dc328c1b_ership__In_Whose_Name_to_Save___Financial_Aid_Treatment
[Savings Vehicle] Coverdell Education Savings Account (formerly Education IRA) [Comments] If the child is the account owner, it counts as a child asset. If a parent is the account owner, it counts as a parent asset. In most cases the child is the account owner. Distributions do not affect eligibility (i.e., distributions do not count as income or a resource). (See GEN-04-02.) Custodial Coverdell ESAs owned by a student, where the student is both the account owner and beneficiary, are reported as a parent asset if the child is a dependent student and a student asset if the student is an independent student. This treatment is effective with the 2009-10 award year due to a legislative change enacted in the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007. If the Coverdell ESA is owned by a grandparent or other third party, it is not reported as an asset on the FAFSA, but any distributions are reported as untaxed income to the beneficiary on the subsequent year's FAFSA. [Financial Aid Treatment] 
asset of account owner (high impact if student owner; low impact if parent owner; high impact if owned by a third party)
FinAid | Saving for College | Account Ownership: In Whose Name to Save?
Financial Aid Treatment