Do SSI benefits for my kids need reporting on FAFSA if ending at age 18?

Yes, you need to report all income from the 2023 tax year on the FAFSA, including your children's SSI benefits. The 2025-2026 FAFSA uses your 2023 income information as a baseline. However, since this is a special circumstance where the income will stop, you should do two things: 1) Report it accurately on the FAFSA as required, and 2) Contact each college's financial aid office to explain this change in circumstances once your children have been accepted.

i had same situatoin with my son last yr. you HAVE to report it on fafsa but after u submit go to each colege financial aid & fill out whats called professional judgment form. bring proof the ssi ends - they gave us a letter we could use

Be careful - SSI and Social Security benefits are different things with different reporting requirements! If they're getting SSI (Supplemental Security Income) that's actually not reported on FAFSA at all according to what I read. But if they're getting Social Security survivors/disability benefits, those ARE counted as untaxed income. Make sure you know which one your kids have before reporting anything!!

My daughter had SSI too and honestly the whole financial aid system is DESIGNED to punish families. We reported everything correctly and still got barely any aid because they count everything against you even when the money is already gone!!! And good luck trying to get through to anyone at Federal Student Aid to explain your situation - I spent HOURS on hold and never got through.

Here's what you need to know about SSI and the FAFSA: 1. Yes, report all 2023 SSI payments on the 2025-2026 FAFSA in the untaxed income section 2. After submitting the FAFSA, you should request a special circumstances review (also called professional judgment) from each school's financial aid office 3. For the special circumstances review, you'll need: - Documentation from Social Security showing the end date of benefits - A written explanation of the change in income - Possibly the school's special circumstances form The good news is that many financial aid offices are very familiar with this situation and have processes to handle it. The key is communicating with them early in the process.

Yes, you should definitely provide an estimate of what your household income will be without the SSI benefits. Financial aid offices typically want to see both the original numbers and what the new financial picture looks like. Create a simple table comparing your 2023 income with your projected income for when they're in college. Include all sources of income and clearly show the SSI benefits as $0 in the projection column.

My nephew went through this exact situation last year with his SSI ending at 18. Make sure you're very clear on the FAFSA forms about which child is receiving which benefits. When my sister did it, they somehow counted the SSI income twice (once for each child) even though only one was receiving it. Took MONTHS to get that fixed and almost cost them a scholarship deadline.

I work at a university financial aid office, and I want to emphasize how important it is to follow up with each school after submitting the FAFSA. The special circumstances review is extremely helpful in situations like yours, but many families don't know to ask for it. One tip: don't wait until you receive the financial aid package to request this review - do it as soon as your children are accepted to each school. This gives the aid office time to adjust their packages before initial offers go out.

In my experience, financial aid offices are actually quite reasonable with clear-cut situations like yours where benefits definitively end. It's not an uphill battle when you have proper documentation and the situation is straightforward. What creates problems is when families don't provide complete documentation or when the circumstances are more nebulous. Just be organized, provide everything they ask for, and follow up politely if you don't hear back within their stated timeframe (usually 2-3 weeks).

I'm a financial aid counselor and want to add one more important point - when you contact Social Security to get documentation about the benefits ending, ask specifically for a "Benefits Verification Letter" that shows the end date. This is different from just a verbal confirmation and carries more weight with financial aid offices. Also, keep copies of everything you submit to each school's financial aid office. Some schools have online portals where you can upload documents, while others prefer email or mail. Having digital copies ready makes the process much smoother when you're dealing with multiple schools.

As someone who went through this exact situation with my daughter two years ago, I want to reassure you that this is more common than you think and financial aid offices handle it regularly. Here's my practical advice: 1) Report the SSI on the FAFSA as required, 2) Immediately after submitting, create a simple one-page summary for each school explaining the situation with bullet points, 3) Include projected family income without SSI benefits, and 4) Attach the Social Security documentation. I found that being proactive and organized made all the difference - we actually ended up with better aid packages after the professional judgment review than we initially expected. The key is not to stress too much about the initial FAFSA numbers since the schools can and will adjust for legitimate changes like this.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet - make sure you understand exactly what type of benefits your twins are receiving before reporting anything. SSI (Supplemental Security Income) and SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) have different reporting requirements and different age cutoffs. SSI typically ends at 18, but SSDI can continue if the child is a student. Also, if your twins have any other disabilities that might qualify them for continued benefits as adults, you may want to explore that with Social Security before assuming the benefits will definitely end. This could affect both your FAFSA reporting strategy and your family's financial planning. The Social Security Administration has specific procedures for students transitioning from childhood to adult benefits that are worth understanding fully.

Just wanted to add one more resource that might help - the Federal Student Aid website has a specific section about special circumstances that includes income changes like disability benefits ending. There's also a worksheet you can download that helps you organize all the information financial aid offices typically need for professional judgment reviews. I used it when my nephew went through this process and it made sure we didn't miss any required documentation. The worksheet is called "Special Circumstances Documentation Checklist" and it's really helpful for keeping track of what you've submitted to each school. Also, don't forget that some schools have their own special circumstances forms in addition to the standard FAFSA, so check each school's financial aid website for any additional requirements.