Frequently Asked Questions

Students are selected for verification for a number of reasons. Generally, students are more likely to be selected for verification if the information on the FAFSA is incomplete, inconsistent, or if the information entered was only estimated. Students are selected by the Department of Education at random, and Shenandoah University does not have control over who or how often students are chosen for verification. If a student is selected for institutional verification it is likely to do with the following factors: their dependency status, income falling at or below poverty guidelines, inconsistent tax or FAFSA information, or other conflicting information received by the Office of Financial Aid.

All students who are selected for verification will notified on their Student Aid Report (SAR) which is the report provided to the student after their FAFSA has been processed. Typically it will be listed at the top of the SAR under the section “Comments about your information”. The Student Aid Report email is sent from FAFSA/The Department of Education and not the Office of Financial Aid.

Students will also be sent an email from the Office of Financial Aid when they complete their FAFSA instructing them to log into their Self-Service to view any outstanding verification documents. All verification documents can be accessed via Self-Service, on our website, or in person.

If a student’s FAFSA has been selected for verification, they are highly encouraged to submit the requested documentation as soon as possible. The priority deadline for submitting verification documents is June 15th. Submitting documents by the priority deadline of June 15th will allow the Office of Financial Aid ample time to process the verification so that financial aid will be reflected accurately on the student’s bill. Students who submit documents after this priority deadline will be processed in the order which they are received. Please keep in mind the verification process typically takes between 4-6 weeks. These documents may include (but are not limited to):

• Verification Worksheet
• Tax Return Transcript
• W-2 Forms
• Monthly Expense Worksheet
• Dependency Status Documents
• Marital Status Information
• Social Security Card
• Proof of Citizenship/Permanent Resident Card

Other documents may be needed for verification or to resolve conflicting information. The type of documents required will vary from student to student, as not all students selected for verification will have to submit the same documents.

No. Please do not send any documentation to the Office of Financial Aid if you were not selected for verification. The Office of Financial Aid is required to review all documentation received and resolve any conflicting information. Submission of unrequested documents may result in a student being selected for verification and may delay their financial aid from being processed.

It is not recommended for students to update their FAFSA or make any corrections after it has been submitted unless advised to do so by a Financial Aid Counselor. The Office of Financial Aid has the ability to make corrections on a student’s FAFSA and will do so when necessary. All students will be notified via email when changes have been made. Typically, the updated FAFSA information will be sent back to the Office of Financial within 5-7 business days after corrections are made.

If a student or parent needs to make corrections to their FAFSA they will need to log onto fafsa.gov, enter their FSA ID, and choose “Make FAFSA corrections”.

Students under the age of 24 working toward their first bachelor’s degree are classified as a dependent student for financial aid purposes. These students are required to enter parental information on the FAFSA.

To be considered an Independent student, a student must meet one of the following criteria:

• will be 24 or older by December 31 of the school year for which you are applying for aid;
• is married as of the date the FAFSA is submitted;
• At the beginning of the school year, the student will be working on a master’s or doctorate program (such as an M.A., M.B.A., M.D., J.D., Ph.D., Ed.D., graduate certificate, etc.);
• is currently serving on active duty in the U.S. armed forces for purposes other than training, (If you are a National Guard or Reserves enlistee, is on active duty for other than state or training purposes);
• is a veteran of the United States Armed Forces;
• have children who will receive more than half of their support from the student between July 1 and June 30 of the awarding year;
• at any time since the student turned age 13, both of their parents were deceased, the student was in foster care, or was a dependent or ward of the court;
• it has been determined by a court in the student’s state of legal residence that they are an emancipated minor or that they are in a legal guardianship;
• at any time on or after July 1, 2016, the student was determined to be an unaccompanied youth who was homeless or were self-supporting and at risk of being homeless, as determined by (a) their high school or district homeless liaison, (b) the director of an emergency shelter or transitional housing program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or (c) the director of a runaway or homeless youth basic center or transitional living program.

If the student fully meets any one of the items listed above, they are considered Independent for financial aid purposes. The Office of Financial Aid has the ability to institutionally select students for verification if they answered “Yes” to one of the above questions.  If a student is selected based on their dependency status, they must provide all necessary documentation to the Office of Financial Aid as soon as possible. 

The U.S. Department of Education gives the following definition:

• Legal Parent: The dependent student’s biological or adoptive parent;
• Married: Spouses, regardless of gender, considered legally married in the state or other jurisdiction in which the marriage took place; 
• Separated: Spouses who consider themselves no longer married for an indefinite period of time or have a legal declaration of separation;
  • Note: Separated spouses living together must report their marital status as “Married or remarried” on the FAFSA.
• Divorced: Former spouses declared no longer married by a court of law.
  • Note: Divorced spouses or parents who were never married and are living together must report their marital status as “Unmarried and both parents living together” on the FAFSA.

The date the student signs the FAFSA represents their current situation at that point in time. Same-sex couples must report their marital status as married if they were legally married in a state or other jurisdiction (foreign country) that permits same-sex marriage. If a student’s marital status changes after they submit the FAFSA, they may contact the Office of Financial Aid for further guidance.

The student is required to submit all requested documents within 30 days of being selected but no later than 10 days before the current semester concludes. If the Office of Financial Aid does not receive the documents, the student’s financial aid may be cancelled.

Students are strongly encouraged to submit documents requested as soon as possible to the Office of Financial Aid. Shenandoah University is required to inform students of the consequences should they fail to provide all requested documents: Federal and state need-based financial aid will not be disbursed until verification is completed.

If a student does not provide the necessary documents to the Office of Financial Aid by the fourth week of the semester, all of their Federal, State, Institutional financial aid, and student loans may be cancelled. Any tuition, fees and late charges will be the student’s responsibility.

After a student has completed the verification process, they will be notified if their financial aid award package has changed. There is no guarantee that it will, or will not change a student’s financial aid eligibility for that school year. Each student’s situation is different, therefore if you have any questions you are advised to speak with the Office of Financial Aid.

Students can submit documents to the Office of Financial Aid in person, by mail, or fax. Make sure all documents being submitted have the student’s name and student ID for identification purposes, as well as signatures when requested. Also please feel free to contact our office if you have any questions.

In Person:

Monday – Friday: 9:00am to 5:00pm

SU Office of Financial Aid – Wilkins Building

1460 University Drive, Winchester, VA 22601

 

Email:

finaid@su.edu

 

Fax:

(540) 665-4939

Note: Some verification documents may only be submitted in person or by mail.  Also, remember to protect your privacy please redact your social security number on documents submitted via fax or electronically. Please check with the Office of Financial Aid if you have any questions

All applicants should try to retrieve their tax information directly into the FAFSA from the IRS Data Retrieval Tool. Applicants who do not utilize the IRS Data Retrieval Tool and who are selected for verification will be required to submit an IRS Tax Return Transcript to the Financial Aid Office. This may delay the processing of a student’s financial aid. Within the FAFSA application, the applicant must report wage and income information.

There are certain times where students and parents are not given the option to utilize the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.  If you are unable to view or link your tax information using the DRT, you must submit a Tax Return Transcript to the Office of Financial Aid.   

Do not make any changes to the IRS information once it has been retrieved. Doing so will render the retrieved data invalid, and you will be institutionally selected for verification.

Note: If you utilize the DRT, please be aware you will receive notification in the mail stating your taxes have been accessed.  If you receive this notice in the mail, but did not attempt or use the DRT – please contact the IRS immediately.

Beginning in the 2018-2019 school year students/parent(s) will no longer be able to view specific data that was retrieved from the IRS using the DRT. This has been implemented to protect highly sensitive income and tax information. If you have any questions or concerns in regards to this, please visit Federal Student Aid for additional information.

A Tax Return Transcript comes directly from the IRS and contains a number of line items from a student’s federal tax return. The federal government currently only accepts official Tax Return Transcripts from the IRS to verify financial information on the FAFSA. To avoid having to order a Tax Return Transcript, the IRS Data Retrieval is highly recommended when completing the FAFSA.

The Tax Return Transcript is free and can be ordered online, by mail, or by phone. If a student is required to provide this tax transcript and they did not originally link with the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, they may log back into the FAFSA and try to link in order to avoid having to get this document from the IRS. It is important that the student’s address and name used on their tax return matches the address they enter into the IRS Data Retrieval Tool for successful linking to occur. A Tax Return Transcript may be obtained online or by mail through the IRS’s website.

• To obtain online: Click on “Get My Tax Record” from the website provided above. Students will then need to set up an account with the IRS in order to retrieve their transcripts.  To do so, they will need to provide a personal account number from a credit card, car loan, mortgage, home equity loan, or line of credit in order to verify their identity.
• To obtain via mail: Click on “Get My Tax Record” from the website provided above.  Students will then need to enter personal identifying information such as: name, address, SSN, and DOB.
• If ordering by phone, call 1-800-908-9946 and follow the instructions.

Dependent Students

• If a student did not file a Federal Tax Return, and they are not required to do so by the IRS, then they must self-certify this information on the verification worksheet provided by The Office of Financial Aid. (These students are not required to submit a Verification of Non-filing letter)
  • If a student worked, but did not file in the tax year they are still required to provide a copy of all W2’s to the Office of Financial Aid.

Independent Students

• If a student did not file a Federal Tax Return, and they are not required to do so by the IRS, then they must submit a Verification of Non-filing letter. The student must also self-certify this information on the verification worksheet provided by The Office of Financial Aid.
  • If a student worked, but did not file in the tax year they are still required to provide a copy of all W2’s to the Office of Financial Aid.

Parent(s) of Dependent Students

• If parent(s) of a dependent student did not file a Federal Tax Return, and they are not required to do so by the IRS, then they must submit a Verification of Non-filing letter. The parent(s) must also self-certify this information on the verification worksheet provided by The Office of Financial Aid.
  • If parent(s) worked, but did not file in the tax year they are still required to provide a copy of all W2’s to the Office of Financial Aid.

The Verification of Non-filing letter is confirmation from the IRS that an individual did not file a tax return. If an individual is uncertain whether they should file a tax return, they should visit the IRS website.

To obtain an IRS Verification of Non-filing letter online or by mail:

• Go to the Get Transcript section of the IRS’s website and click on “Get Transcript by MAIL.” The student will be instructed to list their social security number, date of birth, street address, and zip code. After that is complete, they will be presented with different options for ordering a transcript. Select “Return Transcript.” Select the tax year in which you are submitting documentation for.

OR

• Download the IRS Form 4506-T and follow the instructions on the form.

Students must self-certify this information on the verification worksheet provided by The Office of Financial Aid. The student/parent must submit the IRS Verification of Non-Filing Letter, as well as a copy of all W-2 forms received for the year. (Please see rules listed above in regards to the Verification of Non-Filing and W-2 requirements).

• A copy of IRS Form 4868, ‘‘Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return,’’ that the individual filed with the IRS for the tax year (IRS Record of Account transcript can be used in lieu of Form 4868);
• If applicable, a copy of the IRS’s approval of an unexpired extension beyond the automatic six-month extension if the individual requested an additional extension of the filing time for the tax year;
• A copy of the tax filer’s IRS Form W–2 for each source of employment income received for the tax year;

AND

• If self-employed, a signed statement certifying the amount of AGI and U.S. income tax paid for the tax year.

Once the student/parent(s) have filed their taxes, they are required to submit all tax information to the Office of Financial Aid to complete the verification process. All financial aid for the student will be placed on a hold status until the Office of Financial Aid has received and processed official tax documents.

If the student/spouse or parent(s) filed an IRS Form 1040X Amended Tax Return, the “Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return,” they must submit the following:

• An IRS Tax Return Transcript that includes information from the original tax return

AND 

• A signed copy of the IRS Form 1040X (the “Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return”) that was filed with the IRS;
• A copy of all W-2’s for the applicable tax year

*NOTE: If you filed an amended return, you will likely not receive the option to link with the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.

The Office of Financial Aid requires W-2 forms in order to ensure accuracy of all tax and income information entered on a student’s FAFSA.

If a student has been a victim of identity theft and has been selected for verification, federal regulations will not allow them to obtain tax information through the use of the IRS Data Retrieval Tool or to receive an IRS Tax Return Transcript until the matter has been resolved by the IRS.

• Contact the IRS by telephone at 1-800-908-4490. Once the tax filer’s identity is authenticated by the IRS, the IRS will mail a Tax Return Database View (TRDBV) printout to the individual;
• Submit the Tax Return Database View (TRDBV) printout to the Office of Financial Aid;
• Submit a statement signed and dated by the tax filer indicating that they were victims of IRS tax-related identity theft and that the IRS has been made aware of the tax-related identity theft.