<p>A few of my financial aid deadlines are on February 1, but my parents don't file their taxes until February (usually the first week of February). What happens if I submit my forms (FAFSA, CSS Profile, etc.) after the priority deadline? Will I receive a smaller financial aid package?</p>
<p>Your parents might have to file the forms using estimated tax data (based on W-2s, etc.), and then revise/amend them after they do the actual tax filing. That’s what you do for ED applications, so it should work out the same way RD. Or they could push harder to file their taxes before the deadline, and just get the whole thing done at once. </p>
<p>I would assume it’s a bad thing to miss the deadlines, but you could call each college and ask the question directly to someone who can give a good answer.</p>
<p>OP ask your parents if they can complete earlier. We never did our taxes before March before the kids went to college. Now we finish them as early as we can in January. It’s possible that they need to wait for certain documents (I handle the taxes for a family member who never gets her limited partnership info until spring), but most of the essential info that most people need is received in January or can be gleaned from year-end statements or obtained from on-line accounts. With e-filing, most people don’t need to wait for the actual “paper” documents to arrive. Just ask. You may be able to file using the best available information by the deadline knowing that it may have to be revised/tweaked but do talk to the college as some will not commit to a finaid package until the financial forms are finalized.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>DO NOT MISS DEADLINES. The schools have them for a reason.</p>
<p>For priority deadlines that are before the filing of taxes…you will have to complete the forms using estimates.</p>
<p>For the FAFSA, you should complete it as soon as reasonably possible after Jan 1 when it becomes available. Your filing status will be “will file” meaning that you WILL be filing taxes (you and your parents). Complete and submit the FAFSA using your best estimates based on your parents’ and your end of year paystubs. You will have your bank statements etc. to use for asset reporting. AS SOON AS POSSIBLE after Feb 1, you and your parents should plan to complete your 2009 tax return. This is NOT the year to delay filing taxes until April 15. Complete your tax return ASAP and then go back into the FAFSA website and change the figures to reflect the numbers on your 2009 tax return…change your filing status to “taxes filed” and resubmit. Until you update your FAFSA to reflect that you have completed your taxes and provided the accurate 2009 info, any award you receive will be an ESTIMATE. Your finalized award will not be completed until you update the FAFSA. </p>
<p>For the Profile, you will do the same…complete it with estimates to meet your schools’ deadlines. When your taxes are completed, you will need to update the Profile information. HOWEVER, this cannot be done online. You will need to contact each college to find out how they want these changes reported. In our (old) experience, the schools asked that we take a printed copy (so make sure you KEEP a printed copy of the one you submit) and handwrite in the corrections and mail it to the schools. Some schools use IDOC which is a service that collects tax returns and other supporting info for the Profile. Some schools using IDOC don’t have you do anything but deal with the IDOC service (check THOSE deadlines too). Anyway…for Profile…call the schools.</p>
<p>What thumper said, especially the part about not missing deadlines. It’s not a matter of getting reduced aid if you’re late, it’s a matter of probably getting NO aid if you’re late. </p>
<p>Every college will have somewhere on its website a Financial Aid calendar. Different schools have different deadlines, and most schools have multiple requirements. It can be complicated to keep track of it all, and I recommend some kind of organizational tool to be sure you’re staying on top of it. I used Excel, others use calendars, notebooks, or file folders. Colleges are good about telling you what they need and when, but it’s on you to do what’s required – on time. Follow all instructions to the letter, and double-check everything.</p>
<p>Regarding PROFILE corrections, they were still doing it this way as of last spring:</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>In fact, keep copies of everything you submit to everyone, and file them where you can easily find them.</p>
<p>Don’t wait till the last minute on FA deadlines. Get things submitted as soon as you can. There is nothing wrong with using estimated figures on FAFSA and PROFILE for your initial submission; many/most people don’t have their taxes done by Feb. 1. Just be sure that your estimates are as accurate as you can make them, and submit corrections as quickly as you can. </p>
<p>Schools may ask you to mail a copy of your parents’ completed tax forms when they become available. One FA officer gave me this advice: On the copy, print the student’s full name and date of birth at the top of the page, and highlight it. That will ensure that they join the rest of your file.</p>
<p>I would suggest submitting all applications a week before the due dates. If you wait until the night before…you risk a server meltdown, power outage, or computer SNAFU. Get them done EARLY.</p>