Financial Aid Document Checklist

Half of the challenge with financial aid is gathering all of the relevant documents.

Below is a list of the documentation and paperwork you will need in order to fill out the FAFSA form, which is the primary federal financial aid document upon which most financial aid decisions are based.

All financial paperwork needs to be for the previous financial year. For example, if you’re planning to file for the 2022 FAFSA, you will need documentation from 2021.

Note: You may be required by your university or various scholarship organizations to provide other information not listed here.

Information you will need:

• Your Social Security Number (can be found on Social Security card)
• Your driver’s license or state ID (if any)
• Your W-2 Forms and other records of money earned
• Your (and your spouse’s, if you are married) 2004 Federal Income Tax Return – IRS Form 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ, 1040TeleFile, foreign tax return, or tax return for Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia
• Your parents’ Federal Income Tax Return (if you are a dependent student)
• Your untaxed income records – Social Security, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, welfare, or veterans benefits records
• Your current bank statements
• Your current business and investment mortgage information, business and farm records, stock, bond, and other investment records
• Your alien registration or permanent residence card (if you are not a U.S. citizen)

*Checklist courtesy of FAFSA