Dealing with a (what seems to be) very complicated situation.

I’m a married 19 year old US citizen living in the UK permanently. I’ve been thinking about going back to college (online @ ASU) but have had some troubles along the way.

Now as you all know, when filling out the FAFSA (for this school year) it requires tax information from 2015. My parents claimed me for both 2015 & 2016 as I was still a minor/and or living with them for more than 6 months out of the year (speaking of 2016.). I understand that when I fill out the FAFSA my parent’s tax information is not required, so I put down that I did not file. The issue comes when it checks back to what I put as my spouse’s income that year ($41,000) and tells me that it cannot give me an EFC. I’m not sure what the next step is. Thanks!

I’m confused. Did you put your wife’s income on the fafsa?

Did you put “married” as your status?

Why wouldn’t it generate an EFC?

@thumper1 Yes, as I said here “The issue comes when it checks back to what I put as my spouse’s income that year ($41,000) and tells me that it cannot give me an EFC.” I did put in his income. It couldn’t generate an EFC because I put down that we did not file for 2015. (He is a UK citizen, all his earnings are from his job in the UK therefore he wouldn’t have had to file in 2015. And as for me, my parents claimed me so)

@thumper1 Because I have no where to put that his earnings are not to be taxed as they are UK earnings, it assumes that it was US earnings and that he didn’t file when he was supposed to. and that’s where the problem lies.

It doesn’t say your filing wasn’t accepted, just that it can’t generate an EFC. ASU will have to complete the calculations by hand.

@twoinanddone Thanks. Just wanted to double check that it was going okay. There’s been a lot of changes for me since I did my FAFSA last time, and it’s made it a bit complicated.

You will likelynbe selected for verification because your info doesn’t exactly align. You didn’t file…because you didn’t need to…but you had income.

I think you will will have to complete a non-filers statement as well.

@thumper1 I am confused by what you mean when you say I had income? I did not have income in 2015. My husband did, but we were only married at the end of 2016.

She didn’t have income. She wasn’t married in 2015 so spouse’s income will not count.

Some situations just don’t fit the forms.

@twoinanddone So I just gotta wait for a response and then fill out whatever extra verification info is required?

You can always contact the school’s financial aid office. I had an issue that required extra verification so I called the school’s financial aid off and they allowed me to submit those forms that day. You should get in touch with them as any delays in processing your app can cause delays in determining the amount of financial aid awarded.

Yes, definitely stay on top of it if you want to start school this fall. ASU has a lot of students and things will fall through the cracks.

I meant one of you married folks had income. Didn’t mean YOU specifically.

Your FAFSA reads that you are married, and didn’t file taxes…but your husband had $41,000 in income.

The fafsa is confused by that because most people,with $41,000 in income are required to file taxes. So…it can’t compute an EFC for you.

The school will sort that out with you. It’s fitting a square peg intoma round hole.

             WIll you get FA if you are an online student studying from the UK? Is that actually possible? 

Why wouldn’t I? @Sybylla :o

       I would expect that being resident in the US would be a requirement. But can you update with the outcome, as that would be very interesting. Are you applying using your UK address as your permanent residency? ?

@Sybylla Only requirement is being a US citizen. (Which I am) I will for sure keep this updated. I am using my UK address as my permanent residency, but I still have a “domicile” in the United States, Arizona specifically. I have a State ID (which means I have residency in AZ.)

No, she a citizen so qualifies for federal student aid. She may not qualify for any state aid if she’s not a resident of any state.

I think other than a loan, she is probably not going to get any additional aid

She could get a Pell. She had no income in 2015, and I don’t know how they deal with her parents’ or her new husband (who didn’t support her in 2015).