Filling Out FAFSA: What you Need and How to File for It (2024)

FAQs

Filling Out FAFSA: What you Need and How to File for It? ›

Federal income tax returns, records of child support received; and your current balance of cash, savings, and checking accounts (Note: You must provide consent and approval to disclose your federal tax information to be eligible for federal student aid.)

Federal income tax returns, records of child support received; and your current balance of cash, savings, and checking accounts (Note: You must provide consent and approval to disclose your federal tax information to be eligible for federal student aid.)

Students selected for verification of their FAFSA form may wonder, “Does FAFSA check your bank accounts?” FAFSA does not directly view the student's or parent's bank accounts.

There is no set income limit for eligibility to qualify for financial aid through. You'll need to fill out the FAFSA every year to see what you qualify for at your college. It's important to make sure you fill out the FAFSA as quickly as possible once it opens for the following school year.

FAFSA Document Checklist:

Your Social Security card and driver's license, and/or alien registration card if you are not a US citizen. Your 2023 federal income tax returns (you don't have to wait - you can use the most recent returns you have from last year), W-2s, and other records of money earned.

The FAFSA formula doesn't expect students or families to use all of their adjusted available income to pay for college. The formula allocates 50 percent of a dependent student's adjusted available income to cover college expenses and anywhere from 22 to 47 percent of parents' available income.

Get Help. Check the Help section of the FAFSA website or call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4‐FED AID (1-800-433-3243).

Most people take less than an hour to complete and submit a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA^®) form. This includes gathering any needed documents or data, completing and reviewing the application, and reading the important information on the "Confirmation" page.

Not filling it out early enough

Not filling out the FAFSA^® as early as possible is one of the most avoidable financial aid mistakes. Some financial aid is first-come, first-served, so fill it out as close to December 2023* as possible for the upcoming academic year that you intend to be a student.

Cars, computers, furniture, books, boats, appliances, clothing, and other personal property are not reported as assets on the FAFSA. Home maintenance expenses are also not reported as assets on the FAFSA, since the net worth of the family's principal place of residence is not reported as an asset.

What information does FAFSA need from parents? ›

Consent and approval to disclose federal tax information. Financial and tax information (if applicable) Annual child support received (if applicable) Current assets (if applicable)

Your response to the marital status question, as well as your tax filing status in the next section, will determine whether additional contributors are needed. If you're married, divorced, separated, or remarried, your child's other parent and/or your current spouse may need to participate on your child's FAFSA form.

How old you have to be to file for FAFSA without parents? You need to be 24 years or older. If you're 24 already or you're turning 24 by January 1st of the school year you're applying for, you can submit your form as an independent. You won't need to include information about your parents on the FAFSA form.