Documenting Independent Status
The FAFSA asks a series of questions to determine if a student is dependent or independent. If a student answers “yes” to any of these questions, the FAFSA identifies them as being an independent student. In certain situations, the Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ requires the student to provide documentation to verify the answer(s). In some cases, Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ are unable to provide the required documentation but have other circumstances whereby they may want to request an Appeal for Independent Status. The Financial Aid Office staff can counsel the student regarding what documents and situations might be appropriate for an appeal. If the student answered “yes” on the FAFSA and was granted provisional independent status, documentation will be requested if the student has not provided documentation previously.
Students unable to provide satisfactory documentation to verify independent status and who cannot qualify for provisional independent status will be expected to correct the answers on the FAFSA and add a contributor(s) to the FAFSA. If the contributor(s) fails to provide information, the student will only be able to receive unsubsidized Federal Direct Student Loans at the dependent loan limits.
ORPHAN: If both of the student's parents have passed away since turning the age of 13, copies of their parents' death certificates are required. If both parents have passed away after the age of 13 and the student was subsequently adopted, the student would still answer as an independent student since by the age of 13 they were not adopted.
FOSTER CARE/WARD OF THE COURT: If a student was in foster care or was a designated ward of the court at the age of 13 or later, the student must provide the legal documents that support that answer.
EMANCIPATED MINOR: If a student has become an emancipated minor, they must supply copies of the legal court documents granting student emancipation.
LEGAL GUARDIANSHIP: If a student who was in a permanent legal guardian at the age of majority (usually 18 years old in most states), please provide court documentation for legal guardianship. However, if a student was placed in temporary guardianship, that is not a case of independent status.
HOMELESSNESS: Students who are homeless or at risk of being homeless must provide verification from a professional authority (e.g., a person operating a homeless shelter or a high school guidance counselor). A student who does not have or cannot obtain documentation from any of these authorities should contact the Financial Aid Office to schedule an interview to discuss their situation. Homelessness is defined as someone who does not have a stable living situation. "Couch surfing" is described as an unstable living situation.
Starting in the 2023-2024 academic year, if a determination of homelessness status is approved, the independent status for that student will roll forward for subsequent years. Students must still complete their FAFSA annually, and if they receive a rejection notification from the US Department of Education, once the Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ Financial Aid Office receives that notification, we can roll forward their eligibility from year to year. The only time that additional documentation may be required is if the student informs us that their circumstances have changed or if we receive conflicting information.
In some cases, Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ are unable to provide the documentation required to prove their independent status but have unusual circumstances that warrant an Appeal for Independent Status. A student who submits an Appeal for Independent Status must provide other documents to support that appeal for it to be approved. All letters submitted with an appeal must be signed using a wet ink signature or a finger stylus; we cannot accept computer font signatures.
Independence Questions Requiring Additional Documentation
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Students who are active duty military need to provide a letter from their commanding officer detailing their branch of service and anticipated discharge date.
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For federal aid purposes, the definition of a veteran is different than that of the Veteran's Administration. To prove veteran status for aid purposes, a student must submit a copy of the DD-214, member 4, showing at least one day of enlistment, and that they were not dishonorably discharged.
Students who are in the reserves or National Guard are only considered veterans if they were called up for active duty (not for training) as indicated on the DD-214.
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If, since turning age 13, both of a student's parents have died, then copies of the parents' death certificates need to be provided.
Similarly, a student who was in foster care or was designated as a Ward of the Court at age 13 or later, must provide copies of legal documents supporting that claim.
Incarceration does not make a student a Ward of the Court for aid purposes.
If a student's parents both died prior to the student turning 13, and the student was subsequently adopted before turning 13, they would be a dependent student, reporting the adoptive parents' income. If the adoption occurred after they turned 13 then they would be independent since they had no legal parents living when they turned 13.
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A student who has gone through the process of becoming an emancipated minor must supply copies of the court documents granting the student emancipation.
Similarly, a student who has legal guardians (a parent is not considered a legal guardian) must supply copies of the court documents detailing the guardianship. Legal guardianship that is temporary in nature, e.g. so that the student can complete high school where they are, rather than relocating with parents, does not qualify a student to be independent.
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Students who claim that they are homeless, or at risk of being homeless, must provide verification from a person of authority, e.g. someone operating a shelter or a high school guidance counselor. If a student does not have and cannot get documentation from any of these authorities please contact our office to schedule an interview to discuss your situation.
Homelessness is defined as someone who does not have a stable living situation and can include couch surfing.
Starting in 2023-24 if a determination of homelessness status is approved, the independent status for that student will roll forward for subsequent years. Students still must complete their FAFSA annually and may receive a rejection notification from the US Department of Education, however, once UM receives the FAFSA we will use the previously approved appeal to review aid eligibility for the new year.
The only time additional documentation may be required is if the student informs us their circumstances have changed, or we receive conflicting information.
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In some cases, Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ are unable to provide the required documentation to prove independence, but are able to provide adequate documentation to be granted a dependency override.
The determination of which is more appropriate is made by the staff in the financial aid office after review of the documents supplied.