<p>DD1 will start applying to U's this month and I'm trying to get up to speed on financial aid forms. We will be applying even though I think it's pretty remote that we'll get any.</p>
<p>My first stupid Q is basically this: are the FAFSA and CSS Profile applications MINE or are they DD1's? I'm assuming they are DD1's, which means that she will suddenly become privy to the most intimate details of our financial lives. While I am not especially comfortable with this, I can live with it. DW, on the other hand, is extremely upset by the idea since she has always felt that our finances are none of the kids' business. Obviously, DD1 is going to need my help filling out these forms and I assume that I can log into FAFSA and Profile using her PW and fill out the forms myself when she's not around. But once I've done that, does our financial info then become an open book (or sewer) that DD1 has full access to? Or is there some way to keep all that info confidential? (Not from college FA offices, obviously, but from DD1.)</p>
<p>Second stupid Q: I'm divorced from DD1's mom, XW, and I have full custody. XW lives in another city, is remarried, and has a new child with her H2. Neither XW nor H2 have been employed for years and it's a mystery how they support themselves and their child, though the suspicion is that H2's wealthy mother is helping them out. I presume XW will have to fill out a NCP (non-custodial profile). I don't even know if they file tax returns. Does DD1 have to fill out NCP form or does XW fill it out herself? I'm anticipating some trouble getting XW to cooperate since I'm sure she will be embarrassed by her financial circumstances. Once it is filled out, who has access to that information? If XW thinks I will be able to access her info, it may be even more difficult to get her to cooperate.</p>
<p>Complications, complications....</p>
<p>If you really don’t think you will get aid and don’t want any info to be disclosed to your daughter, just tell her what you can afford without aid & don’t fill out anything.</p>
<p>You will not have access to the X’s info. the X fills out the info, not your D.</p>
<p>You fill out your info.</p>
<p>Your D will create a PIN to log in to the student section of the FAFSA. You will create a PIN to log in to the parent section of FAFSA. You can fill out the student section and just have your D review the data and electronically sign it. There’s no need for her to see your financial information.</p>
<p>It’s not possible for you to see your ex-wife’s financial information on PROFILE as she’d create her own login.</p>
<p>There’s no need for the D to see the parent info but she can. She can login to fafsa at any time with her pin and see it. It will also be on the SAR. Logging in with the student or parent pin does not restrict whether one can see only the student or parent section.</p>
<p>Personally, when kids reach this age, I have no problem letting them see our financial info. I know they will no longer blab it all over the neighborhood. It’s a teaching opportunity to expand their financial knowledge to explain why it’s not more or why it’s so much but can’t all be used for college, why it’s in particular accounts and what the advantages of those accounts are, etc.</p>
<p>Ok. Thanks. Sounds like DD1 will have full access to my financial info if she wants to go poking around. Don’t think that’s too likely. DW will have to live with it. Also sounds like no one will have access to XW’s financial info except XW. Hopefully she will cooperate. I’m concerned that her situation will throw up red flags all over the place.</p>
<p>Not applying for FA is not really an option in my situation. My deal with wealthy GPs (XW’s P’s, with whom I am friendly and who are estranged from XW) is that we will try to get whatever scholarships, grants, etc. we can, then I pay a maximum of $x per year (x = the CSU rate, which is where DD1 would be going if GPs were not in the picture), then GPs will kick in the difference so that DD1 can go where she wants. In other words, GPs want DD1 to attend the college of her choice, but do not want to pay any more than they have to for that to happen. So we need to exhaust all other sources of funds (other than loans) before they will pay anything. For example, if the annual COE at Overpriced U is $60,000, DD1 gets a FA award of $10,000, and x = $20,000, then GPs will kick in $30,000 so that DD1 can attend Overpriced U. If DD1 gets no FA, I still pay $20,000 and GPs will pay $40,000. I’m going to need to prove to GPs that we applied for FA but didn’t get any.</p>
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<p>Well, what will my daughter see on the FAFSA form . . .</p>
<p>The only thing the FAFSA asks for is income.
That is already published public knowledge or she could have looked already in the file cabinet at any of our previous tax returns.</p>
<p>What will my daughter might see on the CSS form:</p>
<p>Does the student’s parent receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)?
Are either of the student’s parents self-employed?
How many farms do the student’s parents own all or part of?
At any time did your parent(s) receive benefits from any of the following federal benefit programs: Supplementary Security Income (SSI), food stamps, free or reduced price lunch or WIC?
Enter the untaxed portions of IRA distributions, excluding “rollovers” your parents received or expect to receive.
Enter the amount of child support your parent(s) paid or expect to because of divorce or separation or as the result of a legal requirement.</p>
<p>I think my daughter already knows whether we live on a farm or not. ;)</p>
<p>How much our house is worth.
That is publically viewable information on the Internet.</p>
<p>Enter the amount your parents have in their cash, savings, and checking accounts as of today.
That is probably the only “secret” we have. But, really, when my D knows that, will it be a big deal? No.</p>
<p>I’m sorry. I just don’t see what the big problem is here.</p>
<p>*deal with wealthy GPs (XW’s P’s, with whom I am friendly and who are estranged from XW) is that we will try to get whatever scholarships, grants, etc. we can, then I pay a maximum of $x per year (x = the CSU rate, which is where DD1 would be going if GPs were not in the picture), then GPs will kick in the difference so that DD1 can go where she wants. *</p>
<p>so…what would happen if Ex-W (and her H) refuse to fill out the NCP forms? NONE of your aid app will get processed except for FAFSA. Will your ex-in-laws still pay when, in truth, your aid app wasn’t processed because of their own D?</p>
<p>*While I am not especially comfortable with this, I can live with it. DW, on the other hand, is extremely upset by the idea since she has always felt that our finances are none of the kids’ business. *</p>
<p>While it’s none of the kids’ business, what exactly is W2 worried about?</p>
<p>As you will be required to state what money you are receiving from outside sources when applying for aid, it will be more honest if you take out loans for what you cant cover and have the grandparents pay off the loans after graduation, if insuring that she have wide open choice of colleges is what they want.</p>
<p>Vballmom, actually the daughter will have access to that FAFSA and all the entered information using her PIN only. </p>
<p>To the OP…you will complete the FAFSA. Included will by yours and your current wife’s information. …and your daughter’s.Your former wife and spouse are not included in the FAFSA at all.</p>
<p>For Profile schools…you will complete the Profile, and the former wife and spouse will complete the non-custodial parent profile. You can’t see hers and she can’t see yours. </p>
<p>Your daughter will need her FAFSA PIN if she takes out a Direct Loan. As I recall, My kids used the same PIN for loan related activities as for the FAFSA. So…it’s not Iike you can keep the PIN a secret.</p>
<p>Golf father, the student will be able to view the family income, account balances for any bank/checking/accounts, investment income, interest income, value of secondary real estate (if any) , value of home business (if there is one).</p>
<p>I agree with you, however. When it came time for college, I felt it was actually important for our kids to understand our finances a bit. We were paying for expensive educations, and we wanted them to understand we were not a bottomless pit of money. It helped them understand our financial situation and how their college costs interfaced with that.</p>
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<p>Privacy, I guess. But I think I agree with other posters that it is a financial educational experience for the kids. I guess my biggest concern is that she’s going to look at my finances and say “how come you make so much but have so little?” The answer is complicated: expensive divorce and custody battle that forced me into bankruptcy, non-dischargeable tax debt incurred when I was forced to live off my IRA account because I was paying so much in alimony and child support back when we had split custody, etc.</p>
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<p>Yes. They will not disappoint D and have assured her they will make sure she attends the college of her choice (er, well, or maybe THEIR choice – we’ll have to wait and see how that goes after acceptances come in). But they are also practical and do not want to spend any more than they have to.</p>
<p>The reality is that I don’t think I’m going to qualify for any FA. But GP’s have this misconception that these private U’s have huge endowments and pass out money like candy on Halloween. I keep telling them that we’re not going to get any FA, but they keep saying “it doesn’t hurt to try.” So I guess I have to go through the motions.</p>
<p>And if you do not give the student the PIN? Any PIN? And the SAR comes to your own email?</p>
<p>I guess my biggest concern is that she’s going to look at my finances and say “how come you make so much but have so little?” The answer is complicated: expensive divorce and custody battle that forced me into bankruptcy, non-dischargeable tax debt incurred when I was forced to live off my IRA account because I was paying so much in alimony and child support back when we had split custody, etc.</p>
<p>How about just giving her the above answer? She may learn something from it.</p>
<p>Lookingforward…I suppose the parent could do what you are suggesting. BUT the FAFSA student PIN actually belongs to the student. It is used for Direct Loans. It is NOT the property of the parents. The student PIN is used by the STUDENT to verify that all information on the FAFSA is accurate. The parent PIN is for the same purpose. </p>
<p>If something went very fraudulently haywire, I would hate for some unknowing student out there to have to say “I never knew MY PIN”.</p>
<p>Sure…it’s possible, and it is likely done…but in my opinion, it is not good practice to do this.</p>
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<p>Easy for them to say, they are not the one going through the crazy FA paperwork and hoops.</p>
<p>Someone referenced this above, but just to be specific… although it won’t show up the first year, after that won’t any money paid by the grandparents for educational expenses have to be reported somehow in the financial aid process? Thus potentially reducing grants after the first year? And also, your ex and her husband will have to report any sources of income or assets, no matter what they are, if they fill out the NPC form accurately.</p>
<p>OP, I think I remember your posts from before… your path is fraught with difficulty if you are allowing the grandparents to dictate school choices in exchange for financial support… but I think we hashed that one to death with you in a separate thread several months ago. :)</p>
<p>Regarding the pins… must admit, I have just created and kept all of them for D2. I have her come to my computer and read/work on stuff as needed for her FAFSA and loans. She doesn’t even know what they are at this point… I suppose at some point she might need to do something while not at my house, then I will give them to her.</p>
<p>The PIN is the way to do an electronic signature, it’s not just the equivalent of a password for logging in. If a parent applies for and then uses the student’s PIN to sign the fafsa without the student’s knowledge, it is the equivalent of forging the student’s signature on a paper document.</p>
<p>OP, the first year you apply for finaid this won’t be a problem, but in subsequent years, payments made by the grandparents the previous year need to be reported. Those payments will reduce the student’s need even further. Sounds like for sure there will be no finaid after year one.</p>
<p>Obviously, there are ways to bring the kid into all this, without leaving this enormous responsibility on their young shoulders. The risk is ours, as we’re responsible for payment. I found it challenging and am very happy to be done. </p>
<p>DH reviewed all the loan info with them, before they signed (sat there, to insist they read it.) They legitimately signed.</p>