<p>My mother is filling out my CSS profile right now and for the questions they ask things like what are the dividends for 2008, line 34b, my mother has her income tax returns but her CPA didn't do it in a format where each line is shown, like "line 9a". She spent $350 getting these income tax returns and she's very angry right now. Does anyone have any information on how to find the answer to the questions asked on the profile without have the line numbers and such written out for you on the income tax return? PLEASE HELP I'm actually a day past the priority deadline for one of my schools so I really need to get this done today. My mother said she could've gone to the post office to get this info? My mother has file the tax form 1040 for Texas. If anyone can post a site with a sample income tax return that shows where each line is or something like that? ANY HELP would be greatly appreciated!!!! Again my mother's income tax returns does not show lines!</p>
<p>The 1040 is a federal tax form not a state one. Here is a link to a 2008 1040 pdf </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040.pdf[/url]”>http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040.pdf</a></p>
<p>Her CPA should have given her a copy of her actual return.</p>
<p>Yes, her CPA gave her a tax form that looks like this as an example:</p>
<p>gross income : $100,000</p>
<p>as you can see it’s just a bunch of numbers and words that don’t make a lot of sense for someone who’s filling out a CSS profile. Does anyone know how to fill out a question like this:
“Enter the amount of dividend income your parents earned in 2008 as reported on their 2008 IRS Form 1040, line 9a.” </p>
<p>when the income tax returns you have in front of you don’t show lines???</p>
<p>I’m confused…she should have a copy of the return. Dividends would be line 9a.</p>
<p>She needs to ask her CPA for a copy of her actual return. Or you can see if you can figure it out with the form on the link I posted. But there is no reason the CPA cannot proide a return. All taxes have to be filed using the appropriate form so he just needs to print her a copy of it. She should keep copies of everything in her own files anyway.</p>
<p>She has filled out the forms to the best of her ability,and I think she used the 2008 form I printed out from swimcats link to the best of her understanding, but I’m skeptical about whether I should send it or not b/c I don’t think she did it correctly. It looks to me like way too much to figure out. Right know it’s 6:00 p.m., is it possible for her to get a copy of her actual return right now? Would she have to go to her CPA in person or can she ask them to e-mail it? I’m only 17 so I have no idea how long/easy this is. If she can go get it tomorrow should I just wait another day to send the FAFSA and CSS profile so that information will be accurate? I know that if I send FAFSA now I can always correct it but I don’t know about the CSS profile.
Also, my parents chose not to list their 401K or anything on the CSS profile, they said it didn’t matter if they put it. However they did check the yes box, for receiving social security upon retirement. Is this alright or should I beg them to put a number in. (My father said that most of their 401k is gone in the first place b/c of the recession.)</p>
<p>I just asked her about perhaps asking her CPA for a return form and she got really angry and said that she filled out everything correctly. So I guess I’m turning in FAFSA and CSS today. Anyone know if I can correct info for the CSS profile? Also, for FAFSA does anyone find corrections a big hassle? I just have a really bad feeling that my mother didn’t fill the web work sheets correctly and that the information I put in will be wrong.</p>
<p>Your parents may have to eventually send in a copies of their tax returns and W2s to back up their FAFSA data. A few of my son’s schools required copies of the tax returns and W2s right up front, as part of the financial aid application process, as opposed to waiting to see if prospective students are selected for verification. In other words, the schools already have my tax returns and W2s at their disposal.</p>
<p>If you’ve applied to any schools that require your parents’ tax returns and W2s right up front, then your schools WILL see them in addition to your FAFSA. I mention this because if your parents had pre-tax money withheld from their paychecks for deposit into 401k plans, then it will be evident on their W2s, and the schools will see the inconsistencies on their FAFSA data. It doesn’t matter to them whether the money your parents had withheld was lost in the recession or not. What they wanted to know, as I recall, is whether you had any money withheld for that purpose and how much.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t be dishonest or misleading. Even if your schools don’t require the returns and W2s right up front, you may be selected for verification, at which point you’d have to submit them.</p>
<p>My father says that his income tax returns don’t show how much money he got witheld from his paycheck for his 401k. Does anyone know if I can correct the CSS profile and how much of a hassle it is??? For fafsa as well. Also, to simplelife I don’t know what you mean when you say right up front b/c I’m submitting all these things online, and I don’t see how tax returns and W2s could be sent along with that. Do you mean by mail? Also the reason I think my mother filled out the CSS wrong is b/c of things like this:
For earned income credit line 64a my mother put: ZERO
For “enter the 2008 wages, salaries, and tips your parents reported on their 2008 IRS form 1040, line 7”, “enter your parent’s 2008 total adjustments to income claimed on their 2008 IRS form 1040, line 36”, and “enter your parent’s 2008 adjusted gross income, line 37” she put the exact SAME AMOUNT for all three!
I really don’t know a thing about income taxes or anything but these numbers just don’t seem right to me, and I know if I ask my mother about it I’ll get screamed at for another 2 hours. I’m sorry for all the questions, at the very least can anyone tell me if they think that the information my mother put is correct???</p>
<p>Seriously, should I just forget about how I’ve missed the priority deadline and tell my mother to go to her CPA tomorrow to ask for a tax form with the lines and all that? Rather than send it in today with info that’s probably incorrect? Also, what exactly is the form that goes line by line called? Is it called an actual return? Shouldn’t this actual return have been sent to my mother or would she have had to request it? (I know it’s too late now, I’m just wondering.)</p>
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<p>It’s some kind of 1040…either a 1040EZ, 1040A, or just a plain 1040.</p>
<p>CORRECTIONS: Many people do CSS Profile estimates to meet early deadlines, and then that form has to be corrected. It is corrected after submission usually by printing it out and writing in the corrections. The school or schools which accept you and work on a financial aid package will tell you what to do.</p>
<p>The FAFSA is dead easy to correct ONLINE, as long as you DO NOT FORGET YOUR PIN! You just sign on to the corrections page and correct it. It can be corrected 2-4 times at least–there will be a list of versions and schools can figure it out.</p>
<p>IMPORTANT–IMO you should submit those forms NOW, tonight, if you are close to or missing deadlines. The computer will show the date you submitted it, and you need to show that it was submitted initially on this date, even if you correct it later.</p>
<p>PS On Corrections: The FAFSA LOCKS for several days after it is submitted and while it is being processed. So get the thing submitted, signed by both you and one of your parents (hopefully with your PIN, which you can apply for to sign it electronically), and then just chill for 2-3 days until you get an email that your SAR is ready to look at and print out. You can’t make the corrections while it is locked, but you can do them later. It needs to be re-signed by both student and parent, each time it is changed (not for adding more schools though I think).</p>
<p>This is a very stressful process, so try to be mellow in your family. Parents are very stressed by this as well.</p>
<p>Your parents need to get a REAL copy of their 1040 returns. There is no excuse for a CPA not to give this to his client. I can tell you that it absolutely will be required for verification. Please tell your parents to call 1-800-829-1040 to request a tax transcript directly from the IRS if it has already been filed. It can be faxed.</p>
<p>Your dad’s W2 shows what was withheld for 401k.</p>
<p>Use estimates now, and update later.</p>
<p>I’m having so much trouble with FAFSA and CSS, I really don’t think I’ll be able to send either by tonight. Ithaca’s priority deadline was Feb. 1 and today’s the 3rd, which means if I send it in tomorrow it will be 2 days late. Is 2-3 days late bad? How much does it affect your package? I really want to do what radiomom says and submit it tonight, but I just don’t know how to answer the questions. I finally figured out that what my parent’s got is what’s called a transcript of taxes and not the actual 1040 return form? Someone please tell me whether it’s a transript or return I need to fill out FAFSA and CSS. Also, my dad said that he could just go to our CPA tomorrow and get a return (what I’m assuming is the thing that goes line by line, correct me if I’m wrong) but is it really that easy? I’ve been looking on the web which says things like you have to file for one from the IRS and then it takes 5-7 business days to get. Radiomom says that I can correct CSS by mailing the corrections but if my first one is filled with completely bad/wild guess answers isn’t it pointless? As for FAFSA another reason why it’s so hard for me to fill out besides not having the lines is that it keeps saying I have an error with the amount of my parent’s income tax (your parents payed an unusually high amt of taxes), so now I know what my mother wrote down must be wrong. The AIG is about $105,000 and for income tax she put $79,000.</p>
<p>Your dad is right, he can get it from the CPA. The tax form is what you file with the IRS - not something they send to you. Sounds to me like you should wait a day and get the return and do this properly.</p>
<p>to kelsmom, I saw your post after I submitted my last reply, how and where to will it be faxed? My printer has a label for faxing, but it’s never been used before, or will it be faxed to my parent’s CPA?
Also I’ve decided to atleast send the FAFSA tonight, most of the boxes I put zeroes in but I filled out stuff like the AIG, how much each parent earned, their total current balance of cash and savings, and two things for untaxed income. I decided to change my parents’ income tax from 79,000 to $13,000. For an AIG of $105,000 does $13,000 in income tax sound about right??? That’s just about my only real concern and then I’m sending the FAFSA.
Also on Ithaca’s website I reread and it said:The priority deadline to apply for need-based financial aid for 2009-2010 is 2/1/09. The CSS Profile application is accepted, but not required. Does that mean the CSS deadline isn’t FEB. 1 or what???</p>
<p>You posted that your dad can get the 1040 from the CPA - that is the ideal solution, because you can put the correct info in by line. The tax transcript is for IF the CPA won’t release the 1040 (which he absolutely should do). Don’t worry about that if the 1040 is available.</p>
<p>If Ithaca doesn’t “require” the Profile, don’t bother spending the money to send it there. If they’ll accept FAFSA only, there is no reason to pay for the other.</p>
<p>As for deadlines … you can’t change the past. Just get things taken care of as quickly as you can & relax.</p>
<p>Yes, $13000 is a decent guess on taxes. Just realize that your award may change due to a change in info (AGI & taxes).</p>
<p>I just submitted the FAFSA and my family’s EFC is about $22,000. I’m not surprised actually, but is the EFC a good indicator of how much your family will wind up paying for college? Because I know my parents won’t be able to pay THAT much. I decided not to send CSS profile b/c from what I’ve seen of the web work sheet my mother filled out it’s way more in depth than FAFSA and I think it would be better to wait and see if my dad can get the tax return tomorrow so I can fill in the correct information. Also, if I have to print and mail corrections for CSS, I really don’t see the harm in waiting a day and sending correct info, especially since now I know (thanks to kelsmom 
) that if a school doesn’t require a CSS profile it’s not a big deal, so I don’t feel too much pressure anymore. I think tonight will be the first night I’ve had more than 3 hours of sleep in about 2 weeks! (I’m one of those people who can stare into nothingness for hours without getting sleepy, especially when stressed, which sucks.)</p>
<p>Hi again, hmf123.
It sounds like you’ve got things figured out and all taken care of now.
What I meant by “right up front” in my earlier post is this –
At least 2, maybe 3, of my son’s schools required him to submit a copy of my tax returns and a copy of my W2 (that’s your income statement, of sorts, from your employer, used to fill out your income taxes) right away, directly to the school, as part of that school’s financial aid application process. Other schools required him to simply fill out the FAFSA and NOT submit those other supporting documents unless/until selected to participate in the verification process. So, if any of your schools require these documents (your dad’s W2, for instance), whether it’s right away, as part of that school’s application process for financial aid, or whether it’s later as part of the FAFSA verification process, those schools will see your dad’s W2, which will show the amount withheld from his takehome pay for contribution to his 401k. That’s all I meant – the fact that some schools require you to send the supporting documents in right away as part of the process (yes, in the mail, in addition to the FAFSA that you’re doing on line).</p>