My parents and I have not yet filed our 2015 taxes, and won’t until much closer to when they’re due. We haven’t even received our W2s yet. However, the CSS deadline for many schools is today. Will it be a major issue if we don’t send in these forms until we file them later? Will that affect the amount of financial aid I receive? Because frankly, I need all the help I can get. In addition, if a grandparent is the owner of a 529 plan for me, do I have to report it on the CSS, since it isn’t from a parent?
You file the financial aid forms using your very best estimates for the 2015 tax year. Use a “will file” status.
Then get those taxes done ASAP…like this month. This is not the year to wait until April to file your taxes.
You can amend the FAFSA online, but not the Profile. You will need to contact each college to find out how they want that information updated. Some will say that filing the FAFSA and linking to the IRS data retrieval tool is enough. Some participate in IDOC and you will need to complete that process. Others will ask you to,send a printed copy of your Profile with corrections written in (less common now that the IRS DRT is used).
A 529 plan that is not owned by the student or a parent is not reported on Profile as an asset. Distributions during the most recent tax year from such a plan for the student’s benefit would be reported as untaxed income. Also, Profile asks about the student’s expected resources for the coming year, so an anticipated distribution from a 529 account owned by a grandparent should be listed here.