Ex-husband refusing to complete FAFSA for student athlete - desperately need options before August

You need to request a dependency override immediately. Contact the financial aid office directly and ask for the professional judgment form for 'special circumstances' - specifically mention that the non-custodial parent is refusing to provide information. While most schools won't grant overrides just for parents refusing to complete FAFSA, the fact that you're in the middle of a divorce might help your case. You'll need documentation, so gather: - Any court documents from your pending divorce - A letter from your attorney confirming the divorce proceedings - Letters from neutral third parties (counselors, teachers, etc.) who can verify the situation - Police reports if there were any domestic issues Each school handles these situations differently, but since your daughter is an athlete, also involve the athletic department/coach. They often have pull with admissions and financial aid.

omg this EXACT thing happend to my cousin last year!!! her dad was being a total jerk about filling out fafsa too. idk why some dads are like this?? she ended up having to take a semester off and it was a whole drama. hope u figure it out!

This is unfortunately a common issue. While a dependency override seems like the obvious solution, it's important to understand that per federal guidelines, a parent's refusal to provide information or financial support is NOT considered adequate grounds for a dependency override by itself. Your best options are: 1. Pursue a "special circumstances" review instead of a dependency override. These are different processes with different criteria. 2. Document the divorce proceedings thoroughly, as this strengthens your case significantly. 3. If your daughter is receiving a substantial athletic scholarship, speak with the athletic compliance office. They sometimes have institutional funds they can allocate in hardship cases to prevent losing recruited athletes. 4. In the worst case, your daughter can complete FAFSA without his information, but she'll only qualify for unsubsidized federal loans, not grants or need-based aid. You might also consider seeking a court order requiring your ex to complete the FAFSA as part of your divorce proceedings, especially if your child's education expenses are addressed in the settlement.

I went through something similar and IT SUCKS!! My dad refused to give his info after my parents separated (but before divorce) and I almost had to drop out. The whole system is RIDICULOUS - like why should my education depend on someone who isn't even involved in my life?!!! The financial aid people basically told me I was out of luck because "federal regulations" blah blah blah. It's all about controlling people. Good luck but don't get your hopes up that they'll actually help you.

Have you tried getting through to the Federal Student Aid office directly? They sometimes can provide guidance specific to your situation that the school's financial aid office can't or won't offer. I was in an endless loop with my son's financial aid issues last year and couldn't get clear answers from his school. After weeks of calling the Federal Student Aid number and getting disconnected, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual human at FSA in under 10 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Once I actually spoke with someone at FSA, they explained exactly what documentation I needed for our unique situation and told me what the school could legally do versus what they were choosing not to do. Armed with that information, I went back to the financial aid office and got our issue resolved.

cant ur daughter just live with u and claim independent status? thats what my friends kid did when her husband was being difficult. if u have custody it should be easy right?

I'm a financial aid counselor, and I deal with this situation more often than you'd think. Here's what you need to know: 1. The "dependency override" that others mentioned is extremely rare and generally only applies in cases of documented abuse, abandonment, or incarceration. A parent refusing to complete FAFSA doesn't qualify. 2. For the current academic year, your best option is a "special circumstances review" (sometimes called "professional judgment"). This doesn't change dependency status but allows the school to potentially adjust the expected family contribution. 3. Since your daughter is an athlete, involve her coach immediately. Athletic departments often have special scholarship funds for exactly these situations. 4. Document EVERYTHING. Every conversation, email, and attempt to get your ex to comply. 5. For next year's FAFSA, once your divorce is final, only the custodial parent's information will be required (assuming your daughter lives with you more than 50% of the time). Don't give up! I've seen many students in similar situations get their aid packages sorted out, especially student athletes.

One additional option no one's mentioned - if all else fails with the financial aid office, your daughter could consider taking a gap semester and starting in January instead of August. By then your divorce would be finalized and you could file the FAFSA with just your information as the custodial parent. Not ideal, but better than missing out entirely or taking on excessive loans.

Have you looked into CSS Profile schools? Some private colleges use the CSS Profile in addition to FAFSA, and it has a non-custodial parent waiver process that's more flexible than FAFSA's rules. If any of the schools she's considering use CSS Profile, you might have better luck getting an exception there.