No, being claimed on a tax return is not a determining factor for dependent status. The FAFSA does not ask if you were claimed by someone as an exemption.
Marital status is "as of today" - the day the FAFSA application is signed and submitted. Marital status cannot be projected. It is often better to wait and file the FAFSA after getting married but you should consult with a financial aid advisor to determine what is best for you.
Biological Parent A parent is a biological or adoptive parent or a person that the state has determined to be a parent (for example, when a state allows another person's name to be listed as a parent on a birth certificate). Biological and adoptive (whether of the opposite or same sex) parents who are unmarried and living together give that as their status in Question 59, and both report their information on the FAFSA.
Stepparent A stepparent is treated like a biological parent if the stepparent has legally adopted the student or if the stepparent is married, as of the date of application, to a student's biological or adoptive parent whose information will be reported on the FAFSA. There are no exceptions. A prenuptial agreement does not exempt the stepparent from providing information required of a parent on the FAFSA.
Divorce of the student's parents If the student's parents are divorced, he should report the information of the parent with whom he lived longer during the 12 months prior to the date he completes the application, regardless of which parent claimed him as an exemption for tax purposes. If the student lived equally with each parent or didn't live with either one, then he should provide the information for the parent from whom he received more financial support or the one from whom he received more support the last calendar year for which it was given.
Note: that it is not typical that a student will live with or receive support from both parents exactly equally. Usually it is determined that the student lived with one of the parents more than half the year or that he received more than half support from one of the parents.
Separation of the student's parents or the student and spouse A couple need not be legally separated to be considered separated - they may deem themselves informally separated when one of the partners has left the household for an indefinite period and the marriage is severed. While a married couple that lives together can't be informally separated, in some states they can be legally separated. If their state allows this, and if they are still living together and are legally separated, then that is their status on the FAFSA. For a dependent student, use the rules for divorce to determine which parent's information to report.
Common-law marriage If a couple lives together and has not been formally married but meets the criteria in their state for a common-law marriage, they should be reported as married on the FAFSA. Arizona does not have common-law marriage. If the state doesn't consider their situation to be a common-law marriage, then they aren't married; a dependent student would follow the rules for divorce to determine which parent's information to report. Check with the appropriate state agency concerning the definition of a common-law marriage.
Students are independent if they are, or were upon reaching the age of majority, emancipated minors (released from control of their parent or guardian) or in legal guardianship, both as adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction in the state of the student's legal residence at the time of the adjudication.
Many students have an agreement between families regarding guardianship. This is not legal guardianship. In some instances grandparents have taken the student because the parents were unable to care for the student. Unless a court has granted legal guardianship the student cannot mark this as yes on the FAFSA.
A student is independent for financial aid purposes if at any time on or after July 1, 2017 (irrespective of whether he is currently homeless or at risk thereof), he is determined to be an unaccompanied homeless youth by a school district McKinney-Vento Act homeless liaison (first year of post-secondary education only) or the director (or designee) of an emergency shelter program funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The director (or designee) of a runaway or homeless youth basic center or transitional living program can determine this as well, plus whether a student is independent because he is an unaccompanied youth who is self-supporting and at risk of being homeless. These authorities make this determination if the student is receiving their programs' services or if, in the case of a school district homeless liaison, the student is in high school and graduated in 2018. (check dates)
This is a complicated question that can only be answered by a Financial Aid Counselor. An appointment should be scheduled for the student to meet with a counselor. In general, only cash support from the significant other would be counted as untaxed income. An example might be if the student's name is on the rental agreement or home, half the payment would be counted as other untaxed income for the student.
On the FAFSA application, it allows a student to send their information to multiple institutions. All you need to do is enter the institution(s) Federal School Code for the schools that you would like to receive the information. If you don't know the institution's school code you can go to "Find School Code" and follow the instructions, or search by the institutions name and state.
EAC's code is 001073, which is the same for all EAC campuses.
If everything is correct, it generally takes 5 to 7 days for the Federal Processor to process a FAFSA. Once EAC receives the FAFSA results, students will receive an e-mail notification informing them to log into their EAC "My Financial Aid" (myFA) account which will provide them with their award information and any additional required documents. This may take up to two weeks from the time the FAFSA was completed.
There are a number of edit checks that could result in the rejection of a FAFSA. Students
should check the status of their FAFSA online. [link: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ ] EAC students can also keep track of their
financial aid application by logging in to myFA .
[link: https://www.eac.edu/NetPartnerStudent/Logon.aspx]
The FAFSA Central Processor randomly selects financial aid applicants to be verified. If your application is selected for verification you will be required to submit federal tax documents and complete a verification worksheet. Verification worksheets are tailored to each student's circumstances.
In order to complete the correct worksheet, EAC students must log into their "My Financial Aid" account [link: https://www.eac.edu/NetPartnerStudent/Logon.aspx]. To view what other documents may be needed students can simply click on the 'documents' tab.
If you have forgotten your username or password, don't worry. On the FAFSA log-in page, you'll find links that give you the option of retrieving your username or password through your verified e-mail address or by successfully answering your challenge questions. If all else fails you can call: 1-800-433-3243 for assistance. [link: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/]
Yes, but you can choose the FAFSA renewal process which takes much less time to complete. The web site is: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/.
View this simple tutorial for the FAFSA on the web. It is advised that all students watch the tutorial before
completing the FAFSA online.
[link: http://www.finaid.ucsb.edu/FAFSASimplification/index.html] (do we still want to use this tutorial?)
The EFC stands for "Expected Family Contribution." The EFC is a result of the FAFSA information submitted to the Federal Processor. There are a number of EFC formulas established by the U.S. Congress that determine a family's financial contribution. The EFC is not calculated by the Financial Aid Office. Your Pell Grant award is determined by your EFC. Your EFC can range from 0-99,999 (0= provides the largest Pell Grant).
The EFC has two purposes. The first is to determine eligibility for a Pell Grant. In 2021-2022 a student's EFC that exceeded 5712 is ineligible for any Pell Grant. The second purpose is to determine if the student is eligible for Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Federal Work Study (FWS), LEAP, need based scholarships, etc. The formula is the student's cost of attendance (COA) budget minus Expected Family Contribution (EFC) equals need (COA-EFC=Need). Update exceeded dollar amount
EAC has created a cost calculator on your Gila Hank portal. This cost calculator will give you current information regarding tuition, fees, and board and room expenses. You can then compare your cost with the scholarship and grant aid you have been awarded to determine if you can afford to attend EAC. [link: https://eac.edu/Student_Services/Financial_Aid/Net_Price/npcalc2015.htm] update link
Yes, in order to receive financial aid a student must be accepted as a regular student at EAC and declare a degree program. Students will only be paid for the courses required to complete their declared degree.
When registering, follow the degree requirements outlined in the EAC catalog from the academic year catalog you select when choosing that program of study. You
may not change your major after the published census date for a semester, if you have
already received your Pell Grant for that semester, in order to qualify for more Pell
Grant.
[link: https://eac.edu/Academics/Catalogs/PDF/Catalog_All.pdf]
The census date is the point in a semester after which Pell Grants will no longer be adjusted up or down based on changes in enrollment. Currently, EAC has established the census date as the "last day to withdraw without record and receive a refund" as published in the academic calendar.
Yes, in general a student must maintain a 2.0 cumulative grade point average and complete
67% of the course work attempted. In addition, a student is allowed 150% time frame
to complete a degree program which is generally 96 credit hours for associate's degrees.
It is important to know the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy in its entirety.
[link: Current Students > SAP page]
Sometimes: if a student withdraws from a class during add/drop period the Pell Grant will be adjusted based on the current enrollment. So if a student were paid at full time and dropped a class during add/drop period which brought their enrollment to half time; the student would be required to repay half of their Pell Grant.
After add/drop period or the census date, if a student withdraws with record from one or more classes but not all courses, no repayment is required. However, the student might not comply with Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards which could result in a warning or suspension status for future financial aid.
If a student withdraws from all courses the financial aid office will calculate what
is called a Return to Title IV Funds and the student may be required to repay some
of the financial aid received. You may view more information on the Return to Title IV calculation.
[link: Current Students > Financial > Fed Aid Return Policy page]
The college requires that tuition and fees be paid on or before July 24th fall semester and December 8th for spring semester. After the due date, if the student has not paid, signed up for a payment plan, received a scholarship that covers all charges or have completed their financial aid application; registration will be cancelled. Those who have paid or signed up for a payment plan or have a scholarship and/or financial aid that covers all charges, will not have their registration cancelled. Check tuition dates
For students who have completed their financial aid application or been awarded a scholarship, tuition and fees will be paid up to 10 days prior to the first day of class.
If after tuition, fees, and if on campus, board and room are paid, and a credit balance remains, it will be paid to the student through a check by EAC if requested and if not by EAC check then through BankMobile.
For more information visit the BankMobile website or call the EAC Fiscal Control Office at (928) 428-8221. [link: http://bankmobiledisbursements.com/refundchoices/]
For more information about the Bank Mobile payment card visit eacdebitcard.com or call the EAC Fiscal Control Office at (928) 428-8221.
[link: new payment page]
