<p>If your state has a tax deduction for 529 contributions, it might make sense for your son to gift the money to you and for you to then make the contribution to get the benefit of the tax break (assuming your son would not be able to benefit from any such tax break).</p>
<p>If your state has no 529 contribution tax break, or has one that your son could take advantage of, it might make sense for him to open a new 529 account with him as the owner and beneficiary and deposit the money in the new account. Under FAFSA, this student-owned account would be considered a parental asset. My understanding is that how 529 accounts are looked at when reported on CSS/Profile (student-owned or parent-owned) depends on school-specific formulas. I think you would have to ask each FA office how they do it.</p>