Our Future Financial Aid. PLEASE HELP!

<p>My sister and I are both going to be entering college this month as freshman. This year, we both received a substantial amount of need based aid from our respective schools. However, we are unsure as to how the financial aid process will work out in years to come. Currently, our household consists of both my parents, my sister, and myself. My parents make a combined income of around $32,000 a year, allowing us to qualify for a substantial amount of need based aid. However, our situation may change in the coming year. My parents have come up with two possible scenarios. </p>

<p>Scenario 1: My parents are going to move across the country to live with my oldest sister and her husband, who together, make a fair amount of money. However, they will sign legal guardianship of my collegebound sister and I over to my other sister who is a single mother who makes a modest amount of money. During this year, they will not provide my sister and me with any assistance. If this scenario does work out, will my sister and I be able to use our legal guardian's income information on the FAFSA/CSS Profile next year or would we still have to use our parents information? </p>

<p>Scenario 2: My parents move across the country with my oldest sister and her husband. However, they continue to provide my sister and I with assistance while we're in school. When filling out the FAFSA/CSS Profile, would my sister and I ONLY use my parents income information or would we need to use my oldest sister and her husband's information as well?</p>

<p>Any advice would be hugely appreciated!</p>

<p>Both scenarios - you must use your parents information. Only parents information is accepted for FAFSA - not guardians, grandparents, sisters, aunts, uncles - just parents. And whether your parents provide financial assistance or not their information will be required.</p>

<p>Aren’t you 18 or almost 18? An 18 year old does not have a guardian as you are no longer a minor.</p>

<p>Even legal guardianship is not sufficient; only adoption would change your “parent” data. Or if you and your sister were considered “wards of the court” - but that can’t happen at this stage; you’re too old to be wards of the court.</p>

<p>From a financial aid standpoint, your parents are your parents regardless of what they do. If they live with your sister, they will still just report their income info. The sister they live with is irrelevant as far as financial aid is concerned. Your household size will still be 4, because they are responsible for you for financial aid purposes (even if they live a million miles away).</p>

<p>It doesn’t make sense for your parents to sign over guardianship. It won’t matter at all. Why are they thinking this is a good idea? Why wouldn’t they just continue as is…having both of you sisters as their dependent children? Since you qualify for significant aid as is…why would they change the scenerio?</p>

<p>OR…are you attending an instate public university and they are trying to keep that instate status?</p>