Will FAFSA consider my fiancé's income who claimed my daughter on taxes but isn't her father?

the FAFSA only looks at the income of parents/step-parents who are MARRIED and in the household. your fiance doesnt count on FAFSA until u actually get married, even if he claimed her on taxes. FAFSA focuses on legal relationships not tax filing status. u should only report YOUR income (even if u didnt file) and ur daughters bio fathers income if he's part of the household (sounds like he's not

The previous commenter is correct. For FAFSA purposes, only parents who are married to each other or who live together count in the household. Your fiancé is not considered a parent for FAFSA even if he claimed your daughter as a dependent on his taxes. You'll need to report: - Your income (even if below filing threshold) - Your assets - Your household size (you and your daughter, plus anyone else you support financially) You won't include your fiancé's income or the biological father's income unless he lives with you. One thing to note: you may need to verify your non-filing status since you didn't file taxes. The financial aid office may request a Verification of Non-filing Letter from the IRS.

Speaking from experience, I recommend being completely transparent about your situation with the financial aid office. While your fiancé's income won't be counted on the FAFSA itself, schools might ask questions during verification if they notice discrepancies. In particular, they might wonder how you support yourself and your daughter if you had little to no income. Be prepared to explain your living situation, how your mother's care is funded, and how your household expenses are covered. Since your fiancé claimed your daughter, he likely provided more than half of her support for tax purposes, which is something the aid office might question if they see the tax records.

I went thru something kinda similar with my son last year!!! Just make sure u save ALL ur documentation. my cousins boyfriend claimed her kid and it caused MAJOR headaches with financial aid. they kept asking for more paperwork and the aid was delayed by like 2 months!!!!! the whole system is ridiculous tbh

ugh these exact situations r why FAFSA is SO frustrating!!!! my sister had this EXACT same problem and ended up having to appeal her SAI score like 3 times before they got it right. The new FAFSA is supposed to be simpler but they still make it impossible 4 non-traditional families 🙄

When I was trying to call Federal Student Aid about a similar dependency situation last month, I kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual FSA agent in about 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent I spoke with confirmed that fiancés don't count for FAFSA purposes and walked me through exactly what to put on my form. Seriously saved me weeks of stress.

From my understanding, taxes and FAFSA are two separate systems with different rules about dependency. Your fiancé claiming your daughter on taxes was probably correct for TAX purposes if he provided more than half her support. But for FAFSA, only LEGAL parents (biological or adoptive) or stepparents (through marriage) count. So until you're married, your fiancé doesn't factor into the FAFSA calculation AT ALL. HOWEVER!!! If you apply for CSS Profile (required by some private colleges), they sometimes DO consider the income of other household contributors even if they're not married to you! So check if your daughter's potential schools use CSS Profile in addition to FAFSA.

also make sure when ur filling out the fafsa u use the right tax year!!! the 2025-2026 FAFSA uses 2023 tax info NOT 2024 like u mentioned in ur post. if ur using the wrong year it messes everything up!!!

Based on all the information shared, here's a summary of your situation: 1. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA (using 2023 tax data), your fiancé's income is NOT considered since you're not married. 2. You only report your own income (even if below filing threshold) and should request a Verification of Non-filing Letter from the IRS. 3. Your daughter's biological father's income is not reported unless he lives in your household. 4. Be prepared to explain your financial situation during verification if selected. 5. Check if any schools require the CSS Profile, which may have different rules about non-parent contributors. 6. Consider using support resources like Claimyr if you need to speak directly with an FSA representative for personalized guidance. With the correct information and documentation, your daughter should be able to receive an accurate financial aid assessment based on your actual household situation.

I just wanted to add one more thing that might help - when you're gathering documentation, make sure you also have records of any untaxed income you might have received in 2023. This could include things like assistance for your mother's care, any cash support, or other benefits that didn't require tax filing. The FAFSA will ask about untaxed income separately from your tax filing status, so even though you didn't file taxes, you'll still need to report any income you received that year. This ensures your daughter's aid calculation is as accurate as possible and helps avoid issues during verification. Also, don't stress too much about the complexity of your situation - financial aid offices deal with non-traditional families all the time, and they're usually very helpful once you get connected with the right person. Good luck with everything!

One more tip that might save you headaches down the road - when you submit your FAFSA, screenshot or print every page before you finalize it. I learned this the hard way when my daughter's school asked me to verify information I had entered, but I couldn't remember exactly what I had put down for certain questions. Also, if your daughter ends up getting selected for verification (which is pretty common), don't panic! It's usually just routine and doesn't mean you did anything wrong. Just be ready with all your documentation and respond quickly to any requests from the financial aid office. Your situation is definitely manageable - you've got great advice from everyone here and it sounds like you're being thorough about getting everything right. Your daughter is lucky to have someone advocating for her education like this!