If you can answer NO to all of the following questions, you are considered a dependent student:
- Were you born before January 1, 1987?
- Are you married?
- Do you have any dependents?
- Are you in the military?
- Are you a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces?
- Are you homeless?
If you are considered a dependent student, you will need to provide your parents’ demographic and financial information.
If you can answer YES to any of the questions above, you are considered an independent student and information about your parents is NOT required on the FAFSA.
If your parents are separated or divorced, use the information of the parent whom you lived with the most during the past 12 months or failing that, the parent who provided you with the most support.1
For the 2012-2013 academic year, the definition of an “independent student” will be expanded to include an unaccompanied youth who is either homeless or at risk of homelessness at any time on or after July 1, 2011.
References- Source: FastWeb.com [↩]