Everyone saying you have to wait is wrong. You need to IMMEDIATELY contact the school you're trying to add to your FAFSA. Explain the situation and provide them with your FAFSA ID. Most schools have a process for this exact situation - they can access your FAFSA information even if you haven't officially added them to your list. For the scholarship deadline, get documentation that you've initiated this process - emails between you and the financial aid office, screenshots of your current FAFSA status, etc. Submit this documentation to the scholarship committee explaining the situation. DON'T just wait for processing - be proactive!

UPDATE: You all have been so helpful! I spoke with the financial aid office at the school we need to add, and they said they can indeed access our FAFSA information with our FAFSA ID number - they just needed my daughter's permission. The scholarship committee also granted us a 5-day extension after I explained the situation and provided documentation of our efforts. I also tried the Claimyr service that someone recommended to get through to FSA, and I actually got to speak with someone who confirmed our FAFSA should be processed within 48 hours. Thank you all so much for helping us navigate this stressful situation! I'll update again once everything is finalized.

my cousins kid got more money when they had 2 in college then when it was just 1. something about the family contribution being split between them. but idk if thats still how it works with all the fafsa changes lately

Thank you all SO MUCH for the helpful advice! I'm definitely going to include both children on the FAFSA now. I had no idea that having multiple students could actually HELP with financial aid rather than hurt it. I feel much better about the whole situation. I'll make sure to update everything if my youngest decides not to attend college after all, but at least now I know I'm not risking my oldest's aid by including both. This community is amazing!

THE WHOLE FAFSA SYSTEM IS BROKEN THIS YEAR!!! Sorry for yelling but I'm so frustrated with all the problems. My daughter's application has been "processing" for 2 months, my son can't get verification completed, and now I'm hearing about this contributor invitation issue from multiple people. The Department of Education should be ashamed of themselves for rolling out such a buggy system when students' futures depend on this. Good luck getting through to anyone there - I've literally called 20+ times and given up.

Any update? Did you figure out which of the suggestions worked? I'm curious because my sister is having the same problem with her husband's account and twin boys too!

UPDATE: I finally got this resolved! I used that Claimyr service to get through to an actual person at FSA yesterday. The agent was able to verify my identity using my SSN and date of birth, then manually changed my email address in their system. I had to wait about 24 hours, but I now have access to my FSA ID again! My son and I finished his FAFSA application last night. Just wanted to update in case anyone else runs into this problem. The key is getting to an actual human who can help with account recovery.

That's great news! For anyone else dealing with similar issues, here's a quick summary of options for FSA ID email recovery: 1. Try the standard recovery options on studentaid.gov first 2. Call the dedicated FSA ID technical support line (not the general FAFSA helpline) 3. Use a call connection service if you keep getting disconnected 4. Ask your student's school counselor for assistance 5. As a last resort, create a new FSA ID (but be prepared for potential verification issues) And remember that with the 2025-2026 FAFSA, parents can now create separate contributor accounts rather than using their original FSA ID. This new system is specifically designed to address situations like this, though it's still having some growing pains.

Another thing I learned from my experience - keep ALL documentation related to your custody and living situation in a folder (physical or digital). When my triplets applied, I needed: - Copy of divorce decree - Copy of custody agreement showing physical placement - School records showing my address - Utility bills showing household size - Letter explaining our tax arrangement Better to have it and not need it than scramble at the last minute! The worst part of FAFSA is the verification process when they question things, especially with divorced parents.

Thank you everyone for the helpful advice! So to summarize what I've learned: 1. Count both twins in my household size for FAFSA even though I only claim one on taxes 2. My ex's income won't be considered since the twins live with me full-time 3. Child support I receive will count as untaxed income 4. I should start gathering documentation now in case of verification 5. FAFSA is primarily concerned with actual living arrangements, not tax filing status This has been so helpful in understanding how to approach this when the time comes. I'm glad I started learning about this early!