access doesn't properly connect for spouses with joint tax returns IF both parents already have FSA IDs. The Department of Education released guidance on this last week. The temporary fix is to: 1. Have your husband go to studentaid.gov/fafsa-status 2. Enter your daughter's identifiers when prompted 3. It may show a special override option for contributors with existing FSA IDs If that doesn't work, contacting FSA directly is your best option. They can manually override the contributor status on their end.
Thank you for this update! We'll try the status check page right away. If we still can't resolve it, I'll use that Claimyr service someone mentioned to get through to FSA directly. I'll post an update here once we get it figured out in case it helps someone else with the same issue!
Have u tried appealing ur SAI? My family had a similar situation (they said we could pay $22k lol as if) and we submitted a professional judgment request with documentation of some medical expenses and got it reduced. Worth a shot before u take out a bunch of loans
I didn't know that was possible! What kind of documentation did you need to provide? My dad actually lost his job last month (after we submitted the FAFSA) so maybe that would qualify us for an adjustment?
Yes, your father's job loss is absolutely grounds for a professional judgment review! Contact your financial aid office ASAP and ask for a "Professional Judgment Review" or "Special Circumstances Review" form. You'll need to provide documentation of the job loss (termination letter, unemployment benefits statement) and possibly your family's updated income information. Regarding your earlier question about deadlines for Direct Unsubsidized Loans - you can generally request these any time during the academic year before the last day of classes. So you haven't missed any deadline. Just be aware that if you request loans late in the semester, the disbursement might be delayed. And yes, your dad's job loss situation could potentially lower your SAI significantly and qualify you for subsidized loans and additional grants!
Thank you so much for all this information! I'm calling the financial aid office first thing tomorrow morning. Hoping the professional judgment review helps us qualify for better aid. I really appreciate everyone's advice here - feeling much less stressed about my options now.
my cousin got a negative sai too but then got selected for verification and had to send in like a million documents and it took FOREVER to process. just warning u it might not be over yet lol
Cash income can definitely complicate verification. If your mother doesn't receive W-2s for her house cleaning work, she should have reported this income on Schedule C as self-employment income on her taxes. During verification, you might need to provide a signed statement explaining her work situation and income. Some schools accept income verification letters from employers or even detailed personal records of cash payments if official documentation isn't available.
She did report it on her taxes but I'm not sure if she kept good records of all the payments. This is stressing me out! Will this affect my eligibility for aid?
Anyone else notice how the FAFSA website keeps changing? My counselor said something about a "soft launch" for the new system and said we might need to recheck our submissions through January. I'd monitor your account regularly just to be safe.
Your counselor is correct. The Department of Education has announced that the 2025-2026 FAFSA is undergoing a phased implementation with ongoing updates. While the core functionality is working, they're still refining certain elements of the system. I recommend checking your StudentAid.gov account weekly and ensuring your contact information is current so you receive any important notifications.
one other thing nobody mentioned - check if theres different deadlines for the fafsa for certificate programs vs regular degrees. i almost missed out on aid once cuz the certificate program had an earlier priority deadline than what i was used to for my regular classes.
Avery Saint
I work at a community college financial aid office (not a CSU), but I can tell you that this year has been exceptionally slow for all schools processing financial aid. The 2024-2025 FAFSA had major changes, and many schools are running behind their normal timelines. A few things to know: 1. The SAI (Student Aid Index) replaced the old EFC this year 2. System-generated corrections often trigger verification requirements 3. Each individual school must review your FAFSA before creating an aid package 4. Schools are processing applications in chronological order based on when they were COMPLETED (not just submitted) I strongly recommend checking each school's student portal for verification requirements. With the May 2nd completion date, I'd expect packages to start arriving in mid-June at the earliest.
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Hassan Khoury
•Thank you for the insider perspective! That makes a lot of sense about the chronological processing. I didn't realize this year had major changes to the FAFSA system - that explains why things seem to be taking longer than when my older son applied a few years ago.
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Hassan Khoury
UPDATE: You all were right! I checked my daughter's student portal for Northridge and there was a verification request from May 17th sitting there that we never knew about! They needed copies of our 2022 tax transcripts and her birth certificate. Just uploaded everything. Thanks everyone for your help!
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Benjamin Kim
•Great! Verification requests are extremely common this year with the new FAFSA system. Now that you've submitted those documents, expect it to take 2-3 weeks for processing, then another week or so for the aid package to be generated. You're on the right track now!
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Sarah Ali
•classic CSU move, not telling anyone about important deadlines 🙄 glad you figured it out tho
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