Hi!
We can’t move past the parent contributor phase since when we invite one parent, and the parent logs in, it takes the parent to his old original 1999 student loans/FAFSA page. It does not recognize him as a parent–only as an ex-student. We’ve invited this parent 4 times and he still only sees his own old student loan account. So our son is stuck. There is no way to advance to the “submit fasfa form” page until this parent signs. Yet this parent can’t make a new account because social security number. Anyone else having this problem?
@kelsmom this is a new question!
Update! We changed this parent’s email address 3 times, hoping to “trick the algorithm.” No dice. Son invites dad with dad’s email, dad gets invite email and logs in …still goes to dad’s 1999 student loan account and the screen suggests, “Do you want to start a new FAFSA for 2024-25?” (Uh, no, thank god we graduated 20 years ago.)
Meanwhile, son is stuck. There is no submit button on son’s FAFSA logged-in screen, and there’s even no “next” button. And there’s no information about what’s missing or what to do next.
Anyone else???
That definitely is a new one. I have no idea.
Try it again. When you get to the loan page, scroll down. Do you see My Activity anywhere on the page? If not, you will need to submit a complaint: Federal Student Aid. Agree to share your information, then choose FAFSA Issue. You can also try calling the helpline, in case they can help you with this issue.
I’ve had families with this issue over the years and the FAFSA helpline was able to fix it…but I don’t know how. It seemed like something that only could be fixed at the FSA system level. So I second a call to the helpline, which will probably take some time and effort right now.
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Can you just switch to inviting mom? If parents are married, it doesn’t matter which one fills it out.
The FSA website specifically states that if the parent created an FSA ID as a student, they don’t need to create a new one. It should work. Maybe there’s some relatively simple thing that can be done that FSA can get done … so plan to pack your patience & call tomorrow (maybe it won’t be a long wait while students are in school).
I agree this definitely sounds like an issue that has to be resolved over the phone. There’s likely some status flag on the account that didn’t get cleared when the loans were discharged. Or are the loans still active and on a 30 year repayment? (That was me 
until I got mine paid off recently). We are going to do the FAFSA this weekend with our son, I hope this doesn’t happen to me!
Does the parent have an FSA number? Wouldn’t have had one in 1999 (I think they started in 2015) so I suggest go in and create one and enter that before SSN.
Weirdly, this solved itself. I’m not sure how. All I can say is that I (parent 1) filled out the FAFSA and signed it. Then my son saw that he needed Parent 2 as well, and invited him. We spent 15 days trying to get to the screen for Parent 2’s sig. Then today, I logged in again as Parent 1, and it allowed me, and me only, to sign. Moral of the story? If you have a second married parent/contributor signing, I think the system gets very confused, and (perhaps?) resets all the parent’s signatures and creates circular loops…
If you have a married couple who filed jointly (and are the biological or adoptive parents of the student), then only one parent needs a FAFSA account. It doesn’t matter which one. The other parent does not sign. That is why I suggested above that you switch parents if you were married.
The weird thing that is making many concerned is the Question while doing FAFSA that other parent needs to sign - then you give the other parent DOB, social, email and phone number, then nothing ever happens.
So FAFSA says the other parent/spouse will be notified but the spouse never is - because the real purpose of the question is to confirm that the other parent is the same person as on the linked tax return.
So thousands of parents are waiting for the spouse to get an email which never shows up.
The maddening thing is the FB “experts” telling parents that they both need a FAFSA ID even if married and filing jointly, which likely causes more headaches and needless issues.
But of course, the best news is you all got it done one way or another!