Who counts as your parent and what’s your family size on the FAFSA®?
Senior Associate, JPMorgan Chase
One of the more challenging aspects of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) can be figuring out who counts as your family when it comes to the form and what your family size is as you fill out the application. The definition of family can be flexible in the real world, but for the FAFSA®, it isn’t.
We’ll cover in this article exactly who counts as your parent for the purposes of the FAFSA® and how to determine your family size as you fill it out.
Understanding what the FAFSA® is looking for when it comes to family size
Federal Student Aid (FSA) established guidelines to determine whether a student should be considered financially dependent on a legal parent or financially independent from their legal parent. These guidelines may be helpful to those filing the FAFSA®.
Once you complete your FAFSA® and receive your FAFSA® Submission Summary, you’ll receive your Student Aid Index (SAI) which is a formula-based index number calculated using information that you and your parent, if you’re an dependent student, provided on the FAFSA®.
To generate the SAI, the FAFSA® gathers a person’s financial information to get a clear picture of their financial situation, including their family’s financial situation if they’re a dependent student.
But what constitutes a family? Who’s included in family size? For many, that answer can be complicated.
The application attempts to define “family” as those who are expected to be financially supported by the same head of household, even if that isn’t the case.
More information about “family size” can be found on StudentAid.gov for those who may need additional guidance when filing the FAFSA®
Who’s my legal parent for the purposes of the FAFSA®?
Dependent students must include their parent's financial details on the FAFSA®. Determining who qualifies as a legal parent can be challenging, though. In large part that's because the FAFSA®’s objective is to determine who is financially supporting a student.
The FAFSA® limits the definition of a legal parent to a “biological or adoptive parent, or your legal parent as determined by the state” (for example, if the parent is listed on your birth certificate). Unless otherwise noted, “parent” means your legal (biological and/or adoptive) parent."
Dependent students should use the guide below to determine which parents need to be included as a contributor on their application, basing it on the last 12 months or the most recent year that they received financial support. A contributor is anyone including you, your parent, or your parent’s spouse who’s required to provide information on the FAFSA®.
Family situations and how to think about who your legal parent is
Married parents who are living together: Both parents are considered your legal parents in this case. If your parents filed their taxes jointly, only one parent will need to be a FAFSA® contributor, but if your parents didn’t file joint taxes, then both parents will be contributors on your FAFSA®.
Parents who’ve never married and aren’t living together: The parent providing more financial support over the last 12 months is considered your legal parent and contributor in this case. If both parents provided equal financial support, enter the information of the parent with the greater income and assets.
Unmarried parents who are living together: Both parents are considered your legal parents in this case, and will be your contributors on your FAFSA®.
Remarried parents: The parent providing more financial support in the past 12 months, and their spouse (your stepparent), are considered your legal parents in this case. Both will be identified as a contributor if they didn’t file their taxes jointly.
Divorced or separated parents: The parent who provided more financial support over the last year will be the contributor on your FAFSA®. In the case that both of your parents provided an exact equal amount of financial support, or if they didn’t support you financially, the parent who has the greater income and assets will be the contributor on your FAFSA®.
A widowed parent: In this case, your remaining parent is considered your legal parent and will be your contributor.
A single parent: In this case, your sole parent is considered your legal parent, and will be your contributor on the FAFSA®.
How do I determine my family size for purposes of the FAFSA®?
On the FAFSA®, you’ll be asked for your family size which will be used to determine your SAI.
In simple terms, your family size is the heads of the household plus all of the dependents in the house. Any children which the FAFSA® would consider a dependent student should be included in this number. This also includes dependent children who live apart due to college enrollment. Unborn children who will be born during the award year shouldn't be included.
Final thoughts
Understanding how to fill out specific fields on the FAFSA® appropriately is important and can impact how much financial aid you ultimately may receive. Beyond ensuring you know how to fill out certain fields on the FAFSA®, familiarize yourself with the FAFSA® due dates so you file on time.
