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Free application for Federal Student Aid available soon; Reach Higher Montana offers help

Press release

The newest free application for Federal Student Aid will be available at http://www.fafsa.gov Oct. 1, so Montana students and families should prepare to complete this application before priority filing dates at Montana schools.

For most Montana postsecondary schools, the priority FAFSA filing date is Dec. 1.

Reach Higher Montana College Goal is an annual campaign to encourage FAFSA awareness and to help students and families complete the form that provides access to federal, and some state and institutional aid.

Reach Higher Montana is reaching out to Montana students and families to provide assistance through a variety of methods:

• One-on-one help

• Contact the Reach Higher Montana Advisor in your area, listed online at http://www.reachhighermontana.org

• Look for a FAFSA filing event at your local high school – check our calendar on our website

• Call FAFSA at 877-COLG4ME or 877-265-4463

• Social media

• Facebook — Reach Higher Montana

• Text messages — Text FAFSAHELP to 41411 to receive texts with FAFSA tips and deadline reminders.

In order to complete the FAFSA, students and parents should have the following information available:

• FSA ID — Get a Federal Student Aid ID at fsaid.ed.gov. Both the student and one parent, if the student is younger than 24, will need a FSA ID.

• Social Security numbers for both students and parents

• 2015 federal tax returns. People can utilize the IRS data retrieval tool but will need their tax returns for exact address information used.

• W-2s if the applicant did not file taxes

• Additional asset information such as savings and checking account balances, real estate excluding the home in which you live, money market funds, stocks, other investments

• Untaxed income information such as child support received, payments to retirement, health savings plans and tax-deferred pensions.

 

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