Verification | FAFSA | Federal Requirement
What is Verification?
Verification is a process to confirm that the information you or your parents provided on your FAFSA is accurate. The U.S. Department of Education randomly selects about 30% of FAFSAs to be verified. The PBSC Office of Financial Aid may also select your FAFSA for Verification to clarify potential discrepancies.
If you have been selected for Verification, the Office of Financial Aid will request documentation to verify the information provided on the FAFSA. Documentation needed to complete Verification may include a Verification Worksheet, Federal Tax Returns, and other forms that verify information on the FAFSA. Documentation needed for Verification may be different for each student.
Applicable for students attending Fall 2021, Spring 2022, and Summer 2022 - All forms and documentation will be submitted through your Workday student portal.
General documentation requirements are:
- 2021-2022 Verification worksheet
- 2019 Federal income tax information which can be provided via:
- Transferring tax information directly to the FAFSA by using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool,
- Providing a copy of your 2019 IRS Tax Return Transcript which can be ordered from the IRS website (click here for a video tutorial),
- Providing a signed and dated copy of your 2019 income tax return (1040 form) with all appropriate schedules
- For individuals who were not required to file taxes, a 2019 IRS non-filing statement
will be required for parent(s) and independent students which can be ordered from
their website
- Non-tax filers who worked in 2019 will need to submit all W2s received for that year
- Additional documentation may be requested from you as needed; all requests will show as financial aid action items in your Workday student portal
Applicable for students attending Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Summer 2021: Verification (V1) documents must be submitted through ProVerifier+, your invitation for the system will be sent directly to your PBSC student email.
General documentation requirements are:
- 2020-2021 Verification worksheet
- 2018 Federal income tax information which can be provided via:
- Transferring tax information directly to the FAFSA by using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool,
- Providing a copy of your 2018 IRS Tax Return Transcript which can be ordered through ProVerifier+,
- Providing a signed and dated copy of your 2018 income tax return (1040 form) with all appropriate schedules
- For individuals who were not required to file taxes, a 2018 IRS non-filing statement
will be required for parent(s) and independent students which can be ordered through
ProVerifier+ or through the IRS website
- Non-tax filers who worked in 2018 will need to submit all W2s received for that year
- Additional documentation may be requested from you as needed; all requests will generate an email notification and will show listed in your ProVerifier+ portal
Please note: Verification for groups (V4) and (V5) must find their forms and submission link on our forms page.
A small number of financial aid applicants will be required to complete the Statement of Educational Purpose Form. The US Department of Education selects which students must complete the statement and colleges and universities cannot disburse aid until the statement is received.
The Statement of Educational Purpose certifies the student's identity and attests that the student will only use federal student aid for educational purposes and for the cost of attending college during the specified academic year. Students will be notified by the Office of Financial Aid if they must complete the Statement of Educational Purpose and they may download it from the Financial Aid Forms page of PBSC’s website. The form must be notarized or completed in-person at the Financial Aid Office. Students must present a valid, unexpired, government-issued photo identification such as a passport or driver's license.
Students and/or parents may elect to make a correction to their processed FAFSA to link to the IRS instead of requesting an IRS Tax Return Transcript. Individuals that choose this option should notify the FAO to ensure the correct FAFSA transaction is reviewed. To link to the IRS, students log into www.fafsa.gov and Make a Correction to a processed FAFSA. Under the income sections for students and parents there are questions that enable the use of the IRS DRT.
Watch a video on how to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.
The deadline to submit verification documents is dependent on the type of federal student aid the student is eligible to receive. If the deadline is not met, the student becomes ineligible for that aid program. This cannot be appealed and is a federal requirement. (Click here for federal verification deadlines)
