Continuing Students

Continuing Students: November 1, 2023

Transfer Applicants: April 1, 2024

An official, valid FAFSA is required of all students who intend to apply for federal or institutional financial aid.

Make sure you include Holy Cross' federal school code (002141) on the FAFSA to ensure that we receive your data. It is recommended that you file the FAFSA online, or you may acquire a paper FAFSA by calling 1-800-4-FED-AID and submitting it via mail to the processing agency.

• The IRS DRT will be available to allow you and your parents to upload your filed 2021 federal tax return data directly to your FAFSA. This tool is the best and easiest way to provide accurate income information on the FAFSA. 
  • You and your parents are ineligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool if you:
    • Filed an amended 2021 federal tax return
    • Did not file a 2021 federal tax return
    • Are married but have filed separately
    • Filed a foreign tax return (including Puerto Rico)

In the event your FAFSA is randomly selected for Federal Verification, your taxable income must be verified by using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. If you and/or your parents are not eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when updating your FAFSA, the U.S. Department of Education requires our office to collect a Tax Return Transcript processed by the IRS. Please note that parents who are married but file separately must submit two separate IRS transcripts. Transcripts are not required for those filing a foreign or Puerto Rican tax return. 

You may request a Tax Return Transcript online, by phone at 1-800-908-9946, or via paper request using the 4506-T. (The Financial Aid Office's address should be included on line 5 of form 4506-T.)

If your parent(s) did not file a federal tax return in 2021, and your FAFSA is selected for Federal Verification, they are required to submit an IRS Verification of Non-filing Letter which they can request from the IRS online just as you request a Tax Return Transcript.

In addition, you are required to submit the 2023-2024 Verification Worksheet(PDF). This worksheet must be completed, signed by the student and parent, and submitted along with all other documents to IDOC. Please be advised that your application for financial aid will be considered incomplete until we receive this and all requested documents necessary to complete the verification process.

Continuing Students: November 1, 2023

Transfer Applicants: April 1, 2024

This application is required if you wish to be considered for Holy Cross need-based grants and scholarships

The CSS Profile is free for all domestic undergraduate students whose family Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) is $100,000 dollars or less

You can begin the online application process by creating a College Board account (if you don't already have one).  You may then complete the entire CSS Profile in one sitting, or you may choose to save it and return to it later. 

Returning students are not required to submit a CSS Profile for the noncustodial parent(s), nor submit their tax documentation to IDOC.  We will carry forward the calculated noncustodial parental contribution used last year.  However, if you would like a reassessment of the noncustodial parent contribution, please follow the instructions below.

If your parents are separated, divorced, or never married and NOT living together, both of your biological/adoptive parents will complete their own CSS Profile. Each parent will access the CSS Profile with different log-in credentials. The noncustodial parent will need to create a College Board account before providing his/her information.  It's highly recommended that the student and custodial parent complete the CSS Profile first, as the noncustodial parent cannot submit information until the student selects a school that requires the submission of noncustodial parent information. 

If your noncustodial parent's information was waived last year due to special circumstances, you do not need to submit another waiver request.

Complete copies of actual federal tax returns (i.e. 1040 Form) including all schedules, W-2 wage statements, all business tax returns (i.e. partnership, s-corporation, corporate), schedules, and K-1s must be submitted for both the parent(s) (custodial and noncustodial) and student to the College Board's Institutional Documentation Service (IDOC) by November 1 for continuing students and by April 1 for transfer applicants.

You will receive instructions after you have completed the CSS Profile application online on how to submit your documents to IDOC. 

If either you and/or your parent(s) do NOT file a federal tax return, you must download, complete, and submit to IDOC a Non-Tax Filer's Statement(PDF).  In addition, except for dependent students, confirmation of non-filing from the IRS or other relevant tax authority dated on or after October 1, 2022 is required.  Please visit the IRS.gov website to request a Verification of Non-filing Letter.