<p>We are about to file our 2010 taxes and my child is in their fisrt year of college and do to personal tragedies we have lost more than half our income and all our saving. Do to other post I see that she can file her own taxes and still be claimed as a dependant, she did not make that much. How does this affect her FAFSA? Are we suppose to still list our income on there? Or would she be better off filing on her own and just listing her income? Which will benifit us more for financial aid? In the end we just want her to stay in college.</p>
<p>If she made income, she should file her own taxes. She can still be your dependent. On the FAFSA, she will probably still be a dependent and both her income and your income need to be reported.</p>
<p>Here are the questions to determine if she is a dependent. If she can answer no to these questions, then she will be a dependent and your tax information will be required:</p>
<p>Were you born before January 1, 1988?
As of today are you married?
At the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year, will you be working on a master’s or doctorate program (such as an MA, MBA, MD, JD, PhD, EdD, or graduate certificate, etc.)?
Are you currently serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces for purposes other than training?
Are you a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces?
Do you have children who will receive more than half of their support from you between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012?
Do you have dependents (other than your children or spouse) who live with you and who receive more than half of their support from you, now and through June 30, 2012?
At any time since you turned age 13, were both your parents deceased, were you in foster care or were you a dependent or ward of the court?
As determined by a court in your state of legal residence, are you or were you an emancipated minor?
As determined by a court in your state of legal residence, are you or were you in legal guardianship?
At any time on or after July 1, 2010, did your high school or school district homeless liaison determine that you were an unaccompanied youth who was homeless?
At any time on or after July 1, 2010, did the director of an emergency shelter or transitional housing program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development determine that you were an unaccompanied youth who was homeless?
At any time on or after July 1, 2010, did the director of a runaway or homeless youth basic center or transitional living program determine that you were an unaccompanied youth who was homeless or were self-supporting and at risk of being homeless?</p>
<p>She can absolutely file her own taxes. Doing this should have no effect on her FAFSA … unless of course the initial FAFSA misrepresented your family’s situation.</p>
<p>As for claiming her as a dependent, the IRS has a set of criteria. I couldn’t locate it … here’s a summary: [Qualifying</a> Children - What Qualifies a Child to be a Dependent?](<a href=“http://taxes.about.com/od/dependents/a/Dependents_2.htm]Qualifying”>Claiming Dependents on Your Federal Tax Return)</p>
<p>Your final question … “how to best maximize her FA” … depends on information you haven’t provided. Is the girl emancipated? Did she provide more than half her support last year? Etcetera. That said, it’s likely your best option is to submit this year’s FAFSA using your family’s updated income and account information. Good luck.</p>
<p>Thank you both for all the good advice!</p>
<p>Hello,</p>
<p>My son’s mom and I are divorced and are Freshman this year. We used my income when we filed for Financial Aid 2010-2011 since it is much ower then mom’s since the economy tanked.</p>
<p>If they are not claimed as dependants on my 2010 taxes, isn’t that deceitful and will it hurt them in the future financial aid years?</p>
<p>I guess in short, do we have an obligation to have them claimed on the taxes of the person whose income was used in the previous FAFSA year.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>Randy</p>
<p>FAFSA requires the custodial parent to file their income etc. on the FAFSA. The parent the child lives with >50% of the time is the custodial parent. The IRS is different - either parent may claim the child as a dependent - many divorced families “share” the dependent deduction by each parent claiming one child or rotating the deduction annually - the IRS claim of dependency is different and separate from the FAFSA custodial parent determination.</p>
<p>Thanks … that answers the question exactly to the situation because the sharing of IRS deductions you speak of in situations of divorce, would have her claim them this year whereas the FAFSA filed for the 2010-2011 year used my income. </p>
<p>Seem’s like since the two are considered seperate … we can do whatever was laid out during divorce as far as the IRS is concerned without jepordizing the students future aid when I use my income for that application.</p>
<p>Thanks Again - ( even single Dad’s need help sometime ) … sometime ??</p>