FAFSA: Free Application for Federal Student Aid

A student can list up to 20 schools on their FAFSA.

A contributor is anyone who is asked to provide information on an applicant’s FAFSA including:

• The student
• The student's spouse (if applicable)
• A biological or adoptive parent; or
• The spouse of a remarried parent who is on the FAFSA — the stepparent

The FAFSA is student driven, so that means the student's answers on their section will determine who will be a contributor (in addition to the student). Students will need the contributor’s name, date of birth, Social Security Number (SSN), and email address to invite them to complete the required portion of the FAFSA. Contributors will need to provide personal and financial information on their section of the FAFSA.

All contributors are required to have an FSA ID and to provide consent. This consent will allow the tax information to be used on the FAFSA and allow the Department of Education to share that tax information with schools. Consent is provided once for the award year and cannot be revoked in that award year. This consent is necessary even if the contributor does not have an SSN, did not file taxes, or filed taxes in another country.

If a contributor fails to provide consent then the student is ineligible for Federal Financial Aid.

When required, families will need to report the value of their farms or businesses. This can influence the SAI.

All contributors are now required to create a FSA ID to provide consent and sign the FAFSA electronically.

The Direct Data Exchange or DDX allows the Department of Education to have all of the IRS tax information seamlessly put onto the FAFSA. Here is important information about this process:

• EVERYONE (students, spouses (if applicable), and parents) will need to consent to have their Federal Tax Information (FTI) imported.
• To provide consent, the individual will need to access the FAFSA with an FSA ID that has been matched with the Social Security Administration (SSA).*
• Federal tax filers will have their tax information imported. No tax income will transfer into the FAFSA, but tax data will be sent to the colleges listed on the FAFSA.
• Non-tax filers must also check the box to consent. When IRS Data is accessed, the process will verify non-filing status.

If a contributor fails to provide consent then the student is ineligible for Federal Financial Aid.

The FAFSA is available in the 11 most common languages spoken by English learner students and their parents.

1. Parents who live together
   Parental income and assets in the case of student whose parents are married and not separated, or who are unmarried but live together, shall include the income and assets of both parents.
2. Divorced or separated parents
   Parental income and assets for a student whose parents are divorced or separated, but not remarried, is determined by including only the income and assets of the parent who provides the greater portion of the student's financial support.
3. Death of a parent
   Parental income and assets in the case of the death of any parent is determined as follows:
   (A) If either of the parents has died, the surviving parent shall be considered a single parent, until that parent has remarried.
   (B) If both parents have died, the student shall not report any parental income or assets.
4. Remarried parents
   If a parent whose income and assets are taken into account under paragraph (2), or if a parent who is a widow or widower and whose income is taken into account under paragraph (3), has remarried, the income of that parent's spouse shall be included in determining the parent's assessment of adjusted available income if the student's parent and the stepparent are married as of the date of application for the award year concerned.
5. Single parent who is not divorced or separated
   Parental income and assets in the case of a student whose parent is not described in paragraph (1) and is a single parent who is not divorced, separated, or remarried, shall include the income and assets of such single parent.

The parent that is listed on the FAFSA will be the parent who provides the most financial support to the student. This is true even if the student does not live with that parent.