FAFSA rules for divorced parents - when should both file vs just one? Impact on SAI?

You're on the right track - with the new FAFSA, only ONE parent should report financial information. This is specifically the parent who provided more financial support in the last 12 months (in your case, that's you with the 65%). Having your ex also submit information would absolutely hurt your daughter's aid eligibility because the system would capture additional income and assets that wouldn't otherwise be considered. The ONLY scenario where both divorced parents might file is if you have multiple children attending college and different parents provide primary support for different children. For example, if your ex primarily supports your son while you primarily support your daughter, then each parent would file for the respective child they support more.

we had the same situation last year and my ex insisted on filing his own fafsa for our son even tho i told him not too... ended up causing a huge mess because the school got confused about which parent was supposed to be the one on the application. took like 2 months to straighten out and almost lost his aid!!

Financial aid counselor here. This is one of the most common questions with the new FAFSA. To clarify: 1. Only the parent providing more financial support in the past 12 months should complete the FAFSA 2. The system calculates SAI based on household size and income of that parent (and current spouse if remarried) 3. The other biological parent's financial information is NOT considered at all 4. Having both parents file will either cause processing delays or potentially double-count income Important: When determining which parent provided more support, include ALL forms of support (housing, food, medical, clothing, etc.) not just direct cash payments. Document how you calculated the 65% in case verification is required.

The new FAFSA is SUCH a nightmare for divorced families!!! My daughter got ZERO aid because they counted both parents income when they shouldn't have. The financial aid office wouldn't fix it even after THREE appeals. The whole system is designed to punish divorced families.

I've been through this exact scenario with my kids. Here's what you need to know based on my experience: 1. Only submit FAFSA information for you since you provide more support (65%) 2. Your ex-husband's other children with his new wife are completely irrelevant to your daughter's FAFSA 3. The system no longer considers household size the way the old FAFSA did One thing to watch out for: Make sure you and your ex are on the same page. If he also completes a FAFSA claiming to provide more support, it will trigger a conflict and verification process that will delay aid processing by months. I recommend documenting how you calculate your support percentage (receipts, bank statements, etc.) in case verification is required.

When I was trying to reach someone at Federal Student Aid about this exact issue last semester, I discovered Claimyr (claimyr.com) and it saved me HOURS of hold time. They have this service that basically holds your place in line and calls you when an actual human picks up. Took forever to get through otherwise. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Was worth it to get clarification straight from FSA about our complicated divorced parent situation.

Actually, there's a loophole some divorced families have been using. If Parent A provides 51% of financial support but has much higher income than Parent B, some families have strategically arranged for Parent B to provide slightly more support for that application year (like 52/48 split) so Parent B's lower income is used for FAFSA. This is completely legal as long as the support calculation is legitimate. Might be something to consider depending on your specific financial situations.

On the disadvantage side: if both divorced parents complete FAFSAs (even if they file for different children), the system may still flag potential conflicts and trigger verification, which delays processing and could jeopardize aid packages with approaching deadlines. My recommendation: submit the FAFSA early (October/November) to allow plenty of time for verification issues to be resolved before aid deadlines in spring.

As someone who went through this exact situation two years ago, I can confirm that you should absolutely NOT have both parents file. I made that mistake initially and it created a nightmare that took months to resolve with the financial aid office. The key thing to remember is that the new FAFSA is designed to be simpler - only ONE parent files, period. Since you provide 65% of support, you're the filing parent. Your ex's household size with his new wife and other kids is completely irrelevant to your daughter's aid calculation. One practical tip: I'd suggest having a clear conversation with your ex about this BEFORE you file. Make it crystal clear that only you will be completing the FAFSA. Some divorced parents get confused and think they both need to provide information "to be fair" but that actually hurts the student's aid eligibility. Document your support calculation (housing costs, medical expenses, school costs, etc.) in case verification is needed later. Good luck!

Just wanted to add another perspective as someone currently going through this process. I'm in a similar situation - divorced, share custody roughly 50/50, but I provide about 60% of financial support. One thing I learned from our financial aid counselor that might help: when calculating who provides "more support," don't forget to include indirect costs like health insurance premiums. I pay for my son's health insurance through my employer, and that counts toward my support percentage even though it doesn't feel like a direct expense. Also, regarding the documentation question - I created a simple spreadsheet tracking major expenses (housing allocation, food, medical, school supplies, etc.) rather than keeping every single receipt. The financial aid office told me this level of detail is usually sufficient for verification purposes. The most important thing is making sure you and your ex are aligned on who's filing. Even if he earns more, since you provide more support, you're definitely the right parent to complete the FAFSA. Having that conversation upfront will save you both a lot of headaches!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm a single mom going through my first FAFSA with my daughter after finalizing my divorce last year. I was completely confused about whether my ex needed to provide any information at all, but now I understand it's just about who provides more support. One follow-up question: if the custody arrangement or support situation changes during the school year (like if my ex starts paying more support or takes on more expenses), do I need to update the FAFSA mid-year? Or is it based on the snapshot at the time of filing? Also, for anyone else dealing with this - I found it really helpful to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when possible. It eliminated some of the back-and-forth with documentation that I was worried about as a newly divorced parent trying to navigate all this alone.

This is such valuable information for divorced parents navigating the new FAFSA! I'm in a similar situation and had been stressing about whether both my ex and I needed to file. Reading everyone's experiences has really clarified things. One thing I wanted to add based on my research: make sure to keep the divorce decree handy when filing. Some schools may request it during verification to confirm the custody arrangement and support obligations outlined in the legal documents. Also, if there's a significant difference between what the divorce decree says about support and what's actually happening in practice, be prepared to explain that discrepancy. It sounds like communication with the ex-spouse is really crucial here. I'm planning to send mine a brief email explaining that I'll be the one filing since I provide majority support, just so there's no confusion or duplicate filings that could mess things up. Thanks everyone for sharing your real-world experiences - it's so much more helpful than trying to decipher the official FAFSA guidance alone!

This entire thread has been so enlightening! I'm a divorced parent just starting to research FAFSA for my son who's a junior in high school, and I had no idea about the "only one parent files" rule under the new system. Quick question for those who've been through this: how exactly do you calculate the percentage of support you provide? Is there an official formula, or is it more of an estimation based on major expenses like housing, food, medical, etc.? I'm trying to figure out whether my ex or I would be considered the "primary support provider" since we split custody 50/50 but handle different types of expenses (I cover housing and food, he covers medical and extracurriculars). Also, has anyone dealt with a situation where the parent who provides less financial support actually has the lower income? I'm wondering if it would be worth having a conversation with my ex about potentially restructuring who pays for what to optimize our son's aid eligibility - assuming that's even allowed/advisable? Thanks for all the detailed experiences everyone has shared. This is exactly the kind of real-world guidance that's impossible to find in the official FAFSA documentation!

As a divorced parent who just went through this process last year, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to stick with just ONE parent filing. I made the mistake of initially thinking both my ex and I should provide information since we both contribute to our daughter's expenses, and it created such a mess with the financial aid office. Since you provide 65% of support, you're definitely the right parent to complete the FAFSA. Your ex's other dependents with his new wife won't factor into your daughter's aid calculation at all - the new FAFSA doesn't work that way anymore. One practical tip that saved me: I created a simple document outlining all the ways I provide support (housing allocation, food costs, health insurance premiums, school expenses, etc.) and shared it with my ex before filing. This helped us both understand why I was the appropriate parent to file and prevented any confusion or duplicate submissions. Also, don't underestimate indirect expenses when calculating your support percentage. Things like health insurance premiums, transportation costs for school/activities, and even college prep expenses all count toward your support calculation. You might actually be providing more than 65% when you factor everything in! The key is clear communication with your ex upfront and documenting your support calculation in case verification is needed later. Good luck with the process!

This thread has been incredibly helpful as I navigate the same situation! I'm also a divorced parent with shared custody, but I provide about 70% of my son's support. Reading everyone's experiences has really clarified that only I should file the FAFSA, not both my ex and me. One thing I wanted to add that I learned from our school counselor: when you're calculating that support percentage, make sure to include any 529 plan contributions you're making for your child's education. I contribute $200/month to my son's college savings plan, and our counselor confirmed that counts as financial support I'm providing, even though it's not a direct expense like housing or food. Also, for anyone worried about the documentation aspect - I started keeping a simple monthly log of major expenses (who paid for what) starting this past January. It's not complicated, just a basic spreadsheet with categories like housing allocation, groceries, medical co-pays, school supplies, etc. Takes maybe 5 minutes a month to update, but I figure it'll be super helpful if we get selected for verification. Thanks again to everyone who shared their real experiences here. It's so much more valuable than trying to decode the official FAFSA guidance alone!

As another divorced parent who just completed this process, I want to emphasize something that might not be obvious: make sure you're prepared for potential pushback from your ex about who should file. Even when the support calculation clearly shows you provide more (like your 65%), some ex-spouses get defensive or think it's "unfair" that only one parent gets to control the FAFSA process. I had to have several conversations with my ex to explain that this isn't about fairness or control - it's about following the federal guidelines to maximize our daughter's aid eligibility. Having both parents file would literally hurt her chances of getting financial aid, which is the opposite of what we both want. One strategy that helped was framing it in terms of what's best for our child rather than making it about which parent has more "say" in the college process. I also offered to share all the financial aid information and decision-making with him once we received the aid packages from schools, so he didn't feel excluded from the process entirely. The bottom line is that you're absolutely doing the right thing by being the sole filer since you provide majority support. Just be prepared to explain this clearly to your ex if needed, and maybe have some of the official FAFSA guidance handy to back up your decision. Good luck!