Will filing FAFSA as independent get my son more aid than dependent status?

same thing hapned with my daughter last year. we claimed her but she lived in her own place too. the aid ppl told us that just living seperate doesnt make him independant for fafsa, theres specific requirments.

To qualify as independent on FAFSA, your son would need to meet AT LEAST ONE of these criteria: - Be 24 or older - Be married - Have dependents he supports financially - Be a veteran/active military - Be an orphan/ward of court/emancipated minor - Be homeless or at risk of homelessness Simply living separately and working part-time doesn't qualify him as independent for FAFSA purposes. If he doesn't meet any of these criteria, you did the correct thing by including him as a dependent. The tax filing status and FAFSA dependency status are determined by different rules, so they don't always align perfectly.

There's a lot of confusion about this topic, but you actually did the right thing. For FAFSA purposes, dependency status isn't determined by who claims who on taxes. It's determined by the federal criteria that another commenter listed. What matters for maximizing aid: 1. If your son is truly dependent (which it sounds like he is based on FAFSA rules), then claiming him or not claiming him on your taxes won't impact his aid eligibility. 2. His part-time income is already reported separately on the FAFSA, so that's accounted for in the SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation. 3. For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, his aid will be based primarily on your household income, regardless of his living arrangement or whether you claim him on taxes. For most students under 24, independent status is only possible through the specific exceptions mentioned above (marriage, military service, etc.). The system is designed this way intentionally.

Not claiming him on your taxes next year would not change his FAFSA dependency status. The tax dependency and FAFSA dependency are separate systems with different rules. However, there are other strategies that might help: 1. Look into your school's financial aid appeal process. If there are special circumstances (high medical expenses, job loss, etc.), you can request a professional judgment review. 2. Have your son apply for private scholarships that don't use FAFSA data. 3. Make sure you're correctly reporting retirement accounts and home equity, which are not counted in the FAFSA formula. 4. Consider how to time income/assets for future FAFSA years (though with the new FAFSA using older tax data, this strategy is less helpful than before).

just wanna add that my neice got a depedency override bcuz she had like proof her parents weren't supporting her at all and had like letters from counselors and stuff. its super hard to get but if ur kid is ACTUALLY fully self supporting maybe worth looking into??? but like super rare

If you're worried about mistakes on the FAFSA or want to check on the status, I recommend using Claimyr to get through to a FAFSA agent directly. I spent hours trying to get through to someone at Federal Student Aid last month about a similar dependency question, and was getting nowhere with wait times. Used claimyr.com and got connected to an agent in about 10 minutes who went through my entire application with me. They have a video demo showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent was able to tell me exactly what was affecting our aid calculation and confirmed that my son's dependency status was correct. Gave me peace of mind that everything was processed properly.

To directly answer your original question: Yes, independent students generally qualify for more aid than dependent students. Independent students can receive higher unsubsidized loan limits and might qualify for more grant aid since only their income/assets (not parents') are considered. However, the system is designed to prevent students from becoming "independent" simply to get more aid. That's why the criteria are strict and not based solely on who claims whom on taxes. For your son's situation, since he doesn't meet any of the federal criteria for independence, the correct approach is what you did - file as a dependent student. The good news is that the new FAFSA formula has increased the income protection allowance, which means your family might qualify for more aid than under the old formula.

The whole system is RIGGED against middle class families!!! We make too much to qualify for grants but not enough to actually PAY for college!!! And they expect us to take out PLUS loans and go into debt for decades??? Meanwhile kids with rich parents who put assets in trusts or whatever game the system. It's ALL BROKEN.

Thank you everyone for all your helpful responses! I feel much better knowing we didn't make a mistake with his dependency status. We'll focus on looking for scholarships and making sure the FAFSA is processed correctly. I'm still disappointed that living separately and supporting himself doesn't qualify him as independent, but at least now I understand the rules better.

You're definitely not alone in feeling confused about this! I went through the exact same thing with my daughter two years ago. She was working part-time, living off-campus, and I kept thinking there had to be a way to get her classified as independent since she was barely scraping by on her own income. But like everyone else has explained, the federal rules are really strict - it's basically age 24, marriage, military service, or having your own dependents. One thing that helped us was meeting with the financial aid office at her school. They walked us through exactly how our EFC was calculated and explained some school-specific aid programs we hadn't heard about. Also, don't forget about work-study programs if his school offers them - the income from those jobs doesn't count against financial aid eligibility the same way regular employment does. It's not a huge game-changer, but every little bit helps when you're trying to minimize loans!