FAFSA tax question: Do 'income taxes paid' include state taxes or just federal?
I'm down to the final section of my FAFSA for the 2025-2026 year and stuck on the income tax question. When it asks for 'income taxes paid' does that include just federal taxes or both federal AND state taxes? My tax documents show both separately, and I don't want to mess this up at the last minute. The instructions aren't super clear and my SAI calculation could be way off if I include or exclude state taxes incorrectly. Has anyone dealt with this before? Thanks!
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Zainab Ismail
It's ONLY federal income tax paid (from your federal tax return, line 24). Do not include state income tax. The FAFSA specifically wants the amount from your Form 1040. This is a common point of confusion but including state taxes would incorrectly inflate what you paid and potentially give you a lower SAI than you should get.
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Miguel Silva
AuthorThank you so much! That makes sense. So I should just use line 24 from Form 1040, not any of the state tax info. Appreciate the quick answer!
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Connor O'Neill
I actually asked a financial aid advisor about this exact question last week! Just federal taxes - specifically the amount on your 1040 form. State taxes aren't included in the FAFSA calculation at all.
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QuantumQuester
Ugh I messed this up on mine and included both. Probably why my SAI came back higher than expected. Dang it!!
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Yara Nassar
my cousin works financial aid office she says only federal not state. its confusing tho cuz taxes are taxes right? but i guess thats how they do it
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Miguel Silva
AuthorThanks for confirming! Yeah, it's weird they don't just say "use line 24 from Form 1040" in the instructions to make it crystal clear.
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Keisha Williams
I spent THREE HOURS trying to get through to the Federal Student Aid help line about this exact question last month!! Kept getting disconnected or put on hold forever. Finally I tried using Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got through to a FAFSA agent in about 10 minutes who confirmed it's FEDERAL ONLY, no state taxes. You can see how their system works in this video: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ - totally saved my sanity during application season.
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Miguel Silva
AuthorOh wow, I didn't know that service existed. The FSA phone lines have been a nightmare this year. I'll check that out if I run into any more issues. Thanks for sharing!
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Paolo Ricci
did it actually work? i'm skeptical of anything that claims to get through government phone lines faster lol. the fafsa hotline is literally the worst
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Amina Toure
The FAFSA instructions are confusing on this point. It's definitely ONLY federal income tax from your 1040. Line 24 on the most recent tax forms. This is a critical number because it directly affects your Student Aid Index calculation. Including state taxes would artificially lower your SAI and could potentially flag your application for verification, which adds weeks to processing time. If you're using the FAFSA app, there's actually a help button right next to that field that specifies federal only, but it's easy to miss.
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Miguel Silva
AuthorThanks for the detailed explanation! I'm using the website version and must have missed that help section. Good to know about the verification risk too - definitely don't want to trigger that.
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QuantumQuester
Omg I totally screwed this up and included both federal AND state taxes...do I need to go back and correct my FAFSA now?? Will they flag me for this? I submitted like 3 weeks ago and haven't heard anything yet...
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Zainab Ismail
Yes, you should definitely submit a correction. Login to your studentaid.gov account, select "Make FAFSA Corrections" and update that section. Better to fix it now than have your application flagged for verification later, which can delay your aid package significantly.
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QuantumQuester
Thanks doing that right now!! Freaking out a bit but better to fix it I guess
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Connor O'Neill
Pro tip: If you're using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool within FAFSA, it automatically pulls the correct federal tax amount from your return. No need to manually enter and risk making this mistake. Highly recommend using that feature if your situation allows!
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Oliver Zimmermann
the data retrieval thing didnt work for me, kept getting some technical error. had to manually enter everything anyway 🙄
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Paolo Ricci
Anyone else think its ridiculous how complicated they make this whole process?? Like why not just SAY "federal taxes only" right in the question instead of making everyone confused and stressed! My sister put both federal and state and got selected for verification which delayed her whole financial aid package by 2 months. The whole system is designed to trip people up I swear.
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Yara Nassar
for real!! and then they act surprised when low income students don't complete fafsa. maybe make it actually possible to understand without a finance degree??
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Amina Toure
The 2025-2026 FAFSA was supposed to be simplified, but they still missed opportunities to clarify questions like this one. Always refer to the help text or tooltips when available - they often contain the specific details needed.
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GalacticGladiator
Just want to add another confirmation - it's definitely ONLY federal income tax! I made this same mistake on my first attempt and had to correct it. The key is looking at Form 1040 line 24 (or whatever line shows "Tax" on your specific tax year's form). State taxes, local taxes, FICA taxes - none of those count for the FAFSA income tax paid question. The federal government only cares about what you paid to them, not to your state. Good luck finishing up your application!
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