filing-the-fafsa-2015-2016-edition

Filing the FAFSA 70
Parents’ Tax Return Filing Status
In this question, the parents are asked to provide information about their tax filing status for 2014:
• If the parents have completed a 2014 federal income tax return, the parents should select “Already
completed”
• If they have not as yet filed their federal income tax returns, but plan to file a 2014 federal income
tax return, they should select “Will file”
• If they have not and will not file a 2014 federal income tax return and are not required to do so,
they should select “Not going to file”
If a student or parent selects “Will file” and supplies an email address on the FAFSA, the U.S. Department
of Education will send a reminder to update the FAFSA after their federal income tax returns have been
filed.
If a student or parent selects “Not going to file” but their income is above the filing threshold, their
FAFSA will be selected for verification. Failure to file required federal income tax returns may affect the
student’s ability to receive federal student aid. Such a discrepancy represents conflicting information that
must be resolved before the college financial aid administrator may disburse federal student aid. The
income threshold for filing a federal income tax return is generally the sum of the standard deduction and
the minimum number of exemptions that can be claimed by the taxpayer (e.g., one exemption for single
filers and two exemptions for married filing jointly). The current income thresholds appear in Table 1-1 in
Chapter 1 of IRS Publication 17.
(There is an exception to the timely filing requirements for active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces
serving in a combat zone. Also, taxpayers who file IRS Form 4868 to get an automatic 6-month extension
must provide the college with a copy of their W-2 forms and must either use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool
or provide a tax transcript after their federal income tax returns are filed.)
The parents are also asked about their tax filing status:
• Single
• Head of household
• Married – filed joint return
• Married – filed separate return
• Qualifying widow(er)
• Don’t know