Applying for Aid · Getting Your PIN · The FAFSA Application · Your Student Aid Report · Helpful Hints · Verification of Information · Dependent vs. Independent · Special Circumstances · Frequently Asked Questions

You may apply for federal and state financial aid by completing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA is available beginning January 1 each year for the upcoming academic year. Typically, two application years are available and being processed at any given time, so please use care in completing the FAFSA for the correct academic year.

The FAFSA may be submitted with estimated tax and income information. Once taxes have been filed (beginning February 1, 2012), you and your parent(s) may use the IRS Data Retrieval tool. Using this tool will help speed up the application process. If the IRS Data Retrieval tool is not used, the IRS tax transcript may be required if you are selected for verification. Copies of the tax return will no longer be accepted for verification purposes and the tax transcript will be required.

You may choose one of these three methods to file a FAFSA:

Apply on-line
You can apply on-line at www.fafsa.ed.gov. FAFSA on the Web is a quick and easy way to apply for aid. It immediately identifies potential errors and prompts you to make corrections.

Before you file, we recommend you complete a FAFSA on the Web Worksheet. This worksheet provides assistance in collecting the required information before you complete the FAFSA on the Web. The worksheet can be downloaded from the FAFSA website.

The following information is needed prior to filing your FAFSA on the Web:

• Your SSN
• Parents' SSN if you are a dependent student
• Your driver's license number (if you have one)
• Your Alien Registration Number if you are not a US citizen
• Your W-2 forms and any other records of money earned
• Your Federal Income Tax Return (or use the IRS Data Retrieval tool)
• Your parents Federal Income Tax Return if you are a dependent student (or use the IRS Data Retrieval tool)
• Untaxed income records, such as social security benefits, welfare, child support received, for example
• Bank statements

Lane has many computers around campus that have internet access if you are interested in applying electronically.

Complete a PDF FAFSA
The PDF FAFSA is available for you to print and fill out manually or is screen-fillable. It must be mailed for processing to the address printed on the FAFSA application.

Complete a Paper FAFSA
If you do not have internet access, you can obtain a paper FAFSA application by calling the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).