Parents of current high school seniors entering college in the Fall of 2016, as well as parents of college students who will still be in college next fall, should gather the necessary documents in the coming weeks to prepare for filing the FAFSA on or about January 1. FAFSA is the Free Application for Student Financial Aid, the form all families should complete to see if they qualify for federal aid (and with the high cost of tuition these days, many wealthy families DO qualify). This is also the mechanism for getting student and parent loans, as well as some college scholarships. If you're still not convinced that you need to complete the FAFSA, please take a moment and check out these common myths concerning federal financial aid.
While you can't complete and submit the form until after January 1, you can make your job easier then by gathering this information now:
- Social security number for parent(s) and student.
- Driver’s license number for student.
- Tax forms for parent(s) and student (you can use estimated figures now and adjust them later).
- Records of untaxed income, such as payments to tax-deferred savings plan for you and your child
- Current bank statements for parent(s) and student.
- Records of untaxed income (if applicable).
- Information about any business that parent(s) or student owns, as well as investment mortgage information, stock, bond and other investment records.
- A list of colleges and universities (up to 10) to receive your FAFSA information.
This year the FAFSA PIN has been replaced with the FSA ID, which will include a user name and password. The student and one parent will need this ID to beable to electronically sign the FAFSA You can create a FSA ID now at StudentAid.gov/fsaid.
Remember, you do need to complete a FASFA each year of college, although it's easier after the first time. There are some first-come, first-served aid programs, which is why you want to submit your FAFSA as close to January 1 as possible. Here's a link to a downloadable book, Filing the FAFSA, that you may find helpful, especially if this is your first time filing or if you have special circumstances.