Financial Aid Verification Process
Verification is an important process created by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) that helps confirm the accuracy of information submitted on the FAFSA and requires the school to correct any errors.
About the Verification Process
Through collecting and reviewing additional documentation, verification ensures fair and accurate distribution of federal funds during the financial aid awarding process. Additionally, the University of Mississippi Office of Financial Aid (OFA) may institutionally select FAFSAs for verification where further clarification is needed.
After completing the FAFSA, students will be notified by ED if they are selected for verification. An asterisk (*) appearing next to the Student Aid Index (SAI) number on the FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) indicates that the student has been selected for verification. Additionally, a paragraph within the FSS will explain that the student has been selected. Students selected for verification also receive regular email notifications from Financial Aid.
The OFA will compare information from your FAFSA with other required documentation and make any necessary changes to your FAFSA on your behalf. Student/Parents SHOULD NOT make any changes to the FAFSA during or after verification, as it will further delay verification processing unless Financial Aid requests that you make changes directly.
No federal or need-based awards can be processed until verification is completed. Plan on submitting your verification paperwork NO LATER THAN JUNE 1st each year in order to have your financial aid ready for the start of the fall term! Some funds have limited allocations, so we urge you to start the process now.
ARE YOU READY to complete the verification process? Start by creating or logging into your Student Forms account here. Once your account is created, any required tasks you need to complete will become available! For any questions, please see our FAQ section below.
Frequently Asked Questions
All students selected for verification must submit the appropriate documentation to the OFA. Documentation should be uploaded to the Student Forms Self-Service Portal. Reminder: all students must first create a Student Forms account and then follow the instructions to complete all outstanding tasks. Documents requested may include, but are not limited to:
- Student, Parent, and/or Spouse signed tax returns or Tax Return Transcript
- All applicable income documents (W-2 forms, 1099’s, etc.) or tax schedules (Sch. 1-3, C, F, K-1, etc.) for those tax returns.
*NOTE REGARDING TAX DOCUMENTS: Per federal regulation, we request tax return documents for the calendar year that is 2 years earlier than the start of the academic year (this is called “prior-prior" year).
During verification, the OFA compares the information from the student’s FAFSA with all collected verification documents. If needed, the OFA will correct the student’s FAFSA and submit the corrections to the federal processor. Therefore, it is very important during or after verification that a student (or parent/spouse) NOT make any changes to the FAFSA, as this will only delay the awarding and disbursing of any Federal and/or need-based aid (Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans, including Parent PLUS Loans, Work-Study, certain scholarships, etc.).
Verification processing time is generally one to three weeks. All required documents must be received before the file can be reviewed. We recommend having paperwork submitted NO LATER THAN JUNE 1st in order to be ready for the fall term.
Students selected for verification are placed in specific verification “categories,” that may have different requirements. The student’s customized verification worksheet/webform specifies what additional documentation and information is needed to complete verification. All verification documents should be submitted via the Student Forms Self-Service Portal in four easy steps:
- Start by creating or logging into your Student Forms account here.
- Once logged in, complete the verification worksheet/webform task.
- Upload any additional documentation requested and Submit.
- Monitor your Student Forms account for any updates.
If students cannot create their Student Forms account, they should contact our office by emailing finaid@olemiss.edu, or by calling the Student Financial Services HELP LINE at 1-800-891-4596 for assistance.
If a student who is selected for verification does not complete the verification process, all federal and/or need-based aid (Pell Grant, Federal Direct Loans, including Parent PLUS Loans, Work-Study, certain scholarships, etc.) will NOT be awarded or disbursed.
If student/parents are unable to use the Direct Data Exchange Tool in FAFSA on the web, they are required to submit to the OFA the appropriate year Tax Return Transcript(s)—NOT the “Account Transcript,” —from the IRS. We will also accept a signed copy of the Federal Tax Return including all applicable Tax Schedules 1-3, C, F, and/or K-1 Form 1065.
OFA will add specific tasks to the students’ Student Forms account depending on which contributor manually entered tax information that may conflict with the message received by the IRS via the Direct Data Exchange.