Fee Assistance Program FAQs

To calculate your parent(s) family size, add ‘1’ for parent, ‘1’ for your parent’s spouse (if applicable), and ‘1’ for each dependent listed on your parent(s) IRS 1040 Federal Tax return for last year.

Household income is considered the total amount of monies received within a residence during the previous calendar year by an eligible parent and their spouse if applicable.

You should only include the number of dependents listed on your parent’s  IRS 1040 Federal Tax form. Do not include members of your family, or household, who your parents do not claim on their IRS 1040 Federal Tax form.

You can enter an estimated amount in this field. Fee Assistance Program staff will be able to enter the correct amount when they review your application and supporting documentation.

You can enter an estimated amount in this field. Fee Assistance Program staff will be able to enter the correct amount when they review your application and supporting documentation.

You can report this income by answering “Yes” to the question “Did your parent receive income from work or other sources while residing in a country outside the United States?” After selecting “Yes”, you will be able to enter the income in the data entry field labeled “Enter total Foreign Income received converted to US Dollars." You will need to convert the income you earned into US dollars and enter it in this line.

You will not be able to submit a Fee Assistance Program application with no income reported for your parent(s). If your parent(s) did not work, there may be other sources of income that you can provide:

• Financial Gifts of $200 or more
• Housing and food assistance provided by a friend or family member.  For example, if you lived in your parent(s) house without contributing to the mortgage or rent, your potential share of the mortgage or rent could be considered income.
• Income earned while residing in another country may not be reported to the IRS, but can be entered in the application.
• Social security benefits
• Federal, State and Local Welfare
• Child support
• Alimony or spousal support
• Income or Financial support from other sources not listed in the application.

No, all financial information reported must be from the previous tax year.

No, it is fine to put in an estimate of the income received. The Fee Assistance Program staff will make any corrections necessary when the supporting documentation is reviewed. It is important that you report income from all sources and that you do not enter an income that is significantly different than what your parent(s) actually received.

No, housing and food assistance should not be confused with any welfare program, or room and board provided through financial aid. Housing and food assistance is provided when a family member, or friend, provides free housing and groceries. For example, if a friend allowed your parent(s) to stay in a spare room in their apartment, without requiring rent, then your parent(s) received housing assistance.

To determine the value of the housing assistance, you would determine the amount your parent(s) would have paid in rent and multiply it by the number of months your parent(s) stayed with a friend or family member. For example, your parent(s) friend provides them with housing assistance by allowing them to stay in their apartment rent free. Their friend pays $800 a month for rent.If your parent(s) paid their share of that rent, they would owe $400 each month. Your parent(s) stayed in the apartment for 6 months. As this is the case, your parent(s) housing assistance would be the amount of the rent they would have paid ($400) X the number of months they stayed in the apartment (6). In this example, your parent(s) overall housing assistance is $2400 ($400 x 6 Months = $2400).

You will be required to report any form of income from the previous tax year. This requirement is built into the Fee Assistance Program application and you will not be permitted to move on to the next section until an amount is entered for one or more of the income categories listed.

If your parent(s) did not work, there may be other sources of income they can provide:

• Financial Gifts of $200 or more
• Housing and food assistance provided by a friend or family member.  For example, if you lived in your parent(s) house without contributing to the mortgage or rent, your potential share of the mortgage or rent could be considered income.
• Income earned while residing in another country may not be reported to the IRS, but can be entered in the application.
• Social security benefits
• Federal, State and Local Welfare
• Child support
• Alimony or spousal support
• Income or Financial support from other sources not listed in the application.

There are a number of consequences that can arise from providing false or inaccurate information:

Your application is denied upon submission. Providing inaccurate income amounts can result in a denial when you submit your application.  Make sure that you are providing the correct income amounts when you submit.

Your application may go into investigation.  Providing false information, such as falsely claiming that parents are deceased, or providing altered financial documentation, may result in an investigation.  Depending on the result of the investigation, you may no longer be eligible for Fee Assistance Program benefits.

You don’t receive important notifications.  If you entered an incorrect information email address, you will not receive notifications about your application.  Make sure that your information is correct – and current - before submitting.

The Application Summary section of your application will provide a detailed summary of the responses you gave in each section of the application. Review this section carefully. Prior to submission, you will have the ability to select the “edit” link to change inaccurate responses to any section of the application.