<p>I was just wondering if I have to fill out FASFA or any other form if I don't need financial aid.</p>
<p>No. The only thing you might want to check is if your college restricts students from filing for financial aid in subsequent years if they did not file as a freshman. Some schools have that restriction. If yours does, you might want to file a FAFSA even though you don’t need the aid now just in case things change for you or your family unexpectedly in the next few years.</p>
<p>Also some schools require the FAFSA for awarding merit-based aid, even though need isn’t a component.</p>
<p>Some schools do require you to fill out FAFSA if you are to receive merit awards. Ooops. Just noticed this above.</p>
<p>I think it is also important to remember that the federal student loans also count as “financial aid” and do require the FAFSA to be completed. I know this was a hard concept for me to grasp- how are loans financial aid when they need to be paid back? The nice part of these loans is the interest rates are fixed and the money is guarenteed regardless of credit. With the economy the way it is, it is a nice cushion to know those loans are available to fall back on if necessary.</p>
<p>Just to be clear–a school cannot keep you from filing for FA in subsequent years. They can restrict you from receiving institutional aid, but if you become eligible for federal or state aid, you can always file a FAFSA and receive those sums, no matter what the school’s internal policies are. However, the point does remain that a school’s own institutional aid can be substantial, so not filing now can, in those cases, mean a problem later.</p>
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<p>Correct. The college cannot deny you federally funded aid to which you are entitled (e.g. Pell grant if you qualify or Stafford loans, for example) in subsequent years. BUT the college CAN restrict you from receiving THEIR institutional money if you don’t APPLY (not apply…not accept) as an incoming freshman. This might necessitate the filing of the FAFSA AND the Profile or a school financial aid form )not just the FAFSA…it would be what YOUR school requires for institutional financial aid) as an incoming freshman.</p>
<p>Adding on to the posters above, the only way to find out what schools will do if you need to apply for aid later on is to call up the financial aid offices and ask them. You’ll want to ask if you can apply for INSTITUTIONAL need-based aid later on, if you don’t apply for your freshman year. </p>
<p>I think this is a good task to give to your parents. 
I’ve been going down the list of schools my daughter is considering, calling financial aid offices, and so far (knock wood) no one has said that she must apply for her freshman year in order to be eligible in subsequent years.</p>