<p>We got a request this weekend from one of my colleges for additional information on Financial Aid. They want us to mail or fax the parents 2006 1040, all schedules, and copies of parents 2006 1099 and W-2 forms.</p>
<p>I'm sure this happens all the time. My questions is about identity theft. The parents are not too happy about putting their tax forms in the mail to land on someone's desk for all to see. Social security numbers are on these forms. Plus the forms can get "lost" in the mail.</p>
<p>I am not happy about it either but there is not much you can do if you want to get any finaid. They need the social security numbers to make sure you are reporting your income and assets accurately. Otherwise a lot of people would cheat.
I called several of the places my d applied to after she turned them down and they all said they shred the documents that were no longer needed - hopefully they were telling the truth.
I also think it is crazy that some colleges still use the social security # as the student ID.</p>