Loss of Parental Income
When there is a significant change in a family’s financial circumstances, recent income for the current tax year may be a more reliable indicator of future earnings than the base year information used to fill out the CSS Profile™ and FAFSAThe Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is used to determine eligibility for state and federal grants, scholarships, and loans. The FAFSA can be completed on the Federal Student Aid website. applications.
BU Financial Assistance considers requests to use recent year income in determining aid eligibility on a case-by-case basis for the spring semester only. We cannot use recent year income for Fall Appeals or for appeals for admitted students as it is still too early in the tax year for us to project the full year.
Documentation required may include:
- Explanation of the loss of income
- Dates of employment and unemployment over the calendar year
- Documentation of income earned over the calendar year
- Documentation of any non-recurring income, such as severance/separation benefits
- Documentation of any unemployment, retirement, disability, or temporary disability benefits
- Documentation of any other taxable or non-taxable income or resources
- Documentation of applicable out-of-pocket medical expenses exceeding 4% of income
- Documentation of any insurance or pension benefits
If your tax returns include business income, we cannot project the full year and must wait until tax forms are available in order to review changes in income during the recent tax year.
Specific Documentation Requirements
Unemployment
If a parent has lost their job, resulting in a significant change in household finances, submit a letter explaining circumstances, with supporting documentation such as:
- A letter from the former employer, verifying the last date of employment and any severance/separation benefits paid to the employee
- The final pay statement from the employer
- The most recent or last pay statements for each parent, for all jobs held during the calendar year
- A statement from the unemployment office, verifying amount of unemployment benefits received/expected, and the date through which the parent is eligible to receive those benefits
- Documentation and explanation of any other taxable or non-taxable income and resources, such as interest or dividend income
- Documentation of any amount withdrawn from a pension, IRA, or retirement plan, indicating whether it is taxable or non-taxable, and including the remaining amount available in the account
- Family Budget Worksheet
Retirement
If parent retirement is in advance of the traditional retirement age as defined by the social security administration (67) then this is considered discretionary and we are unable to consider this change in income as a basis for a need-based financial aid appeal.
If you are retiring at the retirement age we can review an appeal based on changes to your annual income once tax documents are available for the tax year of change. Please upload your updated income documentation with the Request for Financial Aid Reconsideration Form. If the change is for the current tax year, then we will not be able to review this change until the spring semester once tax documentation is available.
Long-Term Illness or Disability
If a parent’s long-term illness or disability has caused a significant change in household finances, submit a letter of explanation, with supporting documentation such as:
- A letter from an employer or a doctor, indicating the length of the expected disability or absence from work
- The most recent or last pay statement for each parent, for all jobs held during the calendar year
- Documentation of any short-term, long-term, or permanent disability insurance, including Social Security benefits
- Documentation and explanation of any other taxable or non-taxable income and resources, such as interest or dividend income
- Documentation of any amount withdrawn from a pension, IRA, or retirement plan, indicating whether it is taxable or non-taxable, and including the remaining amount available in the account
- Documentation of applicable out-of-pocket medical expenses exceeding 4% of income
- Family Budget Worksheet
Death of a Dependent Student's Parent
In the case of the death of one parent, the income, household, and asset information of the surviving parent is used to determine eligibility for aid. Documentation required to determine the above may include:
- The date of death (usually, a copy of the death certificate is required)
- The last or most recent pay statement of the surviving parent, for all jobs held during the calendar year
- Documentation and explanation of any other taxable or non-taxable income and resources, such as interest or dividend income
- Documentation of any insurance benefits the parent or student receives
- Documentation of any pension or retirement benefits
- Documentation of any changes in assets, such as trust funds or proceeds from the estate
- Documentation of any real estate assets which are contested or held in probate, including information about the party responsible for them
