2020-21 FAFSA Checklist

Find the description below that matches your citizenship and dependency status to figure out which documents you will need to fill out the FAFSA for the 2020-21 school year. All U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible for federal aid.

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If you are a U.S. citizen and dependent student

• Your Social Security card.
• Your driver’s license (if you have one).
• Your 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your 2018 federal income tax return.
• Your 2018 untaxed income records.
• Your current bank statements.
• Your parents’ federal income tax return.
• Your parents’ 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your parents’ bank statements.
• Your parents’ untaxed income records.
• Your parents’ current business and investment records.

If you are a U.S. citizen and independent student

• Your Social Security card.
• Your driver’s license (if you have one).
• Your 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your 2018 federal income tax return.
• Your 2018 untaxed income records.
• Your current bank statements.

If you are a dependent student, but not a U.S. citizen

• Your driver’s license (if you have one).
• Your 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your 2018 federal income tax return.
• Your 2018 untaxed income records.
• Your current bank statements.
• Your parents’ federal income tax return.
• Your parents’ 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your parents’ bank statements.
• Your parents’ untaxed income records.
• Your parents’ current business and investment records.

If you are an independent student, but not a U.S. citizen

• Your driver’s license (if you have one).
• Your 2018 W-2 forms.
• Your 2018 federal income tax return.
• Your 2017 untaxed income records.
• Your current bank statements.

How to answer FAFSA questions based on your status

Family structure (dependent students):

• My parents are married.
• My parents are divorced.
• My parents were never married.
• I live with legal guardians or foster parents.
• My parents are same-sex partners.
• One of my parents has died.

Family structure (independent students):

• I don’t know the whereabouts of one or both parents.
• I have an abusive or neglectful parent.
• One or both of my parents is incarcerated or institutionalized.
• I have no contact with one or both parents.
• I am legally emancipated.

Immigration status:

• I am an undocumented immigrant.
• I am a U.S. citizen, but my parents are undocumented immigrants.