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Does receiving Social Security benefits make me a Ward of the Court?

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brophy

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Pennsylvania

I am currently 18 years old and attempting to file for student financial aid for college in 2008. My parents divorced in 1989 and my mother was given custody. When she died in 1999, my grandmother was given guardianship of myself and my siblings. My father does not have legal custody and I am not in contact with him. I have received about $1000 per month in SS since my mother's death (before I turned 18, it was in my grandmother's name); it will cease in June, when I graduate high school.

Does receiving these benefits qualify me as a Ward of the Court? I have been attempting to fill out my federal student aid forms as financially independent because I do not have access to my father's tax information and he refuses to contribute to my education. My grandmother, as a guardian, has no legal obligation to contribute. I am concerned to file as a Ward without a court document that directly states that I am, though I have heard that these checks would be viable proof.
 


Happy Trails

Senior Member
What is the name of your state? Pennsylvania

I am currently 18 years old and attempting to file for student financial aid for college in 2008. My parents divorced in 1989 and my mother was given custody. When she died in 1999, my grandmother was given guardianship of myself and my siblings. My father does not have legal custody and I am not in contact with him. I have received about $1000 per month in SS since my mother's death (before I turned 18, it was in my grandmother's name); it will cease in June, when I graduate high school.

Does receiving these benefits qualify me as a Ward of the Court? I have been attempting to fill out my federal student aid forms as financially independent because I do not have access to my father's tax information and he refuses to contribute to my education. My grandmother, as a guardian, has no legal obligation to contribute. I am concerned to file as a Ward without a court document that directly states that I am, though I have heard that these checks would be viable proof.

You will find information at the site below - follow the flow chart and see if that answers your question. If you are still not sure, consult with the finacial aid dept. of the college you plan to attend.

http://www.educationcoordinatingcouncil.org/Documents/Tools/Organizing%20Tools/FAFSA_Guardianship.pdf
 

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