FAFSA Simplification

Students and families will see a different measure of their ability to pay for college and experience a change in the methodology used to determine aid. The benefits of FAFSA simplification include:

• A more streamlined application process
• Expanded eligibility for federal student aid
• Expanded eligibility for the Federal Pell Grant
• Reduced barriers for certain student populations
• A better user experience for the FAFSA form
• Enhanced data sharing with IRS to simplify the applicant's experience

• The number of questions will be reduced and the application will maximize the use of previously collected data.
• Students will be able to list up to 20 schools on their FAFSA via the online application.
• The Student Aid Index (SAI) will replace the Expected Family Contribution (EFC).
• The Cost of Attendance (COA) will be the starting point for calculating the SAI. COA includes direct costs (charges for which the university bills you directly) and estimated indirect costs (living expenses) to fund educational expenses for a year.
• Foster, homeless, and unaccompanied youth – as well as applicants who cannot provide parental information – will be able to complete the form with a provisional independent student determination and receive a calculated SAI.
• Anyone asked to provide information on the aid application – student, spouse, student's parent(s), and/or stepparents(s) – is called a "contributor" to the application.
• Students, spouses, parents, and stepparents (contributors) will now need to provide their consent to provide their Federal Tax Information (FTI) in the new Consent to Retrieve and Disclose Federal Tax Information section of the FAFSA for federal student aid eligibility.
  • Direct data-sharing with the IRS will replace what is currently known as the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT).
  • If any contributor to the FAFSA form does not provide consent, submission of the form will still be allowed. However, a Student Aid Index (SAI) will not be calculated.
• The Custodial Parent on your FAFSA will be the parent(s) who provided you with more financial support, instead of the parent(s) with whom you lived more during the past 12 months.
• There will be two-step verification and all FAFSA contributors must have an FSA ID to log into the online form. There will be a new process to get an FSA ID for parents and spouses without a Social Security number.
• Applicants will be asked to report their sex, race, and ethnicity on the FAFSA itself, but students will be offered a choice of "Prefer Not to Answer." Schools and state agencies won't see responses to these questions on the FAFSA.

Students and families will see a different measure of their ability to pay for college, and they will experience a change in the methodology used to determine aid.

• The formula for calculating the Student Aid Index (SAI) is: Cost of Attendance (COA) – Student Aid Index (SAI) = financial need.
• The new need-analysis formula does the following:
  • Removes the number of family members in college from the calculation
  • Allows a minimum SAI of -$1,500
  • Implements separate eligibility determination criteria for Federal Pell Grants based on federal poverty levels and family size
• Child support received will be included in assets and not as untaxed income.
• Families who own a small business/farm that also serves as a primary residence will now have assets of that business/farm considered in their need-analysis calculation.

Contributor

A contributor is any person who is asked to provide information on the FAFSA – for example, a student, student's spouse, biological or adoptive parent(s), and stepparent(s).

Consent

Each contributor will now need to provide their consent to their Federal Tax Information (FTI) being included in the FAFSA, even if they did not file a US tax return.

SAI

Student Index Aid (SAI) replaces the Expected Family Contribution (EFC).

FTI

Federal Tax Information (FTI) is transferred directly from the IRS.

A contributor is anyone who is asked to provide information on an applicant's FAFSA, including the following:

• The student
• The student's spouse (if applicable)
• A biological or adoptive parent
• The spouse of a remarried parent who is on the FAFSA (the stepparent)

The new FAFSA is student-driven, meaning the student's answers in their section will determine who will be a contributor (in addition to the student). Students will need the contributor's name, date of birth, Social Security Number (SSN), and email address to invite them to complete the required portion of the FAFSA. Contributors will need to provide personal and financial information on their section of the FAFSA.

All contributors are required to have an FSA ID and to provide consent to have their Federal Tax Information (FTI) transferred from the IRS, have their tax data used to determine a student's eligibility for federal student aid, and allow the US Department of Education (ED) to share their tax information with institutions and state higher education agencies for the administration of Title IV aid. Consent is provided once for the award year and cannot be revoked in that award year. This consent is necessary even if the contributor does not have an SSN, did not file taxes, or filed taxes in another country.

If a dependent student's parents are unmarried and living together, both parents will be contributors, have separate FSA IDs, and provide consent. Dependent students whose parents filed their US income tax return as Married Filing Jointly only require one parent contributor to complete the FAFSA. If the student's parents filed separately, both parents will be considered contributors and therefore need separate FSA IDs, and both must provide consent.

If an independent student is married and filed separately, both individuals are contributors, must have FSA IDs, and must provide consent for the student to be eligible for Title IV aid.