<p>I am a volunteer at my church's summer classes and one of my students is in a tough situation. He is a U.S. citizen but his parents are illegal. I know that as a citizen, he has a right to financial aid and that you are supposed to put 0's for their SS#. But his mom only files taxes and she barely makes any money and does not claim him. If he uses her tax ID, what will happen if the government sees that she doesn't make enough money to support him? Will he be taken away from her or something? Please help the kid was crying the other day he feels so helpless and I just want to be able to help him. Thank you.</p>
<p>Does the student hold a part time job to help out? Plenty of poor people also have children and don’t get them taken away. No one is going to take an 18 year old (or close) away from a parent. He should just file FAFSA using mom’s tax info, and see what happens. It will be easiest if he is applying to schools that use the FAFSA only, instead of those that also use the CSS Profile.</p>
<p>The child won’t be taken away. Besides, when he files FAFSA, he’ll either be 18 or close to it. </p>
<p>Many people file FAFSA without any income at all…out of work or whatever. Their kids aren’t taken away. you don’t lose your kids over a lack of income. You lose your kids if there is neglect (no food, etc).</p>
<p>Child protective services are usually a state issue. FAFSA is a federal form. There’s no connection.</p>
<p>Please don’t worry about anyone finding out what is on the FAFSA … no one is judging when they review this form. If the family is asked for verification, it is simply because the school is required to collect documentation to show that the information on the FAFSA is correct (people do lie, and verification is one way to cut down on the lying). If they are asked for more info because income is so low, they just need to provide the info requested. I worked in a school that had plenty of people with NO income whatsoever. Believe me, there are lots of very poor people in our country. The schools are just collecting information and trying to make sure it is all on the up-and-up … they cannot use the information for anything but awarding financial aid.</p>