<p>Has anyone else with this marital status been requested by colleges to submit a noncustodial parent statement? I ran into a stubborn financial aid officer who didn't understand that CSS policy for this situation is to combine resources on the usual CSS form. I even sent them a response from CSS to this effect, but they are unconvinced. Clueless or objection to our lifestyle choice - what do you think?</p>
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<p>It is not unusual for schools that use the CSS profile to also request a non-custodial profile as they believe that **both parents **are first in line when it comes to paying for their child’s education.</p>
<p>There is no confusion. Even if you did not live together, the school would still ask for the non-custodial profile. The fact that you live with your live with your child’s father will just make it easier to contact him to fill out the non-custodial profile. Please keep in mind that him filing out the profile will not obligate him to pay for college. However, the school will not make up the difference if he refuses to pay. If the school requests the non-custodial profile and you do not turn it in, you child will not receive any institutional aid from the school.</p>
<p>CASrMom-</p>
<p>You need to ask the FAO if you and your partner each need to file your own form rather than combining the information into one form. And if so, which of you should claim to be the CP and which should claim NCP status. There may be some peculiar institutional reason for this. </p>
<p>Or you could just put this down as a reason to not let your child be associated with a place that hires crazy people, and eliminate the place from your child’s list.</p>
<p>Maybe I’m wrong, but I think this parent wants to include BOTH parents’ info on the ONE form for custodial parents the same way married people do…since they do live together in the same household.</p>
<p>To do them separately isn’t really right since there aren’t 2 households. </p>
<p>I thought that somewhere I read that non-married-bio-parents-living-together should file FA forms the same way as marrieds, but I may not be remembering correctly. this doesn’t come up often.</p>
<p>^^^ This is not the case for FAFSA, unless the state recognizes common law marriage. Profile has its own set of rules, though, and I don’t know the rules for this situation.</p>
<p>To clear up any future confusion for people in this situation here is the verbatim response from CSS.</p>
<p>"A Non Custodial PROFILE application is only required when the student’s biological parents marital status is either separated, divorced, or never married living separately. Our records indicate the student’s biological parent’s marital status is never married living together. Therefore, a Non Custodial PROFILE application is not required and will not generate. "</p>
<p>Resources in this situation are combined on the CSS. This was resolved with the college. </p>
<p>FAFSA is a different beast - it only recognizes one parent in this situation, who must be the one providing the majority of the support.</p>
<p>I understand where you are coming from, but the school gets to make the decision as to what forms it wants when it comes to giving out their money. Yes, this does seem like an unnecessary PITA, however, you have spoken with the FA officer and s/he has said that their school needs both the profile and the non-custodial profile.</p>
<p>It is easier to fill out the non-custodial profile (which is free) an then add a notation that the custodial and the non custodial parents reside together. The profile does allow you to put in additional information. Unfortunately this means printing out and amending the CSS profile for the custodial parent to separate the resources. </p>
<p>I would recommend that you contact all other schools that require the profile/non-custodial profile to see how they want you to proceed.</p>
<p>I don’t think you understand that to fill out a noncustodial profile you must receive a separate noncustodial profile password from CSS. If CSS rules say that no noncustodial profile is needed, there is no way to fill out that form. Fortunately, this was cleared up and everything is A-OK. The school has accepted CSS’s explanation and no longer asks for the noncustodial profile.</p>
<p>Please take this as a huge red flag about other situations your child may run into. You have your reasons/realities for the household being as it is – but the legal world runs according to legal documents. </p>
<p>Please take time to build a notebook for your child and/or the person who would be the executor of your estate (even if “estate” sounds pompous) that lays out what accounts/belongings there are and whose name is on what. This exercise is a royal pain but you may find things like an ex is on an old insurance policy or recall that Grandpa is the beneficiary of that IRA from that old job . . . and so on. </p>
<p>Your student is about to undertake one of the most expensive paths we have on the planet: a U.S. college degree. If you (God forbid) and your partner get smooshed on the way to the store, you don’t want a teen to struggle through the grieving process while simultaneously fighting enormous administrative headaches. </p>
<p>This is true for any parent – it is doubly, triply so for a parent whose legal situation is alternative or unusual. </p>
<p>Please, please document things – and talk to a local attorney so you understand how your teen should be prepared to navigate things if suddenly alone. </p>
<p>We’ve had some cases locally that are just heartbreaking. Hopefully the college fin aid paperwork kicks off some great planning for lots of folks . . .</p>