FAFSA Question

[Snaggletooth]

Is your FAFSA application (done this winter) dependent upon your 2012 income or your 2011 income?
What about if the student was a dependent or not a dependent? Are both parents counted anyway??

[ChEAr$]

All these fafsa applications this spring are based on 2012 income tax returns.


There is a web site which you can find with Google. It has all the answers.

And then some. (grin

[Koss]

FAFSA Application

Okay, I'll take this one...

Most students are applying for financial aid for the academic year that begins this autumn. The Department of Education defines the academic year as July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014. This application is based on data from the 2012 tax return.

But a student might be applying for aid for this summer. The summer term of 2013 might be part of the previous academic year, i.e., the period from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013. It depends on the school. At some schools, the summer term of 2013 might be part of the academic year that begins on July 1, 2013; at other schools, it might be part of the academic year that ends on June 30, 2013.

In theory, a student could even apply for aid for the current winter term, even if they are already enrolled.

Snaggletooth may not like the answer, but a student can complete a financial aid application for either academic year. The final deadline for the FAFSA is the last day of the academic year. Applications for both periods are currently available. Here are the links to the PDF forms:

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1213/pdf/PdfFafsa12-13.pdf

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1314/pdf/PdfFafsa13-14.pdf

Now to your second question:

You wrote:

What about if the student was a dependent or not a dependent? Are both parents counted anyway??

Whether the student is claimed as a dependent on the parents' tax return is completely irrelevant. It may have been relevant at one time. But the Department of Education figured out that parents were gaming the system by choosing not claim their children.

On the FAFSA application, there is a series of question in Step Three, at the bottom of page 5.

The income of the parents is only required if the student answers NO to every question. If the student answers YES to just one question, then the student is considered independent for purposes of student financial aid eligibility.

But the questions are tough, and false answers amount to criminal fraud. There are thirteen questions. Read them and you'll start to get the picture.

There are special instructions for the student if the parents are divorced. Those instructions are on page 9 of the FAFSA.

There are special rules that can be invoked when there are unusual circumstances, such as when an 18-year old student has left home in order to escape an abusive environment, or when the parents are in prison. There are also special rules that are applicable when the student had a legal guardian until they turned 18.

Hope this helps...

BMK

[Koss]

Disagree...

All these fafsa applications this spring are based on 2012 income tax returns.

ChEAr$ and I were typing at the same time...

As I explained in my comments, it is possible, although perhaps unlikely, that a student is currently applying for financial aid for an academic term that begins before June 30, 2013. If that is the case, then the student needs to use the application for the period from 07/01/12 to 06/30/13. And that application uses data from the 2011 tax return.

BMK

[Koss]

Which Tax Return?

Maybe I didn't make this clear in my earlier response.

If the student is completing the FAFSA for an academic term that begins before June 30, 2013, then they need to use the 2012-2013 application. This application uses data from the 2011 tax return. This application can be submitted until June 30, 2013. It can be found here:

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1213/pdf/PdfFafsa12-13.pdf

If the student is completing the FAFSA for an academic term that begins after July 1, 2013, then they need to use the 2013-2014 application. That application uses data from the 2012 tax return. This application can be submitted until June 30, 2014. It can be found here:

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1314/pdf/PdfFafsa13-14.pdf

BMK

[Koss]

FAFSA Academic Term

ChEAr$--

I have conceded that it is unlikely that a student is applying right now for financial aid for an academic term that begins before June 30, 2013. But this is possible, particularly with respect to the summer term at some schools.

Either you are not reading my comments carefully, or you are not understanding the issue here. I suggest you carefully read the first page of the FAFSA application at this link:

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1213/pdf/PdfFafsa12-13.pdf

Near the top it says that the application deadline is June 30, 2013. At the very top, it says that the application is for the academic year July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013. And if you continue reading, you will see that this application asks for data from the 2011 tax return.

This is last year's FAFSA. But last year isn't over yet. At some schools, the summer term is part of the period from 07/01/12 to 06/30/13. The grant money for this period was exhausted long ago, but it may still be possible for some students to get loans for the summer term. And at some schools the summer term begins next month.

Either Snaggletooth has a client that is confused, and downloaded the wrong application, or he has a client that may actually be applying for aid for the current academic year.

BMK

[Koss]

Well, this is awkward...

I responded to a post from ChEAr$, but now that post seems to have disappeared...

BMK