Table of contents:
What You Need To Fill Out Fafsa – This article is about the 2023–24 FAFSA® form. The 2024–25 FAFSA form will be available in December 2023, not October 1. Watch our video on the 2024–25 FAFSA updates.
It’s easier to fill out the FAFSA form if you gather what you need ahead of time. Here are some items to help you complete it.
What You Need To Fill Out Fafsa
If you haven’t already done so, create an FSA ID, which is your account username and password. An FSA ID is a digital legal signature that allows you to complete and update the FAFSA form, so create yours and keep it safe. Parents of dependent students must use their own FSA ID to complete the FAFSA process.
What Is Financial Aid?– Napkin Finance
We recommend that you set up your account early, even before you are ready to fill out the FAFSA form. This extra step can avoid delays in the process, especially since it can take up to three days before you can use your FSA ID.
It is important. do not create an FSA ID on someone else’s behalf. This includes parents. A parent should not create an FSA ID for their children, and a student should not create an FSA ID for their parents. This may cause questions about signing and submitting the FAFSA form and result in financial aid delays. (Also, it’s against the rules.)
You can find your Social Security Number (SSN) on your Social Security card. If you don’t have access to it or don’t know where it is, you can request a new or replacement SSN card from the Social Security Administration.
If you are not a US citizen but meet other federal student aid criteria as an eligible noncitizen, you will also need your alien registration number. Both parents and students need this information for the FAFSA form.
Things You Need Before You Fill Out The 2023–24 Fafsa Form
You must enter your driver’s license on the FAFSA form. If you don’t have a driver’s license, don’t bother with this step.
On the 2023–24 FAFSA form, you (and your parents, if you are a dependent student) will report your 2021 income.
Because you likely filed your 2021 income tax return before the FAFSA form is available, you may be eligible to transfer your tax information to the FAFSA form using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT).
The IRS DRT is the fastest, most accurate way to enter your tax return information on the FAFSA form. To address security and privacy concerns with the IRS DRT, tax return information you transmit from the IRS will not be displayed on fafsa.gov. Instead, you will see “Transferred from IRS” in the relevant fields on fafsa.gov.
What Is The Fafsa?
You cannot use your 2022 tax information. We understand that for some families, the 2021 income may not accurately reflect your current financial situation. If you had a decrease in income starting in the 2021 tax year, you must complete the FAFSA form with 2021 tax information. Then contact the school you plan to attend and explain and document the change in income. School officials can evaluate your situation and adjust your FAFSA form if warranted.
FAFSA questions about nontaxable income, such as child support, interest income, and veterans’ non-educational benefits, may apply to you. On the 2023–24 FAFSA form, you will report information for the 2021 tax or calendar year when you are asked these questions. Find specific details of parent’s tax-free income and student’s tax-free income.
This section includes savings and checking account balances, as well as the value of investments such as stocks, bonds, and real estate (excluding your primary residence). Report current amounts as of the date you signed the FAFSA form, rather than reporting. Amounts for the 2021 tax year.
Note: Incorrect reporting of investment value is a common error on the FAFSA form. Please carefully review what is and is not considered student input and parent input to ensure you are not over or understating the information. You may be surprised by what can (and cannot) be excluded.
Common Fafsa Mistakes & How To Avoid Them
Even if there’s only a slim chance you’ll apply to a college, list the school on your FAFSA form. You can always remove a school later if you decide not to apply, but if you wait to add a school, you could miss out on financial aid.
Schools that you list on your FAFSA form will automatically receive your FAFSA results electronically. They will use your FAFSA information to determine the types and amounts of financial aid you receive.
If you add a school to your FAFSA form and later decide not to apply to that school, that’s fine. The school probably won’t offer you aid until you’ve been accepted.
You can list up to 10 schools at a time on your FAFSA form. Find out what you can do if you are applying to more than 10 schools.
College Information / Financial Aid
Hint. A few states require that you list schools in a certain order to be considered for state aid. For example, you may need to specify a public school first. Find out if your state has a requirement for the order you list schools on your FAFSA form. Find out when the FAFSA is due, how to submit the application, and what to do if you miss the deadline.
Recent data shows that the average cost of attending a 4-year public university in the US is about $25,864 per year. That’s more than $100,000 for a bachelor’s degree. And unfortunately, it’s more than families can afford.
That’s where the FAFSA comes in. The FAFSA is a federal form you can submit to apply for financial aid in the form of grants, student loans, work-study, and scholarships.
In this article, you’ll learn what the FAFSA is, how and when to file it, and what to do if you miss the deadline.
What Is A Fafsa Mpn?
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a form you fill out that colleges use to determine how much financial aid you qualify for. It is an important part of the financial aid process.
T students are considered dependent. As a dependent student, you must report your parents’ financial information on your FAFSA.
You can be considered an independent student if you are over 24, married, have children, a military veteran, a graduate student, or a Ph.D. student If none of these apply to you, you are a dependent.
Before you can fill out your FAFSA, you must create an FSA ID, which is a username and password combination that allows you to fill out and sign your FAFSA electronically.
Thrive / Fafsa (federal Application For Student Aid)
You’ll use this same FSA ID year after year to complete your FAFSA, sign loan agreements, and get other federal aid information.
If you are applying as a dependent, you will also need this information for your parents. For example, you’ll need their Social Security numbers, copies of their tax returns, and information about their assets.
Simply answer each question on the application. It should not take more than 1 hour to complete. Take your time and make sure you don’t miss anything. An incomplete form may result in loss of financial aid.
To sign your form electronically, you’ll need your FSA ID that you created in Step 1. If you are a dependent student, you and your parents must both sign.
Fafsa: Documents You’ll Need To Fill Out The Form
After completing the form, you can go back in subsequent years and select the “FAFSA Renewal” option. The form will be pre-populated with your non-financial personal information so you don’t have to re-enter it.
The information provided on your FAFSA determines whether you are eligible for financial aid from the federal government and the school you attend. That means it’s important to fill it out, but it’s not strictly necessary if you have a lot of money and don’t want to try to get help. Of course, not filling out the FAFSA means giving up free money in the form of federal grants and other aid, so 99% of students should definitely fill it out.
Financial aid is need-based, meaning it is awarded to students whose parents do not have the financial resources to finance their college education.
But you may also have to fill out the FAFSA to qualify for merit-based scholarships and grants, depending on your school.
Fafsa Changes: What Students Need To Know
The FAFSA is the first necessary step in applying for federal financial aid. As a result, anyone who cannot fully finance their college education out of pocket must complete the FAFSA. After all, the money is there. You have nothing to lose by completing and submitting the FAFSA, and you stand to gain greatly.
Based on your family’s income and assets, the government will determine your Expected Family Contribution (EFC), or the amount your family can afford for your education for the coming year.
The school will then subtract your expected contribution from the total cost of attendance (COA) to calculate your financial need.
If your parents have enough savings to fully fund your college education, you may not need financial aid and may decide that completing the FAFSA is not worth your time.
Will You Get More Financial Aid As An Independent Student?
However, while there is nothing wrong with submitting the FAFSA, if your college expenses are fully funded, it is still worth completing.
Even if you don’t qualify for need-based funding from the federal government, many schools still offer scholarships to entice students to attend their school over their competitors. And if the school wants to give free money, it’s worth taking. Remember that your financial aid package may include merit-based scholarships that you may qualify for even if your family does not have financial need.
It also means that some of the money you or your parents have saved over the years can go towards other financial goals.
The government only expects families to devote a certain percentage of their income and assets to college. And with college costs rising 25% in the last 10 years, your family is still in financial need by the government’s standards.
How To Fill Out The Fafsa With Divorced Parents
There really is no downside to filling out the FAFSA. The worst that can happen is that you spend 1 hour completing it and
