Dependecy Override

<p>Hello, my college have inform me that my financial aid might get cut due to my parents filling their taxes wrong. Both filed as head of household even though they've been married for 13 years. My parents refused to amend their taxes and according to the college if they refuse then they have to cut it. </p>

<p>In addition to this both my parents have gambling addiction and refuse to admit it. They have piles of unpaid bill waiting to be paid and all they can think about is gambling. They decide that it would be too much for them to handle me and my brothers in one house so they would kick me out of the house during the summer. They said they would try to help me pay for college but I know they wont because they promise to pay for a lot of things and it end up with my grandparents paying for it </p>

<p>I know that its too late to file as an independent. However, I'm worried that they wont be able to support me at all due to their problem and that their decision to not amend their taxes and choosing to continue file that way would affect my financial aid throughout college years. </p>

<p>What I'm trying to say is that "would I be qualified for a dependency override for next year's aid if I talk to the financial aid office about this situation and get a job and become self sufficient?"</p>

<p>You can not “file” as independent. Based on the information that you wrote, you most likely will not get a dependency override because your parents fraudulently filed their taxes and refuse to correct them. Sorry, but the lifestyle choices that your parents made will not qualify you for a dependency override.</p>

<p>“Sorry, but the lifestyle choices that you made will not qualify you for a dependency override.”</p>

<p>Yume, I think Sybbie meant to say that the lifestyle choices that <strong>your parents</strong> made will not qualify you for a dependency override.</p>

<p>This isn’t your fault, but unfortunately, you will be the one paying the price.</p>

<p>You may not be able to go to college this year. </p>

<p>Hopefully, the IRS will figure out what your parents are doing and require them to refile. Then they won’t pull this nonsense in the future. </p>

<p>IF you’re at a 4 year college, then request a year of of absense. If you’re at a CC, find out if you have to do anything to take a year off.</p>

<p>Agree with above posters. You will not qualify for a dependency override.</p>

<p>I agree that requesting a leave of absence is a good idea. It will give you time to sort out what your next step will be.</p>

<p>Even if I take a year off I don’t think I would be able to go to college the next year due to their stubbornness to do anything for me and my siblings. Not to mention both of my brothers going to face the same bs that I’m facing now within 2 years. My siblings and me have been waiting for the chance to get away from them since we have faced their lifestyle since I got to the 2nd grade. </p>

<p>I cant even face my friends or make any new one since I know my parents would borrow money from their parents and run off with it. Even the translator that work in the hospital of my birth and my siblings birth and my youth counselor that I know for only a year knows about it. All I feel throughout life is shame. </p>

<p>I work hard in school by taking AP courses and rank 13th in a class of 400 and give back to the community by doing a lot of volunteer services. However all that hard work seem like a waste now… I really want to go to college to become a biochemist, forensic biochemist, pharmacist, or something dealing with medicine and science. However my parents’ actions really narrowed my options and my future. No matter which college I go my financial aid will get cut if they don’t fix it. Is there really no other option for me?</p>

<p>“No matter which college I go my financial aid will get cut if they don’t fix it. Is there really no other option for me?”</p>

<p>If you have good enough grades and test scores, you may be able to find a college or university that will offer you enough merit-based aid so that you do not have to rely on your parents’ financial information at all.</p>

<p>If you can live at home (or somewhere else that is really cheap) and work full-time, you probably can pay for the full costs of attending a community college on a part-time basis. If your grades there are very good, when you transfer you might be able to get a large merit-based scholarship.</p>

<p>If you work and study part-time at a community college, and pursue a program such as Pharmacy Tech or Nursing or Automechanics that will get you into a decent job in a short period of time, then you will be able to support yourself completely until you are 24 and no longer need your parents’ financial information.</p>

<p>Not the routes you wanted to take, for certain, but routes that can get you safely to your long-range goal.</p>

<p>Your situation does not make you eligible for a dependency override. And no matter how self sufficient you become, you are still considered a dependent for financial aid until you turn 24 or can answer yes to one of the other dependency questions (are a veteran, married, have a dependent of your own etc).</p>

<p>One option you have is if your parents sign a paper saying they refuse to complete FAFSA, you can file without their information and this will make you eligible for federal student direct loans. This would at least enable you to cover the cost of some tuition, probably all at a community college. They may as well sign such a letter as they are effectively refusing to fill out FAFSA by filing fraudulent tax returns.</p>

<p>Do your parents realize they are breaking the law by both filing as head of household? They could be in a whole world of trouble if the IRS catches on to the tax fraud they are committing.</p>

<p>I am sorry for the situation you find yourself in. Many parents can’t afford to help their kids with college, but it is very unfair for a young person to be put in the position of not even being able to apply for aid because of his/her parents illegal behavior.</p>

<p>@Yume135 - The above posters are correct when it comes to a strict interpretation of the FAFSA rules but I am living proof that the dependency rules are less rigid than one might assume if you are truly independent - live on your own, pay all your own bills, have a verifiable work history that can support your rent and bills, at least a year of tax independence, etc…</p>

<p>kmrcollege, if you got a dependency override just because you proved yourself to be self-supporting, you attend a college that has an extremely liberal interpretation of federal regulations … especially since granting a dependency override simply for this reason is actually expressly prohibited. I am guessing there is probably more to your story that just paying your own way.</p>

<p>OP, it is true that your parents’ tax filing status does mean your school is not allowed to give you federal aid unless your parents amend their 2012 tax returns to correct filing statuses. Some students really get the short end of the stick because they are punished due to their parents’ issues. Unfortunately, the rules must be followed. </p>

<p>Is there more to your story? Is there a history of neglect or abuse that could be verified by a professional (high school counselor, doctor, etc)? If so, PM me for advice.</p>

<p>“they would kick me out of the house”</p>

<p>Being kicked out of the house can be a reason to qualify for dependency override, but it would have to be backed up by extensive documentation.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.kidscounsel.org/dependency%20override.pdf[/url]”>http://www.kidscounsel.org/dependency%20override.pdf&lt;/a&gt;
[FinAid</a> | Professional Judgment | Dependency Overrides](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Dependency Overrides - Finaid)</p>

<p>Kelsmom, apparently kmrcollege was a PhD student in the 80s. I would imagine the dependency tests have been refined since that time.</p>

<p>The dependency tests have changed DRAMATICALLY since the 80s…when it was actually pretty easy to be declared an independent student (I was one in undergrad school…absolutely would NOT qualify by today’s criteria).</p>

<p>That is the truth. It used to be that parents could remove the kid from taxes by amending the return(s), and the kid could become independent … voila. No more of that!</p>