Green card holders with partial US tax history - should we submit FAFSA for college senior?

u definitely should apply!! my cousin was in similar situation except she was sophomore. better to apply and get rejected than not try at all right?

Yes, you should absolutely complete the FAFSA. As green card holders (permanent residents), your daughter qualifies as an eligible noncitizen for federal student aid. The 2025-2026 FAFSA uses tax information from 2023, which works perfectly in your situation since you did file US taxes that year. When completing the application, you'll use your 2023 tax information. The system might flag that you didn't file in 2022, but there's a process for explaining special circumstances like recent immigration. Be prepared to provide documentation of your green card status and potentially a letter explaining your recent move to the US. Your daughter's college financial aid office will be your best resource if any questions come up during verification.

I was in pretty much the exact same situation! Moved here with green card in 2022, my son was in his junior year. It was SUPER frustrating because we kept getting verification requests and had to explain our situation over and over. We ended up getting SOME aid but not what my friends with similar incomes got. System is definitely not designed for immigrants!!!!

When I was trying to reach the Federal Student Aid people about a similar situation (I had moved from Canada), I literally couldn't get through for weeks. The wait times were insane and I kept getting disconnected. I finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that held my place in line and called me back when an agent was available. Saved me hours of frustration. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Totally worth it to get specific answers about your immigration situation directly from FSA.

I work in a college financial aid office, and I'd like to clarify a few things for permanent resident families with partial US tax history: 1. The 2025-2026 FAFSA uses 2023 tax information, which you have, so you're already in good shape 2. Your daughter qualifies for aid as a permanent resident (green card holder) 3. Your daughter is likely considered a dependent student for FAFSA purposes 4. You should gather documentation including: green cards for all family members, entry documentation showing when you arrived in the US, 2023 US tax return, and any foreign tax documents from 2022 5. After submitting the FAFSA, be prepared for verification - this is routine for situations like yours The most important thing is to communicate proactively with your daughter's college financial aid office. They have procedures for handling international situations and can guide you through any additional steps required for your specific case.

The FAFSA system is DESIGNED to exclude immigrants!!!! My brother's family came from Philippines with green cards and they got ZERO aid even though they qualified based on income. The schools just use "incomplete information" as excuse to deny aid to new immigrants. Its disgraceful how this system treats hardworking families who followed all the legal immigration rules!!!

Another important thing to note: when filling out the FAFSA, you'll need to enter your Alien Registration Number (A-Number) from your green card correctly. Double-check this number as errors here can cause significant processing delays. Also, since your daughter is a senior, make sure she's aware of any school-specific aid deadlines. Some institutions have additional forms beyond FAFSA for distributing their own scholarship funds, and these often have earlier deadlines than the federal form.

my roommate was international student and she couldnt get any fafsa at all, had to pay everything herself

make sure u dont mess up the SAI calculations!! my cousin had to redo everything bc he put the wrong numbers in the first time and it screwed up his pell grant amount

Thank you everyone for your helpful advice! I've started gathering our documentation (green cards, 2023 tax returns, entry documents) and drafted a letter explaining our immigration timeline. My daughter is contacting her school's financial aid office tomorrow to ask about any additional forms they might require. I feel much more confident about moving forward with the FAFSA application now. I'll update once we've submitted everything in case it helps other immigrant families in similar situations.

Just wanted to add that you should also check if your daughter's school participates in CSS Profile for additional institutional aid. Some private colleges use this form alongside FAFSA for distributing their own scholarship funds. The CSS Profile has different requirements and might ask for additional documentation about your family's financial situation abroad before moving to the US. It's worth asking the financial aid office about this when your daughter contacts them tomorrow!