<p>Royal73, in your thread title you mention the CSS Profile.</p>
<p>It is true that if the grandparents were still living and were the owners of the 529 account, you would not be required to report it on the FAFSA. However, the CSS Profile does ask if the student is a beneficiary of any trusts, 529s, or other accounts held by persons other then their parents. So, in the case of the Profile, it would have had to be declared regardless even if the grandparents were still living.</p>