Kansas State University

Office of Student Financial Assistance
104 Fairchild Hall
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506-1104

785-532-6420
877-817-2287 toll free
785-532-7628 fax 
finaid@k-state.edu

Verification Process

What is Verification?

Verification is a process that ensures that the information students and their families reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is accurate. As part of this process, the Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA) may ask the student and his or her family to provide additional information. Individuals are typically selected for verification by the federal processor of the FAFSA. Our office also reserves the right to select individuals for the verification process under certain conditions such as when a student submits a Professional Judgment Appeal Form. We encourage you to review the verification policy on this webpage.

However, federal regulations do not allow students to avoid verification by simply choosing not to accept an offered need-based form of federal student aid, such as a Federal Direct Subsidized Loan.

The Verification Process

If applicants are selected for verification, our office will inform students of the necessary documentation required to complete the verification process. The required documentation will be listed in the student's “To Do List” within the Student Center in iSIS. Typically, a student selected for verification will need to provide, at minimum, a completed Verification Form. Additional, required verification documentation will vary depending upon the unique information provided on the student's FAFSA.

IRS Data Retrieval Tool simplifies verification

The U.S. Department of Education highly encourages all FAFSA applicants to utilize the IRS Data Retrieval Tool that is available within the FAFSA online application. The IRS Data Retrieval Tool allows students and parents, who have already submitted their federal tax returns, to electronically transfer their tax information from the IRS to their FAFSA. If students and/or parents utilize the IRS Data Retrieval Tool without making any changes, the amount of documentation requested for the verification process by the OSFA may be minimized.


Questions about Verification

Who is selected for verification?

 

The federal government, through a series of edits, selects students whose FAFSA information must be verified. When you receive notification that your FAFSA has been processed, your Student Aid Report (SAR) will indicate if you have been selected for verification. In addition, the OSFA also reserves the right to select individuals for verification.

For example, individuals who submit a Professional Judgment Appeal Form are typically selected for verification to ensure that the data provided on the FAFSA is accurate before any correction and/or adjustments are made to address an individual’s or family’s unusual circumstances. FAFSAs with inconsistent information may also be selected for verification by the OSFA.

What am I supposed to do if I am selected?

 

If you are selected for verification, you will be notified by the OSFA via e-mail or via traditional mail that a request for specific information has been posted within your Student Center area in iSIS. Once you have logged into your Student Center within iSIS, utilizing your K-State eID and password, you will find all outstanding informational requests from OSFA under the “To Do List” section.

Note: K-State offers students the option of providing view-only access to their financial aid information, including items posted under the “To Do List” section, to third parties such as parents, spouses, etc. Read more about K-State's Designated Access process.

For the 2013-2014 award year, examples of verification documentation may include a request for: a completed Verification Form, tax data obtained via the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, W-2 forms if students who are a non-tax filers, signed statement of the receipt of food stamps, signed statement of child support paid, an IRS tax return transcript, etc.

Please be sure to submit the required documentation as quickly as possible as the OSFA will not make any further federal aid awards and/or authorize existing federal awards to be disbursed until verification has been completed.

What happens after I submit the requested verification information?

 

If, after reviewing your submitted information, the OSFA determines that yourFAFSA information must be corrected, the office will electronically submit the required corrections to the federal processor. You will be informed that corrections have been made to your FAFSA when you receive a revised Student Aid Report (SAR) from the federal processor listing the corrections made to your FAFSA. Additionally, the OSFA will mark your record as having successfully completed verification.

If, after reviewing your submitted information, the OSFA determines that no corrections need to be made to your FAFSA information, the office will mark your record as having successfully completed verification.

For 2012-13, students who have completed the verification process will be notified via an e-mail sent from the OSFA in addition to the removal of any requests for verification items from the student’s “To Do List” within the Student Center of iSIS.

What if I am selected for verification after I have already been awarded federal aid?

 

If you had a previously unselected application and were awarded federal aid, but a subsequent application is selected for verification, the OSFA will cease to authorize any further federal aid disbursements until verification has been completed. Once verification is complete, your awards will be evaluated and adjusted to reflect your verified application. An email indicating your awards have been revised will be sent to you. The e-mail will instruct you to log intoiSIS to view your awards. In some cases, you may no longer be eligible for aid previously awarded and/or disbursed to you. You will be responsible for repaying any aid for which you were ineligible.

What are the verification deadlines that I must observe?

 

Verification must be completed by the deadline published in the Federal Register. The notice for 2013-2014 has not been published, but is expected to be in late September 2014, or 120 days after the last day of your enrollment at K-State, whichever is earlier. Since the OSFA must have the results of a valid, correct FAFSA by the last date of your attendance, it is important to submit all requested verification documents prior to the end of the term in which you wish to receive federal student aid.

If a student fails to provide the requested verification documentation by the deadline noted above:

  • No additional Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Federal Perkins Loan may be authorized for disbursement to the student
  • Federal Work-Study funding will be terminated for student employment
  • No Federal Direct Loans may be authorized for disbursement or originated
  • If the student already received a Federal Pell Grant, SEOG, or Federal Perkins Loan disbursed prior to being selected for verification, he or she will be obligated to return the funds to the federal government.