Hey Freya! I'm a sophomore who went through this exact same stress last year with about $5,400 in my HYSA from working at a restaurant. After reading through all these incredibly helpful responses, I can tell you that everyone's advice is spot on - and honestly, your situation probably isn't as scary as it feels right now! Yes, you absolutely need to report your HYSA (the verification stories alone should convince you that hiding it isn't worth the risk). But here's what I wish someone had told me when I was panicking about this: with the Student Asset Protection Allowance potentially shielding $3-4k of your savings, you're realistically looking at maybe a $400-800 increase to your SAI, not the full 20% of your total savings. What really changed my perspective was realizing that having that emergency fund has actually SAVED me money this year. When my textbooks cost way more than expected and my phone broke during finals week, I could handle it without taking on high-interest debt. That financial cushion has probably saved me more than the slight aid reduction cost me. Plus, when I met with my financial aid office after getting my initial package, they were genuinely impressed that I had managed to save so much while working. It helped me get a great work-study position and they pointed me toward some merit scholarships I hadn't even considered. You worked incredibly hard for that money and it demonstrates exactly the kind of financial responsibility colleges want to see! Report everything honestly, see what your aid package looks like, and then advocate for yourself. You've got this! 🌟

Hey Freya! I'm also a student dealing with this exact situation - I have about $5,900 saved up from my summer job at a retail store and was having the same anxiety about reporting it on my FAFSA. After reading through this entire thread (which has been SO incredibly helpful!), I'm feeling much more confident about the whole process. The consistent advice from everyone - especially the actual financial aid counselor who commented - is really reassuring. It's clear that we absolutely need to report our HYSA honestly, but the real impact probably won't be as dramatic as we're imagining. What really resonated with me is how many people emphasized that we should be PROUD of saving this money! It shows work ethic and financial responsibility, which are exactly the qualities we want to demonstrate. And hearing from so many students about how their emergency funds actually saved them money in the long run by avoiding high-interest loans has completely shifted my perspective. I'm definitely going to report everything honestly, submit my FAFSA, and then have a proactive conversation with my financial aid office about additional opportunities. It sounds like there might be merit scholarships, work-study positions, and institutional aid beyond just federal aid that could help offset any reduction. Thanks for asking this question and creating such an amazing discussion! This community is incredible for helping navigate all this financial aid stuff. We're both being responsible by saving for college and that's something to celebrate! 💪

To clarify my earlier response about signature order: 1. Student creates the FAFSA account 2. Student completes their portion of the application 3. Student adds parent as a contributor 4. Student signs their portion 5. Parent completes their information and signs 6. FAFSA is officially submitted after all required signatures The application isn't actually submitted until ALL required signatures are collected. The student signing first just establishes the proper workflow and prevents technical issues.

I'm so glad you got it figured out! I went through this same confusion with my twins last year. One thing I'd add for anyone else reading this - make sure you and your daughter are both using the same browser and have cleared your cache before starting. We had issues where the parent contributor invitation wasn't showing up properly because of browser conflicts. Also, keep your FSA ID login info handy because you'll need it multiple times during the process. The whole redesigned FAFSA is definitely more complicated than it used to be, but once you get the signature order right, it does work smoothly.

As someone who just went through this process last year, I can confirm it's definitely once per academic year! But here's something I wish someone had told me earlier - even though you only fill out the FAFSA once per year, you should still check your financial aid account regularly throughout the year. Sometimes schools will ask for additional documentation or there might be changes to your aid package that you need to accept or decline by certain deadlines. Also, if you're planning to live on campus, make sure you understand when housing deposits are due - sometimes those deadlines come before your final aid package is ready, so you might need to pay out of pocket initially and get reimbursed later. Good luck with your first year of college!

This thread has been so helpful! I'm a current college junior and just wanted to add one more tip for incoming freshmen - set up your StudentAid.gov account early and write down your FSA ID info somewhere secure! I've helped several friends who forgot their login info and had to go through the whole identity verification process again, which can take days. Also, if you're eligible for work-study as part of your aid package, start looking for work-study jobs early in the semester because the good ones (library, campus tour guide, etc.) fill up fast. The work-study money isn't automatically deposited like grants - you actually have to work those hours to earn it throughout the semester.

As a newcomer to this whole FAFSA process, this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I was about to make the same mistake so many others mentioned - just using first and last name to keep things "simple." But after reading all these real experiences, especially the horror stories about 6-week delays and endless phone calls, I'm definitely going to include my middle name exactly as it appears on my Social Security card. It's amazing how such a small detail can cause such big problems later on. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences, particularly @Natasha Orlova for the insider perspective from working in financial aid - that really drove the point home! This community is such a great resource for people navigating this confusing process for the first time.

As someone completely new to the FAFSA process, this thread has been a huge eye-opener! I had no clue that name matching was this critical and was planning to just use my first and last name since that's what I do on most forms. But after reading all these experiences - especially the stories about weeks-long verification delays and @Natasha Orlova's professional insight - I'm convinced that matching my Social Security card exactly is the way to go. It's honestly a bit scary how one small oversight could potentially mess up your entire financial aid timeline when you're already stressed about college decisions and deadlines. Thank you to everyone who shared their real experiences here, both good and bad - this is exactly the kind of practical advice that newcomers like me desperately need!

Roth IRA distributions can be tricky on the FAFSA. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, they're using your 2023 tax information, so that $7,000 distribution will be relevant. The good news is that if you only withdrew your original contributions (not earnings) from your Roth IRA, it won't count as income on the FAFSA. The FAFSA follows tax rules here - qualified Roth IRA distributions aren't taxable income. However, if any portion was earnings and wasn't a qualified distribution, that part would have been reported as income on your 2023 tax return and would therefore be included in your AGI on the FAFSA. The FAFSA doesn't have a specific line for Roth IRA distributions - they're captured through your AGI and other income questions. If your distribution was properly reported on your taxes, it should automatically be accounted for correctly when you enter your tax information. Just make sure you don't count this distribution twice by also reporting it separately as untaxed income, which is a common mistake.

Great explanation from Mei-Ling! Just to add a bit more clarity - since you mentioned this was a $7,000 Roth distribution in 2023, you'll want to check your 2023 Form 1099-R that you should have received from your IRA custodian. This form will show the distribution amount and importantly, the distribution code in box 7. If the code is "J" or "T", it typically means it was a qualified distribution of contributions only, which won't affect your FAFSA. But if you see other codes, some portion might have been taxable. Also, remember that while the distribution itself may not count as income for FAFSA purposes, any remaining balance in your Roth IRA is still considered a parent asset on the FAFSA and will be assessed at the 5.64% rate in the Expected Family Contribution calculation. If you're unsure about how your specific distribution was treated tax-wise, it might be worth consulting with a tax professional, especially since FAFSA accuracy is so important for financial aid eligibility.