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Undocumented College Students and Financial Aid: A Technical Note

In spring 2008, an issue over which I have been toiling away in obscurity for years became a matter of debate for the U.S. presidential candidates. On one side the Democrats were promoting college access for undocumented students; on the other, Republicans were all for locking them out of higher education (except Governor Huckabee, who in what I think was his finest hour said that we should not hold the sins of parents against their children). What was all the hullabaloo about? A number of states and their colleges and universities have been struggling with this issue, and ten states have acted to grant residency tuition to undocumented college residents in their states. There has been litigation in state and federal courts over this issue. Against this backdrop of state activity, the federal stage has also been bustling. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act was introduced in Congress in 2003 but has languished there, as comprehensive immigration reform efforts failed in late 2007. If passed, this legislation would allow "alien minors" to start on the path towards permanent residency and, ultimately, citizenship. It would also address, among other issues, amnesties or legalization and work authorization. Finally, an important provision would render DREAM students eligible for all federal financial-aid programs except Pell. But since the presidential campaigns began in earnest, the legislation has been stalled. In short, there has been a surprising amount of litigation and, recently, legislation on an issue that affects only a few students, but extremely vulnerable ones. In the states, advocates on both sides have engaged in efforts to get new provisions signed into law and to prevent them from becoming law. There is likely to be federal comprehensive immigration reform at some point, which will include provisions for undocumented college students to regularize their immigration status. In a related field, that of financial aid, there are some technical issues that affect undocumented college applicants, and citizen children whose parents may be undocumented. As a general rule, the undocumented are ineligible for federal financial aid, and in virtually all states, for state financial aid as well. Moreover, there are several technical and administrative problems that even citizen college applicants face in negotiating the complex financial aid application process. The U.S. Department of Education has issued verification guidance on "discrepant tax data" and "conflicting information" that has relevance to the treatment of undocumented college applicants or citizen applicants whose parents are undocumented. Studies indicate that many undocumented taxpayers pay taxes and file their tax returns, using ITIN's, and if they do so, those tax returns may be used by their citizen children to establish financial aid eligibility through the required FAFSA. This article reviews the overlapping regimes of financial aid, immigration, and taxation, with particular attention to he status of undocumented college students.