<p>I filed my FAFSA as soon as I could, using my mother's W-2 form to fill it out, completely unaware that she hadn't filed her taxes in well over ten years. </p>
<p>Ten years. </p>
<p>I found out in March, and since then we planned on getting them together as soon as possible so my mother could fill them out and I could receive my financial aid. (According to everyone I spoke to, as a First-Generation student, one of four children to a single parent, I was probably going to get a lot of aid.) However, a few weeks later we found out that my mother had massive tumors that were possibly cancerous, and everything went on hold until she received her surgery (she's much better now, thank goodness). She filed an extension so we could file it at a later date, and now we're finally getting the papers together, but I am unsure of what this has done to my financial aid.</p>
<p>I've been told a thousand different things, ranging from "It's fine" to "This is horrible and you won't get anything." I figured I'd question you all on it. </p>
<p>I've been on the school's website (I actually chose a different college closer to home if my mother still wasn't doing well...) and on the financial aid area, and all that has been credited to my account is the scholarship I received that doesn't even scratch the surface of what I owe the school. They keep telling me that I need to turn in the tax, and we're trying, but will this change my ability to receive my Pell Grant and perhaps other grants/loans? Or is the Tax return simply that one last formality before they credit my college account so I'm able to go to school? </p>
<p>Sorry for being so verbose, but I didn't know where else to turn to. I hope that you are able to answer my question, and thank you in advance.</p>
<p>I’m sorry to hear about your mom, and wishing her a speedy recovery.</p>
<p>The first thought that occurs is that you don’t need tax returns for the last 10 years, only for 2008. Is there someone, perhaps a family friend, who would be willing to complete the return so that your mom could just sign it and you could submit it?</p>
<p>Well, I’ll be the one going through countless paper as she sits on the couch and makes sure I don’t throw anything away (she won’t be able to lift anything for a long while). I’m not sure as to whether or not it’s possible just to file for one year, when all of the others still need to be filed. It that was the case though, I’d be extremely happy. The woman who my mom hired to do most of the paper-work and drawing up all the papers said that we need papers from as far back as 2001. </p>
<p>The tax lady is concerned with taxes. Your immediate concern is FAFSA. Right now the IRS and DoE are not integrated systems and there will be no red flags from FAFSA for other missing tax years. File the 2008 federal taxes asap, then update your FAFSA with the “have filed” info and have it sent to your intended school. This should take only a few days. If your mom has a relatively simple tax situation you could probably download a tax program such as Tax Act and file 2008 online in a matter of an hour or less. It’s a Q&A type format and very easy to follow. Total cost with filing fees would be under $50.</p>
<p>If the school has selected you for verification, send them the verification form back with a copy of the 2008 1040/1040A/EZ. That will get the ball rolling on your FA package which is the most important deadline right now, with first semester bills looming. </p>
<p>Late FAFSA will not hurt your chances for Pell, ACG, or Stafford loans. Other types of aid (Work study, state grants, FSEOG, Perkins loans, institutional need based grants) may be gone by now if you missed deadlines. Nothing you can really do about it until you see your FA package. In the meantime, if your school is not a direct lender for Stafford, you can research which lender you’ll use for your FFEL Stafford loans if needed. You’ll have to complete entrance counseling and a Master Promissory Note (MPN) for the school and lender to process these. </p>
<p>When you get your FA award with new grants you can still appeal for more aid based upon your current circumstances. This is usually done via letter with supporting documents. Communicate with them in a reasonable and polite way and provide whatever documentation they ask for regarding your mom’s illness/income situation in a timely manner. There may be special reserves or unused grants/work study they can come up with. </p>
<p>Work backward on the tax thing - file 07 next, then 06, etc. with the help of your tax lady. Hopefully your mom didn’t owe money and there won’t be penalties and interest due (penalties are always based on the amount of tax owed so no penalty for late filing if nothing was due).</p>
<p>You sound like a great and kind-hearted kid and I hope everything turns out well for you and your mom. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it - the school, FA and counseling services, and other agencies exist to help people. Be persistent!</p>
<p>What sk8rmom said, with one change: file 2008 taxes first, as she says, because you need that NOW, then file 2006, then 2007 if you think your mom is due a refund. There’s a limit – I think it’s three years – on receiving one’s tax refund. If one doesn’t file in time, the refund is lost, IIRC.</p>
<p>The tax lady helping you should know what the deadlines are for claiming the refunds (if any), and once you know what they are, do the oldest year that will get you the refund, work forward, and then finally, work back through the other years.</p>
<p>Good luck to you and best health wishes to your mom!</p>
<p>I don’t have any financial advice to offer, but I just want to say good luck to your mom and I hope everything is OK now. We had a similar scare last year and I know how scary it was. Good luck to you and your family!</p>