Is Parental Incarceration By Itself a Sufficient Reason For a Dependency Override?

No. The following is from Dear Colleague Letter GEN 23-11: "The [FAFSA Simplification] Act adds to the dependency override (DO) provision by noting that a DO may be warranted when a student is unable to contact their parents or when contact poses a risk to the student. Circumstances where contact is not possible or risky can include human trafficking (as described in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act); legally granted refugee or asylum status; parental abandonment; estrangement; or student or parent incarceration. However, incarceration by itself is not sufficient to make a student automatically independent. The financial aid administrator would need to determine that the student is unable to contact their parent(s) or that contact would pose a risk to the student."

Reference Section 480(d)(9) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA), as amended [20 USC 1087vv(d)(9)] and HEA 479A(a)(1) [20 USC 1087tt(a)(1)].