TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past & Building the Future Verification: Please Stop Changing TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past & Building the Future Celia Bradley, Middle Tennessee State University Kelly Hawthorne, Vanderbilt University

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Introduction Verification applies to recipients of the following Title IV aid: Federal Pell Grant Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (SEOG) Federal Work-Study (FWS) Direct Subsidized Loan TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Selection Process Application can be selected by: OR TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Exclusions Entire Application Only Eligible For Unsub Loan Selected after student ceasing to be enrolled at the school and all aid is paid. Also transferred and was verified at the other school. Parental Data Parent completing the FAFSA dies or is mentally incapacitated Cannot be contacted or whereabouts unknown Spousal Data Same as Parental Data Number in Household Parents are married and household size is 3. Parent unmarried and household size is 2. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future 2018-19 FAFSA Changes New SAR Comment Codes 400/401 require resolution IRS Request Flag Values added IRS Request Flag Value of 06 - IRS DRT no longer valid IRS Request Flag Value of 07 - IRS noted amended return filed Note: Both the IRS DRT and the Tax Return Transcript include only the information from the original tax return filed with the IRS. Expanded IRS Field Flags – Identifies the IRS DRT data items changed TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future 2018-19 FAFSA Changes Data that is transferred from the IRS DRT is now masked so that families cannot see the specific amounts transferred Could cause some added calls, emails, or even additional verification. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Conflicting Information Identifying and Resolving Conflicting Information Comment Code 399 Comment Code 400/401 TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Identifying Conflicting Information Schools must have an adequate internal system to identify conflicting information. Examples of conflicting information: Receipt of a subsequent FAFSA transaction (must review for potential changes) Marital status and tax filing status are conflicting (married filing HOH) Discrepant tax data (basic tax law knowledge required) Failure to disclose attendance at all institutions (SAP) TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Comment Code 399 Although corrections can no longer be made to the 2016-17 FAFSA, schools must still resolve 399 as it relates to the 2017-18 FAFSA and make a notation in the student’s file. If the 2016-17 FAFSA is on file, compare the information reported on the 2017-18 FAFSA and request documentation, if applicable. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Comment Codes 400/401 Students and parents using the IRS DRT can no longer view the information transferred from the IRS. This eliminated the inclusion of edits that may have identified potential issues. Instead, SAR Comment Codes of 400 and/or 401 were added. Resolution is required. 400 – Issues related to the reporting of parental data 401 – Issues related to the reporting of student data TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Potential Reasons for Comment Codes 400/401 Parent and/or student is a tax filer and the AGI is zero, but the income earned from work is greater than zero. Parent and/or student’s Total of Additional Financial Information is greater than the AGI transferred from the IRS. Parent and/or student reported any item from the FAFSA list of Untaxed Income that is equal to or exceeds the AGI transferred from the IRS. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Other Reasons for 400/401 Other reasons for Comment Codes 400 or 401 are considered technical reasons that do not require resolution, but be careful using this option. It may penalize the student. Use FAA Access to determine the reason 400/401 appear by simulating a FAFSA correction by changing a middle initial and selecting calculate. The edit will appear. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

TASFAA 2018 Resolution of Comment Code 400/401 Review the information reported on the FAFSA to determine if it meets any of the three criteria previously described. These must be resolved. Review FAFSA information for potential errors. Request applicable documentation. Simulate a change in FAA Access to see the reason for being selected flagged. Make a note in the student’s file regarding the resolution of 400/401. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Common 400/401 Issues Parent information has been duplicated in the student section of the FAFSA Parent 1/Parent 2 or Student/Spouse income earned from work is identical. Income reported for 2016 is significantly different than amount reported for 2015. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future IRS Request Flag 06 An IRS Request Flag of 06 will be set to indicate data was transferred from the IRS, but a subsequent change made the parent ineligible to use the IRS DRT. The IRS Display Flag is set to K. NASFAA AskRegs: “How Do We Resolve IRS Request Flag 06?” TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Resolving IRS Request Flag 06 Compare the FAFSA transactions to determine if corrections were made to the marital status or marital status date that warrant the request of additional information. Confirm the correct parental information was reported on the FAFSA by contacting the parent. If changes were not submitted that would have caused the issue, note in the student’s file that there were no apparent changes. Request additional information/clarification as necessary to resolve the 06 issue. TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future IRS Request Flag 07 for Amended Tax Returns The IRS DRT will only transfer the tax information from the original tax return. If the IRS determines the tax return was amended or if the return was corrected by the IRS, the IRS Request Flag will be set to “07”. Resolution is required, regardless of whether or not the FAFSA was selected for Verification. NASFAA AskRegs: “How Do We Resolve IRS Request Flag 07 for Amended Returns?” TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

TASFAA 2018 Resolving IRS Request Flag 07 Selected for Verification: Must document the original and amended tax information by requesting the following: A signed copy of IRS Form 1040X that was filed with the IRS; and either of the following: An IRS Tax Return Transcript or any other IRS tax transcript that contains all income and tax information from the original return; or Unchanged IRS DRT data on the ISIR record TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

TASFAA 2018 Resolving IRS Request Flag 07 Not Selected for Verification: Must document the original and amended tax information by requesting the following: Same documents acceptable for those selected for verification; A signed copy of the original tax return along with the 1040X, or A signed statement explaining the changes, if the school deems that to be appropriate TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future 2018-19 ISIR and Verification Resources Federal Register – May 5, 2017- (2018-19 Information to be Verified) Dear Colleague Letter GEN-17-05 2018-19 Application and Verification Guide 2018-19 ISIR Guide 2018-19 Summary of Changes for the Application Processing System Electronic Announcement August 16, 2017 (Verification Suggested Text) Electronic Announcement August 7, 2017 (Changes to IRS DRT Process) Electronic Announcement May 3, 2017 Electronic Announcement February 23, 2017 TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future 2018-19 ISIR and Verification Resources - continued NASFAA Ask Regs IRS Publication 17 IRS website 2018-19 EDE Technical Reference The EFC Formula, 2018-2019 TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future

Honoring the Past and Building the Future Questions? TASFAA 2018 Honoring the Past and Building the Future