<p>This is our first time going through the college application/financial aid process with our only child. Should I estimate FAFSA using last year's tax return or wait until my taxes are done for 2009 and do FAFSA then? My husband's employer usually does not get W-2s out until the last week in January so I would most likely have the 2009 return around the first week in February. I don't think there will be any significant differences between 2008 and 2009 income. 2009 may be a bit less due to less overtime for my husband. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Do the fafsa for the 2009 year, I think legally you have to do that.</p>
<p>The 2010-2011 FAFSA will be available for online submission on January 2, 2010. You should do it in keeping with the deadline for the schools to which you are applying. If the school has a January deadline…here’s what you do.</p>
<p>File your FAFSA using a “will file” status which means you WILL file your taxes but have not yet done so. Use the BEST possible estimates based on your end of year pay stubs, interest statements etc. Then submit it to the school(s).</p>
<p>Do your taxes as soon as reasonably possible after Feb 1 when you have all of your 2009 documentation. Go back IN to the FAFSA website and amend your FAFSA to reflect the figures from your 2009 completed tax return and resubmit to the college(s). Change your status to “taxes completed”. </p>
<p>This is the year you want to get your taxes done as soon as possible. It is NOT the year to wait until April 15th to complete your taxes.</p>
<p>Do people really have to wait until they get their W-2s to begin FAFSA? Can’t they use the info from their last pay stub for 2009?</p>
<p>Have you used an EFC calculator to estimate your EFC? If not, use this one. <a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml[/url]”>http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml</a></p>
<p>Aid will depend on many things… EFC and what schools your child is applying to. Many can’t meet need even with students with low EFCs. Free money (grants) is only given to those who have lowish incomes.</p>
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<p>Yes they can…as I stated in post number 3 of this thread.</p>
<p>go to( <a href=“https://fafsa4caster.ed.gov%5B/url%5D”>https://fafsa4caster.ed.gov</a>) and you can input data based on 2008 tax returns to see what/if any FA you may get…</p>
<p>I have used the FAFSA4caster and neither of the schools my daughter is considering has a January deadline. I just wasn’t sure about the process of amending the FAFSA if I estimated based on 2008 tax returns. It doesn’t sound too difficult thanks to your explanation. Is there any benefit to doing the FAFSA in early January vs. early February if there are no deadline issues with the schools involved? We do have many deductions that affect the bottom line so I couldn’t just use our end-of-year paystubs. I thought it might make more sense to base the FAFSA on the 2009 return if possible rather than estimate and amend later. Thank you again for your help.</p>
<p>If your deadline is early Feb, and NOT in January, you can wait. That happened with us ONE time (what a gift).</p>
<p>I believe that even if your estimates are exactly correct to the penny, according to the end of the year pay stubs, you still have to put down “will file,” if you have not already done so, and that will mean you will need to go back in and change that one box at least to “have already filed.” Is this correct?</p>
<p>Since I’ve never done a FAFSA, I not sure how much of one’s gross income gets inputted. What deductions are allowed? I thought FAFSA dealt with pretty raw numbers (no mortgage deductions, etc). But, since I’ve never done one, I’m not sure.</p>
<p>So if a family has one gross income of $50,000. Two parents, and 1 child (the future college student). What income number gets put in? $50,000? Or some other number?.</p>
<p>lhansenvt, yes, as thumper said, if you can get your taxes done before your college’s financial aid filing deadline (say, in February if that’s the case), then you can just do your taxes and file the FAFSA then. As long as you don’t miss the school’s filing deadline for priority aid consideration, then there is no disadvantage to filing the FAFSA in Feb. rather than Jan. Doing it once and doing it accurately is best, but only if you can do it by the filing deadline. If you can’t then estimate and get the corrected version in later (even if “later” is after the deadline.) Just don’t miss deadlines, that’s the main thing.</p>
<p>It’s best to do the FAFSA as early as possible in January using ESTIMATED figures. Then do your taxes returns as early and promptly as possible and submit an amended FAFSA as soon as the final numbers are available. (If for any reason you can’t get your taxes done early, then at least make sure that your income figures are correct based on W-2s and 1099’s that you should have received by the first week of February).</p>
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FAFSA asks for the AGI (adjusted gross income) from the tax return. This is the income after certain adjustments such as alimony paid, IRA deduction, Student loan interest deduction etc. but before standard or itemized deductions and exemptions (personal or dependent). Items that can be itemized as deductions on a tax return, such as mortgage interest, are not reported on FAFSA. Additionally the pre AGI IRA deduction $## must be reported on FAFSA and is added back to income in the EFC formula.</p>
<p>Calmom, quite a number of schools tell students when they ask that it’s better to file the FAFSA once with accurate numbers rather than estimate, but of course only if they can do that by the school’s deadlines for applying for FA. If they don’t have their taxes done that early, then they should file an estimated FAFSA, get it in on time, and correct it later.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your helpful replies. My daughters #1 and #2 schools have March 1st financial aid deadlines so I think I will get the 2009 taxes done as quickly as possible and base the FAFSA on those numbers rather than estimating. 'rents of 2 - I like your advice about doing the FAFSA once and doing it accurately being the best plan. That is the road we will take. I appreciate you all taking the time to respond. Have a Merry Christmas!</p>
<p>'rentof2, its best for the numbers in the FAFSA to be as accurate as possible, but the problem is that many schools have priority deadlines for financial aid, and at some schools this can figure into the awarding of merit aid as well. So I think that in the year that the student is applying to multiple schools, then logic kind of dictates that you have to look at which schools have the earliest FAFSA deadlines and preferences. To me, it was easier to get things in ASAP after the 1st of the year than read through the different requirements and expectations of 8 or 10 different colleges. </p>
<p>Of course I also tried to file my taxes as quickly as possible, and amended the FAFSA as soon as that task was done – but the earliest I have ever managed the tax thing is the 2nd week of February – and that was past the deadlines of some colleges.</p>
<p>Are your chances for more aid increased by submitting as early as possible, or is it the same as long as you meet the deadlines?</p>
<p>Also, what is “about” the maximum a family can earn to still get federal grants (free money) - such as Pell, etc? (I realize the income limit rises for larger families, but what is “about” the max income for smallish families).</p>