Do disability payments count as income on FAFSA? Confused about SSI reporting

This is an important distinction! Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) IS reported on the FAFSA, but Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is NOT reported. SSDI counts as untaxed income in Question 44i on the FAFSA, while SSI is considered a means-tested benefit program and is excluded from FAFSA calculations. Make sure you know which type of disability benefit you're receiving.

To add to what was already mentioned, when reporting SSDI as untaxed income on the FAFSA, you'll want to enter the ANNUAL amount (your monthly payment × 12). For $1,450/month, that would be $17,400 for the year. The system will use this figure in calculating your son's Student Aid Index (SAI), which determines aid eligibility. And yes, it can potentially affect Pell Grant eligibility since it's counted as income.

If i'm not being to nosey, are you the contributing parent for the fafsa? because only the income of the parent who provides more financial support is counted if parents are divorced/separated. thats how my son qualified for way more aid, we used his moms income not mine.

My son faced the same issue last year with my disability payments. After submitting the FAFSA, I recommend immediately contacting the financial aid office at each school he's applying to and explaining your specific situation. They have something called "professional judgment" where they can adjust the SAI calculation if they feel your circumstances warrant it. Disability income often qualifies because it's meant to offset additional costs that non-disabled people don't have.

just so u know u should ALWAYS contact fsa directly if ur confused about the form. i tried to figure out disablity stuff on my own for my nephew's application & messed it up, cost him like $3k in grants bc i put stuff in wrong categories. dont make my mistake lol

I had the same frustration trying to reach someone at Federal Student Aid about disability income reporting. I eventually used a service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 18 minutes instead of hours on hold. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ and their website is claimyr.com. Definitely worth it for getting clarification directly from FSA about exactly how to report disability income correctly.

Another important thing to know is that after you submit the FAFSA, you might get selected for verification, especially when reporting disability income. If that happens, you'll need to provide documentation proving your SSDI payments. Make sure you keep your award letters and any statements from Social Security handy. The verification process can delay your son's financial aid if you don't respond quickly.

Update: I talked to an FSA agent using that Claimyr service (thanks for the recommendation!) and got clear confirmation that my SSDI needs to be reported as untaxed income. The agent also mentioned I should prepare a statement explaining that some of my disability income goes toward disability-related expenses if we need to request a professional judgment review later. I feel so much better knowing exactly what to do now!