<p>Is there a max income you have to be under to qualify for pell grant ?</p>
<p>Also, at what percentage does the money in your bank account get counted toward your education?</p>
<p>If you say you have 100 in your checking, do they consider 30% of that available for school or what?</p>
<p>Based on our EFC looks like i am not going to school :/</p>
<p>The maximum EFC eligible for any Pell grant for 2009-2010 is 4617.</p>
<p>There is no specific maximum income as there are so many other variables such as whether the income is earned or unearned (there are allowances for FICAfor income earned from work), parent assets, student income and assets, number in family, number in college etc.</p>
<p>For assets parents have a certain amount of protected assets based on the number of parents and the age of the older one. Over that 5.6% goes to the EFC. Students have no asset protection and 20% of their assets go to the EFC.</p>
<p>What if your indep? Still no protection? We are indep with a child. Both of us are in school.</p>
<p>No independent students do not get any asset protection. However if you meet the income limits and other criteria you may qualify for one of 2 special formulas. If your AGI is under $50k and you are eligible to file a 1040a/1040ez or you get certain means tested benefits then you may qualify for the simplified needs test where Assets are disregarded. If your income in <$30k and you meet the same criteria you may qualify for the automatic 0 EFC which would give you a 0 EFC. An independent student without a dependent other than the spouse does not qualify for these, but as you have a dependent you should.</p>
<p>A new criteria for this year is that you are also eligible if you or your spouse is a dislocated worked *and *if you meet the income limits. </p>
<p>Being independent does not always lead to a low EFC if you have much income, as independent students do not have the income protection that parents of dependent students do. The student income protection is a little higher than for a dependent student but is not high (@ $7000) and anything over that and some other allowances 50% goes to the EFC. That is probably why you are seeing such a high EFC. If your income is below $30k then if there is any way you can file a 1040a or 1040ez, even if it costs you a little more in taxes, then it may be worth your while to do it.</p>
<p>We filled a 1040A anyways. But our income is over 50k. </p>
<p>What we have in our bank account i would not call an asset. It is rent money so i am leery if the funds listed get counted at 50% - that is atrotious. . … I only listed we have 1200 in our bank account… which we will not by friday anyways.</p>
<p>Assets are counted at 20%. It is income over the protected amount that is counted at 50%. </p>
<p>If your income is over $50k then you are not going to qualify or the Pell this year, I am afraid.</p>
<p>My EFC was only a couple dollars over the 4617.</p>
<p>If you are both students the EFC will have been divided between the 2 of you. Did you already file taxes?</p>
<p>Yes i already filled taxes.</p>
<p>So is it my EFC that counts, or the EFC that gets divided between us that is used for pell grant consideration.</p>
<p>Is the EFC they show me already divided, or is the EFC they show the one that will be divided.</p>
<p>My husband is in graduate school though.</p>
<p>It will have already been divided between the 2 in college. The formula calculates an EFC then divides it by the number of students in college giving you your own EFC that is used for aid calculations.</p>
<p>So if my own EFC is under 4617 I get pell grant correct? Not if our EFC prior to division is under 4617</p>
<p>Yes, your own EFC is all that matters for the Pell. </p>
<p>The EFC prior to being divided between you would have been in the 9k range.</p>
<p>I was wrong about the information on asset protection for independent students. Independent students 26 and older do have some asset protection(s). And for independent students with dependent other than spouse 7% of unprotected assets go to the EFC. 20% is for independent students without dependent other than a spouse.</p>