Do Excelsior Scholarships follow FAFSA rules for divorced parents? (NY specific)

I went through this exact headache last year with my son applying to SUNY schools! For Excelsior, they basically follow the same guidelines as FAFSA for divorced parents. So whichever parent you used for the FAFSA (the one providing more than 50% support) is the same one whose income counts for Excelsior eligibility. But make sure your divorce decree is final and you have documentation about custody/support arrangements because they sometimes request it during verification. The income cap for Excelsior is going up to $135,000 for 2025-2026 applications, so that gives more families some wiggle room.

my daughter got denied for excelsior even tho i was the only one on fafsa. they wanted BOTH parents income for some reason. fight it if that happens!!!!

I just went through this whole process. On paper Excelsior follows FAFSA rules BUT in practice they sometimes ask for extra documentation. Make sure you have: 1) Copy of divorce decree 2) Documentation showing you provide >50% support 3) Tax returns showing child as your dependent. Their website is useless for this specific situation. Good luck!

Quick heads up - the Excelsior app isn't open yet for 2025-26. Usually opens in early spring. Also remember this only covers TUITION, not room/board/fees which can be 2x tuition cost. Wish someone had told me that before we got excited about "free college" 🙄

Financial aid counselor here. Just to clarify some confusion in this thread: Excelsior does follow FAFSA guidelines for divorced parents, but their verification process is more thorough than federal aid. For 2025-2026, if you're providing more than 50% financial support AND your child lived with you more than half the year, only your income counts. But be prepared for intense verification - they often request court documents, support payment records, and occasionally tax transcripts from both parents regardless. The Excelsior income cap is now $135,000 but remember it's a "last dollar" program applied after other grants, which affects how much you actually receive.

Anyone here try using Claimyr to actually get through to someone at NYS Higher Education? I was stuck on hold for HOURS trying to get questions answered about my daughter's Excelsior application and verification. Found this service at claimyr.com that got me through to an actual human in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Saved me so much frustration!

IMPORTANT: Make sure you understand the Excelsior residency requirements too! Your kid has to live and work in NY after graduation for the same number of years they received the scholarship, otherwise it converts to loans. A lot of families miss this detail and get shocked later. For divorced parent situations, custody agreements can sometimes affect how they determine state residency too.

One other tip - if you get stuck in the verification process, contact your student's college financial aid office directly. They often have direct channels to HESC and can help push things along. Saved us weeks of waiting last year. Also, apply for TAP separately! Some people think Excelsior automatically enrolls you in TAP but it doesn't.

Just want to add my experience as another divorced parent who went through this process. My daughter received Excelsior for 2024-2025 and they only used my income (I'm the custodial parent providing majority support). The key things that helped: 1) Make sure your FAFSA is completely accurate about which parent provides support, 2) Have your divorce decree ready that shows custody arrangements, 3) Keep records of any child support payments (or lack thereof). The verification process was lengthy but straightforward once I had all the right paperwork. Also agree with previous comments about contacting the college financial aid office if you get stuck - they were much more helpful than calling HESC directly. Good luck with your daughter's applications!

As someone who's been helping families navigate NY state aid for years, I'd recommend getting your documentation together now even though the 2025-26 Excelsior application isn't open yet. Since you're the custodial parent providing majority support, you should be fine following the same parent rules as FAFSA. Just a heads up - while everyone's focusing on the income requirements, don't forget that Excelsior also has academic requirements (maintain 2.0 GPA and complete 30 credits per year). Also, if your daughter is considering any SUNY schools, have her apply early because some programs fill up fast and Excelsior students get priority registration at participating schools. The combination of early prep and having all your divorce/custody docs ready will put you way ahead of most applicants!

I'm in a similar situation as a newly divorced parent trying to figure out all the financial aid requirements for my son who'll be starting college in fall 2025. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been so helpful! I'm the custodial parent providing over 50% support, and my ex's income would definitely put us over the Excelsior threshold if they counted both parents. It sounds like as long as I have all the documentation ready (divorce decree, custody arrangements, support records) and follow the same parent rules as FAFSA, we should be okay. I'm definitely going to start gathering all those documents now rather than waiting. Has anyone had experience with how Excelsior handles situations where the divorce was finalized very recently? Our divorce was just finalized in December 2024, so I'm wondering if that might trigger additional scrutiny during their verification process.

As a divorced parent who successfully navigated this process two years ago, I can confirm that Excelsior does follow FAFSA rules for determining which parent's income counts. Since you're providing more than 50% of your daughter's financial support, only your income should be considered for the $135,000 cap. However, I'd strongly recommend having ALL your documentation ready before you even start the application - divorce decree, custody agreements, tax returns showing your daughter as your dependent, and any child support records. The verification process can be intense, especially for divorced families, and having everything organized upfront saved me weeks of back-and-forth. Also, don't forget to apply for TAP separately and make sure your daughter understands the post-graduation NY residency requirement. The whole process took about 3-4 months from application to final approval for us, but it was worth it!

I'm a divorced parent who went through this exact process last year with my son, and I can share what worked for us. Excelsior does follow the same parent rules as FAFSA - since you provide more than 50% support, only your income counts toward the $135,000 threshold. However, their verification process can be more thorough than federal aid. I recommend having these documents ready: 1) Final divorce decree showing custody arrangements, 2) Tax returns for the past 2 years showing your daughter as your dependent, 3) Documentation of child support payments (or lack thereof), 4) Bank statements or other proof showing you provide majority financial support. We submitted most documents upfront with the application rather than waiting for verification requests, which seemed to speed things up. The whole process took about 3 months for us. Also remember that even though the 2025-26 application isn't open yet, getting organized now will put you way ahead when it does open in the spring. Good luck!

Just wanted to add my perspective as someone who went through this process recently! I'm a divorced parent and my daughter received Excelsior for the 2024-25 academic year. Like everyone else has confirmed, they do follow FAFSA rules - only my income counted since I'm the custodial parent providing majority support. The key thing that helped me was creating a dedicated folder with all divorce-related documents organized by category. Beyond what others have mentioned, I also included copies of our joint tax returns from before the divorce (to show the income split timeline) and a letter from my attorney summarizing the financial arrangements. The verification process was definitely thorough, but having everything ready made it much smoother. One tip I haven't seen mentioned: if you have any email communications with your ex about financial support (or lack thereof), keep those too - they sometimes help establish the support pattern. The whole process was stressful but absolutely worth it for the tuition coverage!

Just wanted to jump in as another divorced parent who successfully got Excelsior for my daughter this past year! All the advice here is spot-on - they definitely follow FAFSA rules so only your income will count since you're the custodial parent providing majority support. I'd add one thing that really helped us: when organizing your documents, create a simple one-page summary sheet listing what each document proves (custody, support percentages, etc.). The verification reviewers seemed to appreciate having that roadmap, and it helped ensure I didn't miss anything important. Also, start tracking your daughter's expenses now if you aren't already - things like medical bills, school fees, clothing, etc. Having those records made it crystal clear that I was providing well over 50% support. The whole process was definitely worth it, and with the income cap now at $135,000, more families can qualify. You've got this!