We’re run the NPC for a bunch of colleges and know we won’t qualify for any need based aid. Does it make sense to apply for financial aid anyway just in case our financial situation changes such as one of us losing a job while our kid is in college?
Yes. Some schools will not allow you to apply for FA later if you did not apply for freshman year.
If you want to be able to take federal student loans you need to file FAFSA.
This is very true for international students at MANY colleges.
There are only a handful of colleges that have restrictions on applying for aid in subsequent years for U.S. citizens and permanent residents. But yes…check your college website to be sure your colleges aren’t in this handful.
There’s no downside to applying and it’s significantly less of a PITA now that the tax period is previous previous year. Absolutely do it. Giving yourself maximum flexibility is good planning!
There can absolutely be a downside, and it depends on A) how much you value the time you will be using to complete and file the paperwork, and B) how concerned you are about disclosing lots of personal financial information that may be vulnerable to illegal disclosure. (To be clear, I’ve never heard of an incident of wrongful disclosure of FA information. But I’m also confident that Target, Home Depot, Yahoo!, etc. thought that they were safe from hackers, until the minute they learned they weren’t.)
Thanks for all the helpful responses.