Verification
Verification is a process required when students' FAFSA is selected by the U.S. Department of Education or Allen for review.
If a student's file is selected for verification when applying for federal aid, Allen's Financial Aid Office is required to verify the data on your application. Our office complies with this regulation by requesting proof and clarification of specific information supplied by the student and the parent (if applicable) on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
If your application is selected for verification, required documents will be posted as missing Financial Aid requirements on your MyAllen portal by clicking the View Financial Aid Document Tracking link on the Finances tab.
Please complete and submit the noted verification worksheet along with any other forms displayed in the Missing Documents list. Verification forms are also available on the Financial Aid Forms page.
During the verification process, you may be required to submit tax documents to verify your income information.
Do not submit additional documentation if it has not been requested by our office.
Priority Dates and Deadlines to Submit Verification Documents
- If verification documents are not provided at least four weeks prior to the beginning of the semester of attendance, the student should be prepared to pay for classes or sign up for a payment plan. If a student does not submit verification documents the financial aid file will become inactive. Students are allowed to reactivate their file provided all verification documents requested are provided by the last day of the semester attending.
Dependent vs. Independent
Students who apply for federal financial aid are classified as either dependent or independent. Dependent students are required to provide parental information on their application. Independent students must list information for a spouse (if applicable).
For information on determining dependency status, check out the dependency status page on studentaid.gov.
If you are considered dependent, but believe you should be considered independent due to extenuating circumstances, please contact our office for assistance.
Verification Instructions
If your FAFSA was selected for verification, our office has the authority to request certain documents from you. Our institutional policy requires that verification is completed before packaging and disbursement of Title IV aid.
You may be selected for verification after your federal aid offer has already been created, due to special circumstances. If this causes a change in your offer, you will receive an email notification to review your updated offer.
If you are selected for verification, below is a list of procedures to follow:
Before you can receive federal financial aid, you must provide Allen with certain documents in a timely manner. You can find a list of all the requested documents by logging into your MyAllen portal, following these steps:
- Log in to MyAllen.
- Select the "Finances" tab.
- Select the "View Financial Aid Document Tracking" link
- Select the appropriate aid year, then view the Missing Documents list
During the verification process, please continue to monitor your student email account for important information and additional questions from our office.
Minimum Requirements for Verification
Dependent Students
- The specified verification form listed on your requirements for dependent students. All information must be completed.
- Any other documents requested in your financial aid requirements or by email request from our office.
Independent Students
- The specified verification form listed on your requirements for independent students. All information must be completed.
- Any other documents requested in your financial aid requirements or by email request from our office.
Other than using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, once you have submitted documents to our office, please do not make any changes to your FAFSA as this will slow down the verification process.
Priority Dates and Deadlines
- Fall - May 1
- Spring - November 1
If this date falls on a weekend, the information is due the following Monday.
Consequences for submitting documents after the priority date
You must be prepared to either pay upfront for your classes or sign up for the payment plan. Your aid offer will then be created once your verification is complete. Verification processing and offer completion usually takes additional time due to the number of applicants being processed in the month before classes start.
It is in your best interest to submit your documents early.
Consequences for not submitting verification documents
If you do not submit requested documents within 30 days of notification, your file will be made inactive. However, you will be allowed to reactivate your file provided that you are still enrolled in the semester for which you are applying AND that the semester has not ended.