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Citizenship Requirements for Financial Aid Eligibility

Written by Mark Kantrowitz | Updated March 11, 2022

Federal student aid is available only to students who are U.S. Citizens, U.S. Nationals, U.S. Permanent Residents or one of a limited number of types of eligible noncitizens. Most state, college and private scholarship programs use similar criteria for their own financial aid programs.

U.S. Citizens

U.S. Citizens are eligible for federal student aid, regardless of the citizenship status of their parents.

Students who are U.S. citizens must provide their Social Security Number (SSN) on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). If their citizenship status is not associated with their Social Security Number, it will cause a data mismatch and they will need to update their records with the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Students from the Freely Associated States are not required to have a Social Security Number.

Dreamers (DACA students) are not eligible for federal student aid despite having a Social Security Number.

U.S. Nationals

U.S. Nationals are eligible for federal student aid.

Although all U.S. Citizens are U.S. Nationals, not all U.S. Nationals are U.S. Citizens. In particular, students born in American Samoa or Swains Island are U.S. Nationals and eligible for federal student aid even if they are not U.S. Citizens.

U.S. Permanent Residents

U.S. Permanent Residents, also known as green card holders, are eligible for federal student aid.

Note that the student must have received permanent resident status to be eligible for federal student aid. Students who have applied for permanent resident status but not yet received their green card are not yet eligible for federal student aid.

For example, students who have received notice of approval to apply for permanent resident status, who have a temporary resident card (Form I-688, Form I-688A or Form I-688B) or who have temporary protected status are not eligible for federal student aid.

Students who are permanent residents or eligible noncitizens must provide their Alien Registration Number (ARN) on the FAFSA. If the student’s Alien Registration Number has 8 digits, they should add a zero before the 8-digit number.

Eligible Noncitizens

Certain types of noncitizens are eligible for federal student aid.

Eligible noncitizens include students with one of the following statuses on their I-94 arrival-departure record from the Department of Homeland Security:

  • Refuge
  • Asylum Granted
  • Cuban-Haitian Entrant
  • Conditional Permanent Resident (e.g., has a Conditional Green Card I-551C)
  • Conditional Entrant (issued before 4/1/1980)
  • Parolee (valid for at least one year and status has not expired)
  • Victim of Human Trafficking (T visa)
  • Battered Immigrant Qualified Alien (and their children) admitted under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)
  • Citizen of the Freely Associated States (e.g., Federated States of Micronesia (FM), Republic of the Marshall Islands (MH), or Republic of Palau (PW))
  • Native American born in Canada but eligible under the terms of the Jay Treaty of 1789

Note that eligibility for federal student aid is limited for citizens of the Freely Associated States. Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands are eligible only for the Federal Pell Grant. Citizens of the Republic of Palau are eligible only for the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and Federal Work-Study (FWS).

If a student’s status has expired, they must renew that status before filing the FAFSA to be eligible for federal student aid.

Not Eligible

Students who are admitted to the U.S. under an A, B, C, D, E, F (F-1, F-2), G, H, I, J (J-1, J-2), K, L, M-1, N, NATO, O, P, Q, R, S, TN, TD, TROV, or V series visa are not eligible for federal student aid.

 

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About the author

Mark Kantrowitz is a nationally-recognized expert on student financial aid, scholarships and student loans. His mission is to deliver practical information, advice and tools to students and their families so they can make informed decisions about planning and paying for college. Mark writes extensively about student financial aid policy. He has testified before Congress and federal/state agencies about student aid on several occasions. Mark has been quoted in more than 10,000 newspaper and magazine articles. He has written for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Reuters, Huffington Post, U.S. News & World Report, Money Magazine, Bottom Line/Personal, Forbes, Newsweek and Time Magazine. He was named a Money Hero by Money Magazine. He is the author of five bestselling books about scholarships and financial aid, including How to Appeal for More College Financial Aid, Twisdoms about Paying for College, Filing the FAFSA and Secrets to Winning a Scholarship. Mark serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Student Financial Aid and the editorial advisory board of Bottom Line/Personal (a Boardroom, Inc. publication). He is also a member of the board of trustees of the Center for Excellence in Education. Mark previously served as a member of the board of directors of the National Scholarship Providers Association. Mark is currently Publisher of PrivateStudentLoans.guru, a web site that provides students with smart borrowing tips about private student loans. Mark has served previously as publisher of the Cappex.com, Edvisors, Fastweb and FinAid web sites. He has previously been employed at Just Research, the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Bitstream Inc. and the Planning Research Corporation. Mark is President of Cerebly, Inc. (formerly MK Consulting, Inc.), a consulting firm focused on computer science, artificial intelligence, and statistical and policy analysis. Mark is ABD on a PhD in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU). He has Bachelor of Science degrees in mathematics and philosophy from MIT and a Master of Science degree in computer science from CMU. He is also an alumnus of the Research Science Institute program established by Admiral H. G. Rickover.

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