<p>If I get married in high school to my girlfriend before I attend college next year at a public school would I be eligible for funds. Right now my parents makes to much money for me to be eligible for the Pell Grant but are still paying student loans so they do not have enough money for my education. My girlfriend also has parents that make to much money, but she has two other siblings in her household. One of her siblings is attending college. Will it negatively effect my girlfriends status, or will she benefit too?</p>
<p>Would STRONGLY urge you to really think about this before blindly deciding to do this. A LOT of things will happen if you decide to get married in HS & FAFSA may rapidly become one of the smaller considerations. Please think this over VERY carefully and talk it over with your HS guidance counselor, college counselor, family & other trusted adults. It is not a prudent way to try to get FAid for college.</p>
<p>Not a good idea. But to answer your question you would have to marry very very soon because you’d have to marry before you submit fafsa. You can’t submit fafsa and then marry and change your status.</p>
<p>I’m going to be charitable and assume that you’re getting married out of love and not some kind of ridiculously clumsy attempt to get financial aid.</p>
<p>To answer your question, you *might<a href=“MIGHT!!”>/i</a> be eligible for a Pell grant and a subsidized Stafford loan. See, the thing is even though as an independent student you might be better off EFC-wise than if you were dependent with affluent parents, most schools don’t have a lot of money to give out. Of course, you shouldn’t mind too much, since you aren’t actually getting married just to win the FAFSA.</p>
<p>Oh God please THINK this through very carefully before going through with this marriage. I have a friend in a similar situation (getting married in high school - not for fin aid) and I see some problems cropping up already so be careful!</p>
<p>Well…here’s the thing. You will have to list ALL money paid on your behalf on your FAFSA forms. SO…if your parents are helping you with rent, utilities, health insurance, cars, food, clothing, cellphones, internet access etc, THOSE monies will be listed on the FAFSA. If you are earning enough money to pay these bills all by yourselves you may find that you aren’t eligible for the money you think you will be eligible for.</p>
<p>^^^^</p>
<p>I agree…</p>
<p>But, if they lived in one set of parents’ home for free, would they declare that in some way? If so, how. </p>
<p>I can see having to declare some amount towards food, but how would they figure what they’re gaining in housing? Or would they have to?</p>
<p>for the most part, the parents are not living in their home for free. Even if there is no mortgage, there are taxes, water, sewage , upkeep of the home and utilities. A prorated share is being paid by the parents on the sutdent’s behalf. The students are also demonstrating that they do not support theri respective spouse.</p>
<p>At schools that give institutional aid, even though they may be considered independent for federal aid, the school does not have to grant them independent student status for insitutional aid especially if they cannot demonstrate that they are self sufficient and not receiving anything from their parents (the school will ask how they are eating and putting a roof over their head).</p>
<p>your girlfriend will benefit from having a sibling in college. IF the parents are now swinging the EFC for the older sister, it will be the same EFC, but now for 2 kids instead of one (so essentially they would be paying out pretty close to the same amount of $$)</p>
<p>It seems to me if both your parents & your girlfriend’s parents make that much money, that they would like to declare both of you as dependents for 2010 on their tax returns! </p>
<p>If you have lived with your parents for over half of 2010, they may declare you as a dependent, there is that option open to them. The FAFSA you file in February '11 (picking this time frame as tax returns may be finished) is based upon 2010 income. </p>
<p>Now if you have very little income for 2010 & say you are “independent” and “married” that will raise some red flags to the colleges you have submitted the FAFSA to. The colleges may decide that you are not “independent”. So, if you are considering marriage for FA, then this may just backfire on you & your girlfriend. </p>
<p>FA offices may also ask for your parents’ income & assets even though you are “independent”, before they award any of their institutional funds (Grant $) to you. That situation can occur as well, as it is their money to disperse in any way they like!</p>
<p>To really knock down your EFC, be sure to add a couple of dependents.
:rolleyes: <--------</p>
<p>for the most part, the parents are not living in their home for free. Even if there is no mortgage, there are taxes, water, sewage , upkeep of the home and utilities. A prorated share is being paid by the parents on the sutdent’s behalf. The students are also demonstrating that they do not support theri respective spouse.</p>
<p>I agree, but what portion would they put down as a prorated amount? If they live in a home with 6 people, would they put down 1/3 of housing cost? or if they occupy one bedroom in a 4 bedroom home, would they put down 1/4 of housing cost? If there isn’t a formula, then people are just going to put down some guessed number and who could argue with that?</p>
<p>Financial aid can ask for any and all back up documentation. They can ask for the parent’s bills then prorate them. Living in one bedroom is not living in one bedroom, they occupy common areas; living room, bathroom, kitchen. Smart logic for the fafsa now being directly tied to the IRS will soon flag if the students ssn is showing up somewhere else in the IRS database.</p>
<p>If they are low income enough to apply for an opportunity program, some schools may ask for 2 years of tax information.</p>
<p>Over the long range it would not be a good idea as students most likely would lose health benefits through parents once they get married and they would have to prove adequate health insurance in order to not pay for college insurance benefits. Because they are younger, a lower amount of their income/assets will be protected. In NYS TAP awards for independent students are lower than they are for dependent students. Overall, I think students will lose more then they have to gain.</p>
<p>But they’re not necessarily getting married for the FAFSA though, right? He’s just asking to see how it would affect it. No one would be that irresponsible and reckless as to think that getting married and:</p>
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<p>… actually having children would be a good strategy to reduce your EFC. They should get married for the right reasons – ie, to seal the marriage alliance between their two families. Or, love.</p>
<p>Smart logic for the fafsa now being directly tied to the IRS will soon flag if the students ssn is showing up somewhere else in the IRS database.</p>
<p>But, wouldn’t that only be a problem for 2011 on? Even if they got married - say - Jan 1st - their parents would have the right to declare them as dependents for 2010.</p>
<p>It seems that as long as the parents didn’t claim them for 2011 and on, then it wouldn’t be a problem.</p>
<p>*Financial aid can ask for any and all back up documentation. They can ask for the parent’s bills then prorate them. Living in one bedroom is not living in one bedroom, they occupy common areas; living room, bathroom, kitchen. *</p>
<p>??? so, in a somewhat different case, if a parent is living with a significant other who earns/pays most of the bills, but only the parent’s income is used on FAFSA, financial aid office can ask for the SO’s bills and all back up documentation? </p>
<p>I agree that the couple isn’t living in just one bedroom. I was just asking what formula is used…is it by number of bedrooms, or number in household. </p>
<p>And, what if the home is paid off, so there are few household bills…just utilities and taxes? </p>
<p>And, I guess, technically, the parents could charge the married couple some low amount for rent…say $100 a month utilities included…and wouldn’t the FA office just have to accept that?</p>
<p>The school has every right to ask you how are you eating and keeping a roof over your head. If you are living with someone (even a SO) and they are paying the rent and buying the food, it can be considered monies paid on your behalf.</p>
<p>married students living with parents are being “supported” by their parents.</p>
<p>I would think if the couple are charged below market rent (e.g. $100), the FAid office could say that is a subsidy by the parents & find the couple is NOT independent.</p>
<p>If you apply for student housing where you will be attending college, you may also be limited to married student housing which may NOT be where you envisioned living (may be with a lot of older students and their kids, far from the relatively carefree freshmen w/o spouses & kids).</p>
<p>I think getting married under these circumstances is a lousy idea. Just to be clear.</p>
<p>However, if they were both planning to attend a public univ. to which they could commute (regardless of who lives with whom and who pays for it) and they were just looking at increasing their federal aid (Pell and federal loans), then wouldn’t it “work” for them to get married and establish their independence? I haven’t read the full text of the regulations, but if being married is one of the acceptable criteria for independence, does it matter who claims them as a dependent? I can’t see where it says “married, unless someone else is claiming you as a dependent.”</p>
<p>Again, I’m not talking about institutional funds. Let’s assume a full Pell grant and a bit in loans would be enough for them --it is where I live for a local student at the regional public univ.</p>
<p>The issue would be more the question on the FAFSA about “who has paid bills on your behalf” because that amount gets added back in as untaxed income to the student, effectively raising the student’s income level to a point where they may not be eligible for a Pell. On the other hand, if you tallied it all up --housing, food, medical, clothes, car, misc., the student could still qualify, right?. It would just depend on how much all that adds up to, wouldn’t it?</p>
<p>I would think if the couple are charged below market rent (e.g. $100), the FAid office could say that is a subsidy by the parents & find the couple is NOT independent.</p>
<p>I don’t think the FA office can declare that a married couple have “dependent status” regardless of where money is coming from. If the parents are giving them money, then they have to include that, but I don’t think that changes their independent status.</p>
<p>Afterall, many married folks in their 30s and 40s could be out of work and getting money from parents or living with parents…that doesn’t mean that they no longer have independent status for FAFSA. There isn’t an age threshold for marrieds. The couple would just have to include what they’re getting from outside sources.</p>
<p>I don’t see anywhere where it states that if a married couple is getting financial help from parents that they lose their independent status. They just have to declare what they are getting.</p>
<p>And, as much as an FA office might not like what a family is being charged for rent, I don’t really see how they are in a position to decide what the correct rent should be. If they start getting into that area, that’s a whole can of worms.</p>
<p>Believe me, I’m not advocating such a young marriage. However, it’s not the job of the FA office to determine why they got married. That is none of their business. This is still America.</p>
<p>The issue would be more the question on the FAFSA about “who has paid bills on your behalf” because that amount gets added back in as untaxed income to the student, effectively raising the student’s income level to a point where they may not be eligible for a Pell.* On the other hand, if you tallied it all up --housing, food, medical, clothes, car, misc., the student could still qualify, right?. It would just depend on how much all that adds up to, wouldn’t it? ***</p>
<p>Exactly! And since they would **both **be in school, it is VERY likely they would qualify for Pell and other aid.</p>
<p>Right, if the parents’ contribution is worth $8k, then that’s really $4k apiece. Not likely going to hurt their EFC. And if they get each get W-S, then those earning won’t hurt their EFC.</p>
<p>Sybbie is correct. Schools can and will ask for documentation if it doesn’t look like an “independent” student has the income to support themselves. Simply put, if you have no income, they will want to know WHO is paying your bills and how much. Yes, the schools will want to know the costs of utilities, food, rent/mortgage, clothing, etc and they WILL prorate this for these seemingly adult children. </p>
<p>Remember…for FAFSA purposes, having dependent children only helps you IF your are supporting those children. If someone else is paying into your household for that expense, that will be counted too.</p>