Emancipation

Colleges & Universities University of Pennsylvania
1

<p>This is probably totally the wrong place to ask this. I doubt I will receive the advice I need but I will try anyway.</p>

<p>So, long story short, my mother and I had another fight and it’s come to a point where I need to look into emancipation. My question is this:</p>

<p>If I emancipate myself, what should I be expecting? I don’t plan to live at my mother’s residence any longer. If I separate myself from my family’s assets/money, how does this affect aid if my only income comes from work study/summer jobs? How much would personal expenses be as a result? I do not need car insurance or anything like that – if I live on the east coast I can make way by either walking or taking the subway systems. How much more would I need to be paying in taxes? I don’t know what numbers would change where and to what magnitude.</p>

<p>Basically I’m just asking what I need to be expecting.</p>

2

<p>Let’s put out a hit on her.</p>

3

<p>What you need to do is speak with Financial Aid officer at your school and determine how “they” will view your emancipation. Are they going to factor your profile immediately or is there a waiting period? What constitutes separation from family assetts in your particular situation? It is less important about emancipation IF your particular financial aid package cannot benefit from emancipation. Second: you need to inquire whether gaining the emancipation is quickest in your home court…that alone is incentive enough to accomplish it prior to returning to your East Coast School. Good Luck.</p>

4

<p><a href=“http://www.finaid.org/educators/pj/wardofthecourt.phtml[/url]”>http://www.finaid.org/educators/pj/wardofthecourt.phtml&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Emancipation occurs when the child is no longer under the legal authority and control of another. This can occur when the child reaches the age of majority, marries, enters military service, is fully self-supporting or by court order. An emancipated child is legally an adult. Since a child who reaches the age of majority can still be considered a dependent for financial aid purposes (and self-supporting is insufficient grounds for independent student status ever since the Bright-Line test was abolished in 1992), emancipation by court order is no different. The Higher Education Act specifies who is considered a dependent for financial aid purposes, and does not include an exception for emancipation. (Emancipation is defined by state law, and as such cannot overrule Federal law.) So even though an emancipated child no longer receives financial support from his or her parents, the parents are still obligated to complete the FAFSA form. However, the circumstances that lead a court to grant an emancipation petition might themselves be sufficient grounds for a dependency override. (Note that some states (e.g., Colorado) may allow emancipation as an alternative to age requirements for eligibility for in-state tuition. So emancipation can have an impact on state aid, but not on federal aid.)</p>

5

<p>Hi Max,</p>

<p>I am sorry to hear that things have not gotten better betweeen you and your mom. JC really hits the nail on the head. All though you have reached the age of majority and legally you are an adult, you will not be considered an independent student in terms of financial aid . Your emancipation need to happen before you turned 18.</p>

<p>according to FAFSA, you must be in one of the following categories:</p>

<p>Will you be working on a degree beyond a bachelor’s degree, such as a master’s or doctorate, in school year 2006-2007?</p>

<p>As of the date you will be submitting the FAFSA, are you married? (Answer yes if you are separated, but not divorced.)</p>

<p>Do you have children who receive more than half of their support from you, or do you have dependents (other than your children or spouse) who live with you and receive more than half of their support from you, now and through June 30, 2007? </p>

<p>Are you an orphan or ward of the court or were you a ward of the court until age 18?</p>

<p>Are you a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces?</p>

<p>Are you currently serving on active duty in the Armed Forces for other than training purposes?</p>

<p>If you cannot say yes to any of the above questions, you are a dependent student.</p>

<p>Right now the only thing you can really do is talk to the FA office. Do this face to face, it possible speak directly with the director of FA as this is the person with the final say in waiving your mother’s contribution to your education. </p>

<p>I am quite sure they have heard it all and will be able to advise you as far as next steps (you may have to provide some sort of supporting documentation as to the deteriorating relationship between you and your mother and the lack of support she has given you).</p>

<p>I sent you a PM</p>

<p>good luck with this.</p>

6

<p>Those FAFSA guidelines are all I can go from?! That is ridiculous. What about being entirely self-supporting? Completely independent of parental financial assistance? Who would I talk to in FA department? The person I normally speak to is not being very responsive and it is frustrating to me. Who in specific should I contact?</p>

<p>I mean my family has no income other than what I bring in (Mom receives life insurance), but she has a lot of money in the bank and in assets and life insurance (and social security checks on my part – I signed them over to her in exchange for a deal that she would help with education, but she went back on her word and I am kicking myself for this now). I do not think it is fair to be called a dependent because I pay for virtually everything myself, including food, gas, etc. I don’t even technically LIVE at home – I could totally just stay on the east coast.</p>

<p>There has to be a way to cut myself away from her… it’s just such an unhealthy situation right now. I can’t afford to continue arguing with her and getting screwed over because of her money. I’m just so angry over this – it’s been an ongoing battle for years and I’m so tired of it. I want to focus on SCHOOL and not deal with this superfluous stress.</p>

7

<p>if i am going to be attending penn in the fall and i wont be 18 until april, should i try to be emancipated so i can sign my own medical / legal forms? my parents are in fla and i will be in philly…</p>

8

<p>irinak, i don’t think you understand what it means to be emancipated - in short, to be emancipated is to receive no support from your parents, including no financial support to pay your tuition.</p>

<p>moreover, your inability to sign your own forms is the result of laws that state the signature of a minor is not legally binding, regardless of his or her capability for self-support. </p>

<p>nonetheless, nobody really cares how old you are when you sign forms here - everyone else that’s not yet 18 is in the same boat as you are, and it’s never been a big deal.</p>

9

<p>so its okay if i just sign for myself as a minor?</p>

10

<p>Penn has never had a minor attend it in the history of ever</p>

11

<p>yeah, that’ll usually be okay.</p>

12

<p>Covey and Sybbie;
You are both obviously learned in this area.
We’re currently exploring options for our nieces, ages 17 and 20, who’s father recently passed away. The mother is estranged, has no custody, (so far), but is trustee of their “UPlann” here in Mass.
The legal guardianship of the 17 year old, who is a rising senior, is with her aunt, with whom both girls currently reside.
The 20 year old is attending a local CC, doing OK, and also living with their aunt.
Before he passed away, their father hired lawyers to take care of the kids and his sister, so trusts are set up, etc.
Do you have any feel for how the Financial Aid process works for our nieces?
We’re meeting with a financial planner later this week, but this a new process for all of us, including him.
Thanks;
rb</p>

13

<p>I have a similar situation where i had a fight with my dad but i am not emanicapted or going to be. My mom is my legal guardian, and she and my dad seperated a while ago. My dad makes a lot of money, but he utterely refuses to even pay a penny for my college education. The problem is that on the UPenn application and on other financial forms, they ask for both parents. Since my mom is the only person who is going to actually help me pay for college, she is all i have. But the forms say that i have to put both parents. IF i put both parents i know that i will not receive as much financial aid as i need from Upenn since my dad makes a lot of money. If it does happen that my dad is considered as a contribution to my college fund, i would not be able to afford college. Any ideas on what to do? I appreciate any imput.</p>