A student is NOT eligible for Federal Financial Aid if they have Citizenship Status that falls under one of the following categories below or if they are in the approval process for applying for permanent residence but have not received official confirmation of permanent residence status.

  • A nonimmigrant visa holder
  • A U-Visa holder
  • A temporary resident under the Legalization or Special Agricultural Worker program
  • In temporary protected status
  • In DACA status
  • In withholding of removal status
  • An illegal alien

Types of Eligible Citizenship Statuses 

  1. A U.S. citizen or a U.S. national

    • Born in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands or the U.S. Virgin Islands
    • Born overseas to a U.S. citizen
    • Designated a naturalized U.S. citizen or U.S. national
  2. A citizen of the Freely Associated States: Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands

    • Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands are eligible for Pell grants, but are not eligible for SEOG grants, Federal Student Aid (FSA)loans or work-study
    • Citizens of the Republic of Palau are eligible for Pell grants, SEOG grants and work-study, but are not eligible for FSA loans
  3. An eligible noncitizen

    • Lawful permanent resident (should have permanent resident card)
    • Conditional resident alien (should have alien registration number)
    • Refugee or asylee
    • Parolee for at least one year and in U.S. for other than temporary purposes
    • Cuban-Haitian entrant
    • Conditional entrant
    • Victim of human trafficking
    • Battered immigrant-qualified alien under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)


Citizenship Tips for FAFSA’s

 A student should provide their social security number (SSN) on the FAFSA if they have one. However, some non-citizens do not have SSNs.  In many cases, an eligible noncitizen without a social security number will instead have an alien registration number (ARN), which they’ll enter on their FAFSA to substantiate their qualifying status.  That said, some residents of freely associated states (Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands) may not have an SSN or an ARN.  If that is the case, these students will enter “666” for their social security number if this is their first time completing a FAFSA, after which they will be assigned a pseudo-SSN.  This pseudo-SSN will then be used for any future FAFSA applications they complete.

Typically, the Social Security Administration (SSA) is the only entity used in successful verifications of students’ social security numbers. 

However, if the student provides an alien registration number or uses a placeholder SSN (666), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is also used in the verifying process. 

If a copy of a State or Federal Id (Identification) is submitted, please be sure to submit a copy of BOTH Sides of the ID. 

If you are not eligible for Federal Financial Aid due to Citizenship Status, you are also NOT eligible for Federal Work Study.