What is verification?
UA Fort Smith does not choose who is to be verified and who is not. If your FAFSA is selected by the US Department of Education, you will have to complete verification. This means that UA Fort Smith must compare the information from your FAFSA to financial documents you must submit to our office. Required documents may include a “Verification Worksheet” from our office, a signed copy of your tax return (and a signed copy of your parents’ taxes, if you are a Dependent student), and some other documents we may determine we need.
Because errors can occur on a student’s FAFSA, student applications are sometimes selected by the CPS (Central Processing System) to be verified by the College they are attending. If your financial aid application was selected for the verification process you will be required to submit a verification worksheet, your signed federal income taxes, W-2’s and IL state residency verification for state aid. Depending on your dependency status, you may also be required to submit tax information for your spouse or parents. If errors are identified during verification that require corrections, the financial aid office will submit any necessary corrections to the Department of Education.
Any student who applies for federal student aid can be randomly selected for verification. Once selected for verification a student must submit certain written documents to confirm information on the application. These documents may include a signed copy of the student, spouse and/or the parent’s federal tax forms from the previous year and a verification form.
A. Verification is a process initiated by the U.S. Department of Education requiring you (and your parents, if you are a dependent student) to submit signed copies of federal tax returns and any other required forms to the Financial Aid Office. If you are chosen for verification, your financial aid will not be finalized until the process is completed. About 30% of all financial aid applicants are selected at random each year for verification when their FAFSA is processed as well as those students selected by the college.
