Just wanted to follow up - were you able to recover your application? If not, I recommend calling FSA with your Save Key and the email address you used for the application. The agent should be able to see all applications associated with your account, even ones not displaying on your dashboard. They can also tell you if your corrections went through despite the error message.

This happened to my brother too - turned out his application wasn't actually gone, just not displaying correctly. But seriously, they've had like 2 YEARS to prepare this new system and it's still completely broken. How hard is it to make a website that actually works?! 🤬

my daughter didn't get her sai for like 3 weeks and then suddenlty it showed up. just be patient it'll come thru

One additional point that might be helpful - make sure you're checking both the studentaid.gov dashboard AND your email regularly. Sometimes the SAI will be included in the Student Aid Report (SAR) email before it appears on the dashboard. Also, be sure to check spam folders as these official emails sometimes get filtered there. If more than 10 business days pass without an SAI for your freshman, log back into studentaid.gov and verify that there are no items in the "Action Required" section. Occasionally there might be identity verification steps or requests for additional documentation that aren't clearly communicated.

The whole FAFSA redesign this year is a DISASTER! Parent contributors having separate accounts from students makes sense in theory but the implementation is TERRIBLE. My son's SAI calculation was wrong THREE TIMES because of their system glitches. Every time I called, I got different information about how to fix it. The colleges were asking for his FAFSA information and we couldn't even get it processed correctly. Anyone who says this new system is "simplified" is LYING.

To answer your follow-up question - yes, you can make corrections to a submitted FAFSA anytime until the application deadline (June 30, 2026 for the 2025-2026 form). However, for maximum aid consideration, you'll want to make any corrections before your son's college priority deadlines. Also, once you're in the correct account, look for the "Parent Information" section. This is where you'll be prompted to provide YOUR FSA ID to sign as a parent contributor - this is the correct way the parent/student accounts are supposed to work together.

I had the same issue and found out there are actually two separate problems that could be happening: 1. If your son added you as a contributor but your email address was entered incorrectly, you won't receive the invitation email. The fix is for him to update your email in the system. 2. If your son correctly added you as a contributor but you can't see his FAFSA when you log in, it's likely because your FSA ID isn't properly linked to the parent role. This is a surprisingly common technical glitch in the system. For the second issue, I had to call the Federal Student Aid Information Center. I was initially frustrated because I couldn't get through after being on hold for over an hour. Then I discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to an agent in about 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent was able to manually link my account to my child's FAFSA, and I could immediately see and sign it. Definitely worth trying if you continue having issues after verifying the email is correct.

Update: Just wanted to circle back since I had this EXACT problem. The issue was that my son had entered my email correctly, but there's a difference between: 1. Adding a parent's information to the FAFSA (demographics, finances, etc.) 2. Actually inviting the parent as a contributor who can sign He thought by entering my information, I was automatically invited, but there's a separate step to send the parent invitation. When he went to the parent/contributor section, he saw he hadn't actually completed the invitation process. Check that your son has specifically sent the invitation, not just entered your info!

I work in a college financial aid office, and I want to reassure everyone that we are VERY aware of the FAFSA processing delays. Most schools (including mine) are being flexible with priority deadlines this year. Here's what we're telling our students: 1. Document your FAFSA submission date (screenshot the confirmation page or email) 2. Contact your school's financial aid office proactively to alert them of your early submission 3. Don't panic about the SAI calculation - just because your FAFSA isn't processed doesn't mean you're losing your place in line 4. The Department of Education won't begin sending FAFSA data to schools until early February anyway This new FAFSA has been challenging for everyone - students, parents, AND financial aid administrators. We're all figuring it out together. Just keep documentation of when you submitted, and you should be fine for priority deadlines.

My daughter submitted January 1st and hers JUST changed to processed yesterday!!! But now I'm panicking because her SAI is way higher than we expected 😭 We make about $78,000 and her SAI is 12,354 which seems really high. Anyone know if that's normal or if something went wrong?