Hello, I submitted the FAFSA early in October but have been plagued by a few questions. When I completed the FAFSA earlier this year in January for 2016/2017, I called the FAFSA helpline and was told to list SSDI under untaxed income, so I did. However, in August, I talked to a few friends about the upcoming FAFSA and was told that SSDI is not reported at all. Confused, I called the FAFSA helpline twice more, and one person told me to list it and one person told me not to list it.
That is when I turned to this website and was told that SSDI is not reported on the FAFSA, so I did not report it on the 2017/2018 application. As a result, the amount of financial information listed for my mom decreased by roughly $20,000, since that is how much she receives from SSDI each year (this is her only source of income).
Basically, the first time I completed the FAFSA I made a mistake (I reported too much income). I don’t believe I was given too much financial aid as a result of this mistake, but I’m worried they will think I’m lying and trying to get more financial aid. I have the award letter associated with the amount of SSDI my mother received in 2015, but I’m concerned this will somehow affect my financial aid package. Is there any particular course of action I should take?
(My dad was unemployed in 2015 and since SSDI is all my mom receives, she does not file taxes, if this is helpful information.)