Trusts can be set up in a multitude of different ways, and some can be incredibly complex. If the student or parent is a beneficiary of a trust, you must report the value of their share of the trust as an asset on the FAFSA and the CSS Profile, regardless of when or whether you have access to its principal. The only circumstance in which you should not report the value of a trust is if there is a court-ordered restriction of access. The value is not always immediately clear, and we recommend reviewing this information to value your share of a trust for the purpose of applying for aid.
If the student or their parent is the beneficiary of a trust, Bowdoin requires the following documents as part of the student's financial aid application:
- Most recent trust tax return (Form 1041)
- Most recent Schedule K-1 (Form 1041) for each beneficiary in the student's household
- Most recent trust investment account statement
- Trust instrument
Please upload these documents via IDOC with all other required financial aid application materials.