<p>I will be graduating high school in 2010 kai will be applying to colleges this application cycle?When should i beign the process?(I am a US citizen living abroad)</p>
<p>You can start filling out the FAFSA beginning the upcoming January. The earlier you fill it out, the more money available for you.</p>
<p>isnt that a bit late?thanks though</p>
<p>FAFSA isnt available until January…</p>
<p>Stay up til midnight on Dec 31st (or whenever it comes out), and as soon as its up, fill it out and submit it. Have whatever forms you’ll need ready (I forget exactly which ones you need, but you can probably figure that out from the FAFSA website).</p>
<p>No joke. I actually did this :P</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>As a side note, it does take a while to fill it out. I think my dad had to stay home from work for a whole day just to find all the forms and fill out the right info (they ask for REALLY weird information, and you may not immediately know where that info can be found - or that it even exists). </p>
<p>Keep that in mind.</p>
<p>You can start now by creating PIN numbers (one for you, one for a parent) and filling out the fafsa4caster which will save some of your info and give you an estimate of your FAFSA EFC. When FAFSA becomes available, you can convert some of the saved info into an actual FAFSA. It doesn’t take that long to fill out a FAFSA if you’ve organized your info ahead of time and know what it will be looking for. Basically, you and your parents should have a copy of your last (2008) tax return, bank statements, asset values (stocks, other real estate, etc.), and your final paystubs for 2009. You can also read over the FAFSA instructions and resolve any questions/issues you might have ahead of time. Then it’s pretty much just plugging in the numbers and doing corrections later when your 2009 taxes are finalized (which should also be done in early - Feb if possible).</p>
<p>sk8rmom,thanks
In february 2010 should i use our 2008 foreign tax return or the 2009 one(if my father has it by then)?.I also have to change currencies from Euro to $ so i guess that will take time.Anyway i have a lot ahead of me :)</p>
<p>You can use the 2008 one to help estimate figures when you initially complete FAFSA. If you know there are major changes in income then adjust the estimates to reflect this. You will have to use the real 2009 figures from the actual 2009 tax return once it is completed.</p>
<p>Some schools will give you a preliminary financial aid award based on the initial estimated figures entered on FAFSA and adjust it once you indicate that you have filed the tax return and provided figures that are accurate. However both schools we have been involved with did not do any financial aid awards until we updated FAFSA to indicate that the tax return had been filed and had provided them with copies of the tax returns. So it is important to file returns earlier rather than later. My husband always filed taxes on the last possible day. April 15th, until we ran into FAFSA. Now we file earlyish Feb. as that is the earliest we have all the required documentation in hand.</p>
<p>If your Dad is a US citizen (or green card holder) he has to do a US tax return even when living abroad. That will be the one you should use for FAFSA and will presumably be in dollars. If he is not a US citizen or green card holder then you will have to convert currencies from the foreign tax return.</p>
<p>what if he doesnt file us tax return?can i use the foreign and just convert the currencies like the fafsa website says?</p>
<p>If he is not required to file a US return then yes you can do that. If he is required to file a US return (US citizens are required to file a US return wherever in the world they are living. Green Card holders are also required to file a US return) then you will may not be eligible for federal financial aid unless he does file one.</p>