Making FAFSA Verification Easier
The FAFSA verification process is going to become simpler for families (and colleges) to complete after the 2011-2012 school year. The U.S. Department of Education has announced several changes taking effect after July 1, 2012. These are some of the main differences:| 2011-2012 | 2012-2013 | | 5 verification items are required for all applicants selected. | Items will be targeted to individual applicants. | | Disbursements must wait until verification process is complete. | Interim disbursements can be made if FAFSA changes would not affect amounts. | | Any student receiving federal student aid may be selected for verification. | Students who only receive unsubsidized Stafford loans will not be subjected to verification. | | The total number of applicants that must be verified by a school can be limited to 30% of students. | The 30% cap will be removed. |
The goal of these changes is to make the verification process accord with changes in technology and to reflect current policies adopted by the Department of Education.
For instance, the ability to import data online from a federal income tax return, reduces the amount of information needed for verification. At the same time, the Department wants to increase oversight and reduce fraud and abuse, so they are eliminating the 30% cap. Another clarification made about verification involves the use of "professional judgment" calls by financial aid administrators (which has been encouraged by the Department of Education). This often leads to an increase in aid, and it has now been made clear that these kinds of adjustments to federal aid can only happen after verification (if selected).
How FAFSA Verification Changes Affect You
Advantages- Verification will be easier to comply with. Less information will be required from families overall. Only those students whose FAFSAs are statistically likely to contain errors will be selected, and only the particular information that's needed must be supplied.
- There will be fewer delays in getting your funds disbursed. It will take less time to process (because fewer things will need to be checked) and if the information required does not affect the amount of your financial aid, you can still get your money on time.
- You will not be selected for verification if you only qualify for unsubsidized Stafford loans. This is the most common type of federal financial aid, and now it is the most streamlined, too.
Disadvantages- If you are eligible for a Pell grant or a subsidized Stafford loan, you will be more likely to be selected for FAFSA verification under the new rules, than you were under the old ones.
- If you go to a school that has a high percentage of their student body receiving Pell grants and subsidized loans, you are more likely to be selected for verification under the new rules (because of the elimination of the 30% cutoff).
- If you are selected for FAFSA verification, you may be forced to go through the verification process more than once. This is because of the targeting. If only one piece of data is requested (and completed) FAFSA corrections based on new information might generate a verification flag for another piece of data. Even a school codes change could trigger verification. This didn't happen as much, when all 5 items were requested at once for every selected applicant.
Items for FAFSA Verification 2012
| Item | Evidence | Household
size | signed statement listing names of household members, ages, and relationship to student | | Number in college | signed statement listing names, ages, school names of those enrolled, or school certifications | | AGI | ISIR code for IRS Data Retrieval, copy of the signed U.S. income tax return, signed IRS tax transcript | | Income tax paid | ISIR code for IRS Data Retrieval, copy of the signed U.S. income tax return, signed IRS tax transcript | | Untaxed income, benefits | for child support- a signed statement; IRA/Keogh (deferred compensation) and interest on tax-free bonds- tax return, alternative tax documents, or ISIR code for IRS Data Retrieval |
Also, these worksheets for 'household size' and 'number in college' may be used as the documentation for those items.Dependent Independent
FAFSA verification changes will make it easier for those selected after they file their initial FAFSA application. The redesigned FAFSA website makes it easier to file, update and correct your information. As long as you do not file the printable application your IRS information will be considered verifiable. However, even if you submitted to verification successfully, if the circumstances that caused your selection didn't change, the chances are good that you will again be selected when you renew FAFSA the next year.
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