Verification
Each year the U.S. Department of Education selects financial aid applicants for federal verification review. This process requires California University of Pennsylvania to verify the accuracy of data reported by students on their FAFSA forms. There are several possible reasons that a FAFSA record is selected for review. Some applications are selected randomly. Others are categorized as having a high probability of error (e.g., applications on which students provided estimated, not actual, income tax information). Also, some applications may be selected because of incomplete data or conflicting information.
The e-mail notification or paper Student Aid Report (SAR) from the federal processor will indicate if your application is selected for verification review. The Financial Aid Office at Cal U will also notify you that your FAFSA has been selected to be verified and will ask you to submit copies of certain documents you used to complete your FAFSA. For example, you (and your parents, if you are a dependent student) will be asked to submit a complete signed copy of your U.S. Income Tax Returns, including related 1099 forms, W-2 forms and supporting schedules, as well as a Verification Form, which is available online or through our Financial Aid Office. All documents must be sent to the Financial Aid Office for processing. These documents will become part of your Cal U financial aid file.
The information on the documents submitted will be compared to the FAFSA information provided to us by the federal FAFSA processor. For many students, the process consists simply of a review of the tax returns, W-2 forms and the Verification Form they submit. But sometimes follow-up requests for additional information may be necessary. This occurs if inconsistencies are discovered which must be resolved. When this happens, we typically send requests for additional information by mail.
To expedite the verification review, submit all requested documents to the Financial Aid Office as soon as possible. Make sure you send the federal tax forms, not the state tax forms. In addition, it is important that the documents you submit are legible and signed where applicable. Also, make sure all documents submitted are clearly labeled your student's name and Social Security number.
If you do not have a copy of your federal tax form, you can obtain a tax transcript by calling the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 and following the prompts in the recorded message, or by completing and mailing a Request for Transcript of Tax Return Form 4506-T (PDF) to the address listed in the instructions. The form can also be ordered by calling 800-829-3676. Transcripts may be mailed to a third party if you specify this on Form 4506-T; however, you must sign and date the form giving your consent for the disclosure. Typically, if you are selected for verification, you will still receive an award packet; however, the award will be tentative, pending the completion and outcome of verification.
If any errors are discovered during the verification process, we will correct your FAFSA. The federal FAFSA processor will send you a revised Student Aid Report (SAR), which will reflect the corrections we make to your FAFSA. If the error(s) changes the amount of your financial aid, the new awards will be reflected on your account, which can be viewed at http://vip.calu.edu.
