Can owing back child support prevent a person from getting a pell grant?

I'm doing a research paper and I've tried looking it up in financial aid handbooks and online, and I'm not having any luck. Does anyone know?

No. There are a lot of things that schools and the government look at when determining a student's Pell eligibility -- but child support owed isn't one of them. On the OTHER hand, child support that you PAID can be reported on Worksheet C of the FAFSA and therefore can actually work in your favor when you apply for Federal Student Aid. Another good reason to do the right thing and pay up!

You might have a little bit of touble finding this in the Federal Student Aid Handbook, though. The Handbook is full enough with all the things that we HAVE to look for that they don't take up room with the things we don't have to check. If you need to cite a source, try the Student Eligibility volume of the most recent FSA handbook: http://www.ifap.ed.gov/sfahandbooks/0607...

Yes

No. The money for PELL grants is not able to have a lien on it because it is there to advance you in life, so you can pay your debts. But remember that you must file your taxes in order to fill out a FAFSA. So, if a person files for back child support, they can have it taken straight from the loser's taxes. This might be more money than they would have gotten in Pell Grants!

i would expect so..

no if your intitled to the grant the fact you owe money elsewhere makes no difference

yes it can

Yes, it can.

Defaulted loans, liens, anything like that, providing it has brought to a collection agency. Any type of collection on the person (or even the parents if its a loan on the students behalf for school) will affect their eligibility for a pell grant, and many other types of grants as well.

It's like saying, you don't have any money, and you are attempting to get educated so you can get out of that, but instead we are going to put you more in debt and make it even harder for you to get an education.

That's why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. It's a lousy system, and I hope your paper is trying to change that, one word at a time.

my daughter owed thousands of dollars in arrears and she still was able to receive a pell grant.Go to a local community college and talk with the financial aid people and they will be able to tell you more