FAFSA SAI impact of checking 'Yes' to Premium Tax Credit (QHP) question - what happened to our aid?

i checked yes on that too, no idea how it affects things but apparently its not the same as medicaid, which i know doesn't count against u. wish they made this clearer tbh

Thanks for responding. Did your SAI seem unusually high too? I'm trying to figure out if this is what tanked us.

The 36B Health Plan credit (Premium Tax Credit) DOES affect your SAI, but probably not as dramatically as you think. This credit is reported on your tax return and is already factored into your Adjusted Gross Income. \n\nThe FAFSA asks this question separately because they need to know about special tax situations that might affect your overall financial picture. Your high SAI is likely due to multiple factors including income, assets, and household size - not just this one credit.

That's somewhat reassuring. Our household income is about $92,000 for a family of 4, but our SAI came back at $18,435 which seems really high compared to the old EFC calculator estimates we did. Is that normal with the new FAFSA?

We had the EXACT same thing happen! We checked yes for the Premium Tax Credit box and our SAI was WAY higher than expected. It's definitely related. Apparently the health insurance subsidy counts as \

Ugh, that seems so unfair! Do you know roughly how much it increased your SAI? We got about $7,200 in premium tax credits last year.

just wanna mention the new FAFSA calculations are completely different from the old EFC system. lots of people are seeing higher numbers across the board. my brothers SAI was almost double what his EFC used to be last year for literally the same financial situation

Really? That makes me feel a bit better. I wish they would've prepared us for this change better.

The Premium Tax Credit (QHP) does factor into the FAFSA calculation, but it's just one component. Under the new SAI formula, several things changed:\n\n1. The income protection allowance was increased\n2. Small business/farm exclusion was eliminated\n3. State tax allowances were removed\n4. The asset protection allowance was reduced\n\nAll these changes together often result in higher SAI numbers compared to the old EFC. For a family of 4 with $92,000 income, an $18,435 SAI is actually within the expected range under the new formula, even without considering the Premium Tax Credit.

Thanks for breaking that down. I feel like I understand the situation better now. Is there any way to get the SAI reconsidered or adjusted?

My daughter's college financial aid officer told us that checking YES to that question adds your ENTIRE health insurance premium amount back into your income calculation, not just the subsidy portion!!! So unfair for families trying to get affordable healthcare. We're basically being penalized twice.

That's actually not correct. The FAFSA only considers the amount of the Premium Tax Credit (subsidy) you received, not your entire premium. It's still frustrating, but wanted to clarify this point.

I went through this exact issue last month and spent hours trying to get someone at Federal Student Aid to explain the impact. I kept getting disconnected or waiting forever. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through - they hold your place in line and call you when an agent is ready. Saved me hours of frustration. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works.\n\nThe agent I spoke with confirmed that the Premium Tax Credit does affect the SAI calculation, but they also explained the appeals process if you believe your SAI doesn't reflect your actual ability to pay. Definitely worth asking about!

Thank you! I might try that service because I'm going crazy trying to get through to someone. Did you end up appealing your SAI?

Yes, I did appeal! The financial aid office at my son's school had a special circumstances form. We had to document that the Premium Tax Credit was essential for our family's health coverage and that without it, we'd face significant hardship. They didn't completely adjust the SAI but did offer additional institutional aid to help offset the difference. Definitely worth pursuing!

This is really helpful info. I'm definitely going to look into appealing with our daughter's school. The whole system feels designed to punish middle-class families who don't qualify for Medicaid but still need help affording insurance.

I'm dealing with this exact same situation! We also checked yes for the Premium Tax Credit and our SAI came back much higher than we expected. For what it's worth, I did some research and found that the Premium Tax Credit gets added back as "untaxed income" in the FAFSA calculation, which definitely impacts your SAI. It's frustrating because we're essentially being penalized for getting help with health insurance costs. I'm planning to contact our school's financial aid office to see if there are any special circumstances we can document. Has anyone had success with professional judgment appeals specifically related to this issue?

Did anyone else notice that if you check the box for Premium Tax Credit the system does not ask you the questions about assets, child support, etc? I noticed it because at first I did not check that box (forgot this applied to me) and got a set of questions about financials. When I went back and checked the box for yes, I did not get those questions. Why?

I'm new to this community but experiencing the exact same frustration! We also checked yes for the Premium Tax Credit question and our SAI came back at $19,200 for a family income of $88,000 - way higher than any of the old EFC calculators predicted. What's really confusing me is that we qualified for the Premium Tax Credit precisely because our income isn't high enough to afford full-price marketplace insurance, yet now we're being penalized in the financial aid calculation for receiving that help. It feels like a catch-22 situation. I've been reading through all these responses and it sounds like the new FAFSA formula is just generally producing higher numbers, but the Premium Tax Credit definitely seems to be making it worse. I'm going to try reaching out to our school's financial aid office about a professional judgment appeal. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences - at least I know we're not alone in this!