Notes for questions 38-40 (page 2)
Enter “Yes” if you received a determination at any time on or after July
1, 2019, that you were an unaccompanied youth who was homeless or
at risk of being homeless.
• Homeless - means lacking fixed, regular, and adequate housing,
which includes living in shelters, motels, or cars, or temporarily
living with other people because you had nowhere else to go.
• Unaccompanied - means you are not living in the physical custody
of your parent or guardian.
• Youth - means you are 21 years of age or younger or you are still
enrolled in high school as of the day you sign this application.
Answer “No” if you are not homeless or at risk of being homeless,
or if you do not have a determination. You should contact your
financial aid office for assistance if you do not have a
determination but believe you are an unaccompanied youth who
is homeless or are an unaccompanied youth providing for your
own living expenses who is at risk of being homeless.
SECTION THREE: PARENT INFORMATION
Notes for questions 41-56 (page 3)
Question 41 and 43-56. Report your legal parents’ marital status as of the
date you sign your TASFA (enter married if they are separated but not
divorced). If your parents’ marital status changes after you sign your TASFA,
check with your financial aid office at your institution.
• If your parent was never married and does not live with your other legal
parent, select "Never Married." If your pa
rent is widowed and not
remarried, select "Widowed." In these two cases, only answer questions
43-49.
• If your legal parents (biological, adoptive, or as determined by the state
[for example, if the parent is listed on the birth certificate]) are not
married to each other and live together, select “Unmarried and both
parents living together” and answer questions 43-56 about both parents
regardless of their gender. Do not include any person who is not married
to your parent and who is not a legal or biological parent.
•
•
If your legal parents are married, select “Married or remarried.” If
your legal parents are divorced but living together, select
“Unmarried and both parents living together.” If your legal parents
are separated but living together, select “Married or remarried,”
not “Divorced or separated.” Answer questions 43-56 about both
parents.
If your legal parents are divorced or separated, select “Divorced or
separated," and answer questions 43-49 about the parent you lived
with more during the past 12 months. (If you did not live with one
parent more than the other, give answers about the parent who
provided more financial support during the past 12 months or most
recent year that you received support from a parent.) For instance,
if you feel the support was equal (50/50), list information for the
parent that provided at least 51% (slightly more) of your support for
the year. If this parent is remarried as of today, select “Married or
remarried,” and answer questions 43-56 about that parent and your
stepparent.
• If your widowed parent is remarried as of today, select “Married
or remarried,” and answer questions 43-56 about that parent and
your stepparent.
Question 42. Enter the month and year of your parents’ marital status
selected in question 41. If your parents have never been married, remarried,
separated, divorced, or widowed, mark “N/A.”
SECTION FOUR: INCOME INFORMATION
PART A. EARNINGS
Notes for questions 57 and 58 (page 3)
Question 57 and 62. Indicate whether you, your spouse, and/or your
parent(s) worked anytime from January 1, 2018 through December 31,
2018.
Question 58 and 63. Enter 2018 earnings (wages, salaries, tips, etc.), even
if a tax return was not filed. This information may be on the W-2 forms or
on the tax return: IRS Form 1040—line 1 + Schedule 1, lines 12 + 18, + Box
14 (Code A) of IRS Schedule K-1 (Form 1065). If any individual earning item
on these tax forms is negative, do not include that item in your calculation.
In order to accurately assess your financial situation, your institution
needs to account for all sources of income. In cases where your family’s
earnings from employment are at or above the IRS filing threshold
requirements, the financial aid office will require that you file taxes before
processing your TASFA. Tax filing requirements can be found in IRS
Publication 17, Table 1-1: 2018 Filing Requirements for Most Taxpayers.
See https://www.irs.gov/uac/About-Publication-17.
Nontax filers: If you (and your spouse) and/or your parent(s) did not file
taxes, contact the financial aid office to see if additional information is
needed.
Notes for questions 59 and 60 (page 3)
Notes for questions 64 and 65 (page 3)
Question 59 and 64. Indicate whether you, your spouse, and/or your
parent(s) have completed a federal or foreign tax return for 2018. If “Yes,”
you will be required to submit documents to your financial aid office (e.g.,
tax returns, tax transcripts, W-2s).
Question 60 and 65. Enter an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number
(ITIN) for you, your spouse, and/or your parent(s), if used to file a 2018 tax
return. Note: Mark N/A if an ITIN was not used to file a 2018 tax return.
Notes for question 61 (page 3)
Notes for question 66 (page 3)
In general, a person may be considered a dislocated worker if
he or she:
• is receiving unemployment benefits due to being laid off or losing a
job and is unlikely to return to a previous occupation;
• has been laid off or received a lay-off notice from a job; was
self-employed but is now unemployed due to economic
conditions or natural disaster; or
• is the spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces
and has experienced a loss of employment because of
relocating due to permanent change in duty station; or
• is the spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces
and is unemployed or underemployed, and is experiencing
difficulty in obtaining or upgrading employment; or
• is a displaced homemaker. A displaced homemaker is
generally a person who previously provided unpaid services
to the family (e.g., a stay-at-home mom or dad), is no longer
supported by the spouse, is unemployed or underemployed,
and is having trouble finding or upgrading employment.
2020-21 Texas Application for State Financial Aid (TASFA) Notes Page 7
Notes for questions 62 and 63 (page 3)
