For those families who want to file a FAFSA early, before completing your 2011 tax return, you may complete it now online. Follow the link in the lower right corner of the website.

Remember, when you file as an estimate, you will be subject to verification. Colleges will request your completed tax return and you will need to send them a copy in order for an award letter to be issued.

Since you have to sign the document with PINS, it is always wise to obtain your PINS in advance. Follow the link at the lower right of the website to obtain these PINS. The student must have a PIN and one parent must have one. If you obtain a PIN, it can be used each year. If you have a PIN as a parent of another child or for yourself (if you filed for aid as a college student), that PIN should be used.

Let’s examine the 2012-2013 FAFSA and highlight some important items.

1) The FAFSA filed is the students. When the form uses the pronoun you, it is referring to the student. Make certain you place student information only in the student’s section and parent’s information in the parent’s section.

2) The first section of the FAFSA is the student demographic data including questions about the high school that the student attends.

3) Immediately after this section, the form will ask you to list the colleges that should receive these results. All colleges applied to and ones that the student might apply to should be listed.

4) The next set of questions is used to determine if the student can qualify to file as an independent student, thus eliminating the parent from filing. To further understand this option, you might want to view the video, Avoiding Misconceptions.

5) The parent demographic section is next. The key to this section is to understand, in a divorced family, whose income should be reported. Once again, view the video on Avoiding Misconceptions.

6) Income sections are based on adjusted gross income and earned income from 2011. Untaxed income categories are listed separately as are exemptions from income.

7) The reporting of assets is much clearer on the 2012-2013 FAFSA. Cash, savings and checking accounts are reported separately. All other savings and investments to be reported are requested on a separate question with the categories of those investments listed on a drop down box on the right. You will notice that all UTMA/UGMA/ 529 pre-pay tuition programs, and 529 college savings accounts should be listed in the parent investments section, not the students…even if it is owned by the student. This is an important distinction! View the seminar on the Variables that Drive the EFC number. You will learn that assets listed as parents have a much lower impact on EFC then assets listed as students.

All in all I am very pleased with how easy the FAFSA is to complete. You shouldn’t have any problems filing it.