After one of our FAFSA USA Student Aid Advisors completes your FAFSA, we will electronically submit it to the federal processor contracted by the Department of Education. We will send you an e-mail containing the FAFSA signature page, which you need to sign and immediately mail to the federal processor. This is important, as your FAFSA will not be considered “fully processed” until you do. Your FAFSA will be processed to determine your Estimated Family Contribution (EFC). We will check the status of your application every day until it has been processed and will notify you by e-mail once complete. Within 10 days, your Student Aid Report (SAR) will be sent to you and the financial aid offices of up to ten schools listed on your FAFSA, which confirms that your FAFSA was processed and what your EFC is.

School financial aid administrators use information, including your SAR, to prepare a financial aid award package for you based on the types and amount of financial aid for which you may be eligible. Your financial aid package may include a mixture of grants, scholarships, work-study programs, college-sponsored aid, and/or loans, and will be communicated to you in the form of a Financial Aid Award Notice. You will usually receive a Financial Aid Award Notice from those colleges to which you have been offered admission. The financial aid awarded is usually a combination of grants, scholarships, college sponsored aid and student loans.

FAFSA Corrections

Unfortunately, an incomplete or inaccurate FAFSA form many times results in delays or a complete denial of financial aid which you otherwise might be entitled too! But, don’t worry. The good news is, if you filled out your FAFSA incorrectly, we can help you correct it now.

When you file a FAFSA form with FAFSA USA, your application is personally reviewed by our review team that double checks your application for accuracy using our proprietary “Error-Gone“ checklist that verifies your form against hundreds of common errors and mistakes. Any potential errors or omissions are fixed before it is submitted to the federal processor, reducing delays, speeding up your assistance, and giving you peace of mind.

Please note: we do not independently verify any information you provide to us (such as your Social Security Number, date of birth, the correct spelling of your name, your income, assets, household information, etc.) so it important for you to review the accuracy of the FAFSA as well for errors.

You are also advised to correct a FAFSA application to reflect any updated financial information regarding your family, or to enter your actual information after you and/or your parents have completed their annual income tax returns. Much too often, a student or family’s financial situation changes over the course of the year, and is not updated with the FAFSA form, resulting in a potential loss of additional aid.