Changed Income for FAFSA/CSS

thumper1
Thu, 03 Oct 2019 19:05:45 +0000

For the 2020-2021 forms, you MUST use 2018 tax year information. No choice.

If your family income is significantly reduced, you can request a special circumstances consideration from each college. Keep in mind, these are not guaranteed to result in increased aid. And they are handled on a case by case basis.

I do have to ask…was this a mandatory retirement or was this an elective choice your parent made? I’m only asking because if you ask for a special circumstances consideration, a mandatory retirement as an explanation will likely be viewed more favorably for you than an elective one.

Does your remaining working parent have a higher income. What about college savings? What about a pension or SS for the retiree parent? Those all count.

Have your parents told you how much they can pay for college annually?

And lastly, keep in mind that the vast majority of colleges don’t meet full need for all accepted students anyway.