Verification Confirms Your FAFSA Is Correct
The federal government requires colleges and universities to verify the information students and their parent(s) report on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
This process is designed to ensure that financial aid funds reach eligible students and are not given to ineligible students.
Important! Do Not Submit Verification Documents Unless We Ask for Them
Only submit verification documents if you have been notified by the IUP Financial Aid Office to do so.
Check your MyIUP account regularly to see if there is anything you still need to do. If you need to verify your FAFSA information, you'll see a notification in MyIUP.
- In the portal, go to Discover. Search for "finances." On the Tuition, Aid, and Finances card, click on Financial Aid Information.
If you have questions about the documentation you are asked to send, please contact the Financial Aid Office at either financial-aid@iup.edu or 724-357-2218 before submitting anything. We can help you understand what you need to do.
What You Should Submit for Verification
The best action you can take to finish verification is to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) to automatically fill in your FAFSA with your tax information and your parents' tax information.
In most cases, if you use the IRS DRT, you won't have to send anything else to verify your income and your family's income (unless that information has changed).
- For most electronic tax-return filers, the IRS income tax return information for the IRS DRT is available within two to three weeks after the electronic IRS income tax return has been accepted by the IRS.
- For most paper tax-return filers, the IRS income tax return information is available for the IRS DRT within eight to eleven weeks after the paper IRS income tax return has been received by the IRS.
How To Submit Your Documents
Log in to—or create an account if you have not already done so—the . Or, log in to MyIUP:
- In the MyIUP portal:
- Log in to . Go to Discover and search for "finances."
- On the Tuition, Aid, and Finances card, select Financial Aid Information.
See the items listed, and follow any links that are provided to submit the requested items to our office to prevent delay in processing your financial aid.
Questions? Please contact us at financial-aid@iup.edu or give us a call at 724-357-2218.
Legal Dependent Verification Form
You indicated on your FAFSA that you have children and/or dependents who receive or will be receiving more than half of their support from you. Please download and complete the Legal Dependent Verification Form and submit it to our office at financial-aid@iup.edu.
Student Unusual Circumstance
According to federal regulations, unusual circumstances that could merit a dependency override include but are not limited to:
- Abandonment by parents
- Abusive family environment that threatens your health or safety
- Alcohol and/or drug addiction
- The inability to locate your parents
If you meet one of the situations above, please complete the Unusual Circumstance Appeal Form and return it to our office for review.
Please note the following situations alone DO NOT constitute a dependency override; in which case you must correct your FAFSA by adding parental data:
- Parents' refusal to contribute to your education.
- Parents' unwillingness to provide information on the FAFSA or for verification.
- Parents do not claim you as a dependent for income tax purposes.
- You demonstrate total self-sufficiency.
If you need to update your FAFSA with your parental information, please log back into your and select Make a Correction.
Parent Refusal Form
If your parent refuses to share their information on your FAFSA, we can review your account to determine if you are eligible for a dependent-level Federal Direct Unsubsidized loan only. Please note you would not be eligible for any grant-related funding.
If you need to update your FAFSA with your parental information, please log back into your and select Make a Correction.
If you would like to proceed with this process, please complete the Parent Refusal Form and return it to our office for review. If you are unsure of your situation, please contact our office to discuss further.
