When I am filling FAFSA 2019 -2020 online, I do not see the question " As of today, is either of your parents a dislocated worker", which is the question #84 in the paper form. Has anyone else had this problem?
As I understand, the question #84 cannot be left blank.
This question impacts how our assets are treated and is pretty important.
Is your AGI above $50,000? If so…you wouldn’t qualify for simplified needs…so maybe that’s why the question doesn’t appear?
@kelsmom ?
Thanks, thumper1. I am going to test it.
Same thing happened here. I wonder if the IRS DRT has anything to do with this.
I chatted online with FAFSA and they said that you could submit the application as-is, and then go back and make a correction to answer question #84 2-3 days later.
I also contacted FAFSA center and got the same advice. I just submitted it as is, and would like to require correction when it is processed ( wait for ~ 3 days).
I tried to manually fill every thing online, the disappearance of question #84 has nothing to do with IRS DRT . But , what thumper1 mentioned above is true. When AGI was filled with less than $50,000, the question#84 ( dislocated worker) would pop-up for you to make a select. I do not know what this mean.
It means that the online form is using skip logic. Some questions will not be available to answer based on the way that previous questions were answered.
The criteria for being eligible for simplified needs test is two fold. The first criteria is your income MUST be below a certain threshold. So…if your income is above that threshold…you would not be eligible.
Being a dislocated worker only benefits you for simplified needs or auto $0 EFC IF your income is low enough.
If your AGI is above $50,000 a year, you don’t qualify for simplified needs…so there is no point in the FAFSA having that question for you.
I am not sure if the skip logic screens for this - I think (but don’t know for sure) that the dislocated worker question comes before the income question. But no matter if income is >$50,000, because all SNT does is allow assets to be ignored if AGI is $50k or less.
I have the same situation and thanks for the information above. Wonder if anyone has completed the correction online for question 84? I contacted the center and they said I may have to request the paper SAR and it will take a longer process to do it (2-3 weeks!).
@minglee64 – I was prompted to answer question 84 when I went back in to submit corrections a few days after we had initially submitted the FAFSA. (D19 has more than 10 schools on her list, so I had to do corrections anyway to have the FAFSA sent to more schools.)
Is your income above $50,000 a year? If so, the answer to the dislocated worker question isn’t going to benefit you in any way.
Thanks, @OrangeFish and @thumper1. Yes, my AGI last year was > $50K. I understand it may not matter to SNT. But does it matter to the schools my daughter applies? She has more than 10 schools on her list, too. So it’s true that we will need to make “corrections” anyway.
Dislocated worker will have NO impact on your FAFSA…at all…if your income for that year was greater than $50,000.
In terms of the schools? Well…that is totally school dependent. If your dislocated worker is still out of work and your income for 2019-2020 looks like it will be substantially less, you would need to ask for a special circumstances consideration…whereby the school could make a decision that your current lower income might be considered.
If the college doesn’t meet full need, your loss of one income might not matter at all. Also, your remaining income (from a still working spouse) could put you out of range to get need based aid at some schools.
BUT things we don’t know…and you don’t have to share…things like severance pay do count. Unemployment benefits do count. And some schools won’t consider job loss until after a waiting period because the expectation is that your dislocated worker will look for and hopefully get a new job.
Got it. Yeah, agreed. It makes sense and it really depends. At least, I think I should put the information out somewhere for any future negotiation. Thanks for sharing your advice.