FAFSA form - trust

Does the student have to include on FAFSA form if their great-grandparent set up trust for them - it is investments

There are tons of different kinds of trusts. Without knowing the provisions of this trust, it’s hard to say.

You need to see the trust document and find out exactly what it is.

I will give you a real life example of a trust that did need to be reported. A vacation home was put into an irrevocable trust, shared by 6 family members. Each was a trustee. At age 18 all members of the bloodline became beneficiaries. We were told we had to include our share of the value of he trust on the financial aid forms…and the 18 year old students needed to declare their value.

But trusts come in lots of sizes, shapes and colors.

Hoping others pipe in.

Where do the earnings from the investments go?

@BelknapPoint do you know about trusts?

If the student is the beneficiary of the trust, than generally yes, the trust must be reported on FAFSA as a student asset. From the FAFSA instructions for question 41, on page 9 of the paper 2021-2022 FAFSA:

Investments include real estate (do not include the home in which you live), rental property (includes a unit within a family home that has its own entrance, kitchen, and bath rented to someone other than a family member), trust funds, UGMA and UTMA accounts, money market funds, mutual funds, certificates of deposit, stocks, stock options, bonds, other securities, installment and land sale contracts (including mortgages held), commodities, etc.

https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/2021-22-fafsa.pdf

And, as thumper1 says, “You need to see the trust document and find out exactly what it is.”