Tax return and financial aid?

Your tax return helps show that the amounts you've reported from earnings is accurate.

Yes, you are expected to put some of your income towards the cost of your education.

The amount of your entire family unit's income, as evidenced by the tax returns, will impact your eligibility for financial aid. Some types is needs based so if your family income is too high it will reduce or eliminate it altogether. Other types, is not needs based so it will have less effect on your eligibility.

Consult with the financial aid office at your school for complete details.

Just to clarify a possible point of confusion: A tax return is the form you file with the IRS that lists your income, exemptions, deductions, etc and calculates your tax liability and net amount due or refund due. Any money you get back from the IRS is not a "return", it's a REFUND. The amount of any REFUND is not relevant to your FAFSA package; all they need is the family income usually as evidenced by copies of your and your parent(s) tax return(s).

Each year, there's a limit where if you made more than that, you are legally required to file. For 2009 it was $5700 if you're a dependent and $9350 if you aren't. The previous three years were a little lower limit - a few hundred dollars different each year. If you made more, you were required to file, but if your jobs were places like BK and walmart, you didn't file, made over the limit, and didn't hear from the IRS about it, most likely you had a refund coming if you had filed If ou didn't file for those years, send from 4506-T to the IRS and request a verification of non-filing for those years, and give that to FAFSA. No you won't get in trouble.

If you really mean your return, the form you fill out showing your income for the year, yes that affects what student aid you are eligible for.

If you are talking about your refund, that doesn't affect it since it's just giving you some of your own money back.

I don't think it is the amount of your return that matters, it is your earnings for the year.