filing-the-fafsa-2015-2016-edition

Filing the FAFSA 23
States have varying criteria for determining whether or not the student is a resident for purposes of state
financial aid and in-state tuition at public colleges. The state’s flagship public college will usually have
information about residency requirements on its web site. If the student is dependent, the state of legal
residence is usually the state in which the custodial parents live.
Most states require the student (and the student’s parent, if the student is a dependent student) to have
been a state resident for at least 12 consecutive months (in some cases, a full calendar year) to qualify for
in-state tuition. (Alaska requires 24 months and Arkansas requires 6 months. While Tennessee does not
have a specific durational requirement, there must be clear and convincing evidence that the student and
parents became state residents for reasons other than gaining eligibility for in-state tuition.) There are a
variety of exceptions that vary by state. For example, some states allow children of active duty members
of the military to qualify as state residents.
The state of legal residence is also used in the calculation of a student’s financial aid eligibility by
determining the appropriate allowance for state and other taxes paid by that state’s residents.
Permanent Telephone Number
The permanent phone number can be a mobile/cell phone number as long as it is permanent enough that
someone from a college financial aid office can call and reach the student. Don’t use forwarded numbers,
voice mail boxes, or the school’s telephone number.
Email Address
Double-check the email address. Make sure there are no typos. The U.S. Department of Education and the
colleges and universities to which the student is applying for financial aid will send FAFSA reminders,
status updates, and application results to this email address.
Students may wish to create a new, professional-sounding email address for use with college admissions
and financial aid applications. This email address must remain valid throughout the college admission
and financial aid application period.
Student Marital Status
This question asks the student about his or her marital status as of the date the FAFSA is submitted. Note
that this question is asking about the student’s marital status, not the parents’.
If the student answers that he or she is currently married or remarried, the FAFSA will require
information about the student’s spouse. The spouse’s income, tax and asset information must be
combined with the student’s information even if they got married after the end of the tax year. If the
student checks that he or she has never been married, or is separated, divorced, or widowed, the FAFSA