I will be starting to prepare the FAFSA for my son who is a senior. I had heard that the “step-parent” income will be considered in this form as the step parent is also a contributor to the household. My situation is entirely different - I was remarried last year and my husband (the step parent) and I live in seperate states, seperate addresses, seperate bank accounts, seperate mortgages, household bills, groceries etc. We do not at this point contribute to each other’s income whatsoever. This will change in 5 years but in the meantime we are not wanting to uproot the children for our personal joy. Would this situation be considered “different” or would I still have to list my husband’s income on the FAFSA.
Moving this to the FA forum for some more cognizant posters.
I do not believe this situation would be considered “different.” You are legally married; therefore, your husband’s income information must be included on the FAFSA.
I agree. You are married, and are not separated pending a divorce. Both of you go on the FAFSA.
These are the fafsa marital statuses and what info must be provided. You are remarried. Separated is for marital separation(marriage on the rocks), not physical separation.
https://fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1415/help/faahelp51.htm
My question for the finaid pros is who can be included in household size and number in college if both spouses incomes are being included. It sounds like both spouses have custodial kids and may both have 1 or more in college. Also, how do you handle primary residence/2nd residence on both sides if both spouses incomes are being reported?
Is this a possibility for professional judgement?
You are married. Being separated for jobs, etc, is not separated. You are married, your marriage is not in trouble. If you were to suddenly become unemployed/desperate, your H would likely come to your financial rescue.
What I am going to write is not going to go over well. The answer to your question is more complicated than just that. If you and your spouse regard yourself as married and just happen to be living separately, yes, the answer is that most finanical aid offices are going to consider you as such. However, the test for determining informal separation for FAFSA purposes is generally that the two people are living separately. Upon verification, a request for proof of separate addresses, bills, assete, etc are what are usually requested. Though not absolutely necessary, if you and your spouse are filing separate returns as separated, that alone will generally pass muster. If you do indeed want the financial advantages of being separated both you and he would be filing as separated and has HOH on each return rather than paying the extra taxes of filing separate or joint returns as married. But that alone is not the test of the “pudding”.
I personally know a number of married couples who live a apart for any number of reasons. Some of them file their taxes and state everything as thought they are married with the separate domiciles being a situational thing. Some of them file everything as separated Whether any financial aid office would ask if they consider themselves married and just living in separate locales, or if they are indeed separated with separate lives, I don’t know I believe Kelsmom, who does work in college fin aid said that on situations like that, her office might have asked the question if the tax returns indicate “married”. If the tax returns are filed as separated, then the question does not come up, especially when there is a clear separation of assets. Looking at some FAFSA commentary (outdated) http://www.finaid.org/educators/pj/divorce.phtml, the issue comes up when families are trying to appear separated in the effort to get more financial aid, and the proof process involves separate living expenses, reasonable division of assets and income, etc, which is not a situation that you and your husband would have any problems, since you are and have been separated for some time and those items are indeed separate. It becomes a state of mind thing, which is a gray area. I say “gray” because there are any number of situations where the circumstances were such that any reasonable person would have considered the couple separated though the couple themselves may not.
IMO (and this is just a personal thing, nothing official, nothing but my own opinon), if you are filing your taxes for 2014 as separated rather than married with separate returns or joint, then, it’s a good enough indicator that you are separated. If not, then you will likely have to pass the muster of verification from those financial aid offices that so choose to do so, and they will likely do so when your tax returns show married, and yet you are claiming to be separated. You may, or may not prevail on separated status due to the fact that you and your spouse do have separate residences, salaries, accounts, etc, etc, but it may hinge on a question whether or not you and your spouse consider yourselves married or not.
Ethically, even if the parent and step-parent would be able to show that they are in two households, they must include both incomes in this case. See the last sentence in the guidance below (this appears on the 2015-2016 FAFSA Help prompt for “who is my parent”):
For FAFSA purposes, a married couple is separated if the couple is considered legally separated by a state, or if the couple is legally married but has chosen to live separate lives, including living in separate households, as though they were not married. If you and your spouse are separated but living together, select “Married or Remarried,” not “Divorced or Separated." Note: When two married persons live as a married couple but are separated by physical distance (or have separate households), they are considered married for FAFSA purposes.
Kelsmom…how do,they deal with houses in terms of primary residence? And how do,they count members of the household?
The house the student lives in would be the primary residence. The # in household would be the number supported more than 50% by the bio parent and step parent. And yes, the other house would be a parent asset (worth - outstanding mortgage amount).
Remarried parents can’t just pretend that they’re not for FAFSA purposes.
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I was remarried last year and my husband (the step parent) and I live in separate states, separate addresses, separate bank accounts, separate mortgages, household bills, groceries etc.
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We do not at this point contribute to each other’s income whatsoever. This will change in 5 years but in the meantime we are not wanting to uproot the children for our personal joy.
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I know that this sounds “nosy,” but why would a couple decide to marry and live THIS way for 5 years? It would seem that there must have been “some” reason…medical insurance? what?
Why not just remain BF and GF for 5 years???
Religious convictions?
Wow - interesting that the equity in the other home is an includable asset for FAFSA.
@samantha9010: How much can you afford to pay each year for four years? Did your son apply to any financial safeties? What is the EFC now, given that you have to include your husband’s income and assets?
From Kelsmom:
That’s not clear to me. The OP and the H appear to be supporting the kids living with each 100%. So all kids are supported more than 50% by the bio parent and step parent. So everyone is in the household or everyone except the H? The H is supporting himself 100% too.
I wasn’t clear on that either. @kelsmom?
https://fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1516/help/pnumInHousehold.htm
It says you count your parents, doesn’t say they have to be living in the same household. Seems all kids are receiving more than half their support from their parents, doesn’t say they have to be living in the same household. Sounds like everyone based on my reading.
I’ll go against the tide here and say: the purpose of the FAFSA considering the stepparent’s income is not just to have more money available, but to recognize the “household” that is supporting and raising the child.
In this example, despite being legally married, it sounds like you and your husband have never formed a household together. It’s not that you were forced apart by choice or circumstances such as work; instead, it is that you were never a single household in the first place.
The critical statements are, “I was remarried last year and my husband (the step parent) and I live in seperate states, seperate addresses, seperate bank accounts, seperate mortgages, household bills, groceries etc. We do not at this point contribute to each other’s income whatsoever. This will change in 5 years but in the meantime we are not wanting to uproot the children for our personal joy.” So this was a relatively recent remarriage; this is NOT a stepfather your son has grown up with and been raised by, at all, NOR WILL HE BE. Your son will be grown and off to college without ever having your new husband living in the same house with him or participating in raising him.
Your husband is not in the household, and never was. Your husband does not contribute to the support of your household in any way, not financially, not with housework, nothing. This is easily proven. So you go on the FAFSA alone, just like you’re raising your son alone.
^^^
The fact that the couple never lived together, etc, is irrelevant. They are married, they don’t consider their marriage to be “in trouble” and therefore separated. They are married.
If one of them suddenly became ill and there were unpaid hospitable bills , the other would be responsible…because they are married. The other spouse can’t claim…“oh, we’ve never lived together, therefore I’m not obligated.”
If you had posted sooner, I would’ve advised you not to get remarried. The stepparent trap is hard to avoid. I was in a similar situation last year and included H’s income and assets on the FAFSA. My understanding of the rules mirrors the post by kelsmom. It isn’t fair (what is?), but I think you take a risk (not to mention the moral issues) of twisting the rules as some have suggested. The school may ask for a separation agreement or other evidence that you are separated by more than residences and accounts.
@fccdad - do you have a source to support your assertion? Or would this be more along the lines of professional judgement?