Purpose: These questions collect personal identification information (name, telephone number, address, Social Security number, and so on). Also included is a question about citizenship status because you must be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen to receive federal student aid.

Questions 1-13

1-3. Name. The Department matches each name and Social Security number (SSN) with the Social Security Administration (SSA). Therefore, the name provided here should match the name on your Social Security card. If you use a name (such as a nickname) other than the name on your Social Security card, you will be asked to correct the inconsistency, and there might be a delay in the awarding of your aid.

4-7. Permanent mailing address. You must give a permanent home mailing address (not a school or office address).

An incarcerated student may use his or her school's administrative address. If such a student uses a school's administrative address, the school's financial aid administrator (FAA) must include a letter with the FAFSA indicating that the student is incarcerated and is therefore using the school's address.

Use the State/Military Abbreviations list when entering your state. See the list below:

State/Military Abbreviations

Below are the Canadian Provinces:

8. Social Security number. Generally, you must have an SSN to be eligible for federal student financial aid. If you submit a FAFSA without an SSN, your FAFSA will be returned to you unprocessed. The Privacy Act statement gives information about how your SSN may be used.

To apply for an SSN or to get a replacement Social Security card if yours has been lost or stolen, contact your local Social Security office. For additional information (in English or Spanish), you can call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213 (1-800-325-0778 - TTY)—or go to its Web site at www.ssa.gov.

The one exception to the SSN requirement is for students from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau. If you are from one of these areas you are not required to have an SSN. Instead, the processor will assign an identification number to you that begins with "888." If you complete a FAFSA on the Web application, there is an edit that allows you to enter your identification number. Paper filers should mail the completed FAFSA to:

9. Your date of birth. Enter in the appropriate boxes of the paper FAFSA the month, day, and year in which you were born (formatted as MMDDYYYY). The "19" part of the year is pre-printed on the paper FAFSA. Do not use dashes on either the Web or paper applications. For example, if you were born on April 1, 1980, you would enter 04011980.

10. Your permanent telephone number. Enter your permanent telephone number where you can be contacted. Follow the instructions showing how to enter the number. For example, parentheses and dashes are used on the paper FAFSA: (202) 555-1212; however, on FAFSA on the Web, you would enter 2025551212.

11-12. Your driver's license number and state. You must provide your driver's license number (if any). If you do not have a driver's license, leave Questions 11 and 12 blank.

13. Your e-mail address. If you enter your e-mail address here the processor will be able to send you information electronically, such as notification that your FAFSA was processed. The FAFSA processor will send you an e-mail with a link to your SAR data on the Internet. By providing your e-mail address, the processor will be able to send you this information within 3 to 5 days. Using the paper process can take up to 2 to 3 weeks.