Financial Aid Verification Process

The manner in which you are notified is determined by your student status:

• New, first-time students receive a letter mailed to their home as well as an email notification listing the documents needed. New students may also receive an initial financial aid offer which indicates the FAFSA was selected for verification with a statement printed directly on the offer letter, as well as a special notice inserted with the offer documents.

• Returning students receive an email notification sent to their BW email address listing the documents needed. These missing documents also show within the financial aid self-service tool in MyRecords. Returning students will not receive a financial aid offer until the verification process has been completed.

The U.S. Department of Education selects students for verification using a "targeted selection of items based upon each student's characteristics." This has allowed for a reduction in the amount of information needed to complete the verification process for all students. The BW Financial Aid Office also has an obligation to resolve all conflict on a student's aid application which may lead to selecting a non-federally selected applicant for verification.

There are various reasons why a FAFSA is selected for verification, such as the FAFSA included estimates of federal income tax information and the actual information now needs to be confirmed. Or, the FAFSA was submitted with data that appears inconsistent or unusual, or includes a type of information that is frequently misreported.

You must provide the financial aid office with the required documentation to show that the FAFSA information is accurate. Respond to the request as soon as possible and make sure you read the email or letter carefully so you know exactly what is needed from you or your family.

If you are a new BW student, we will send you an initial financial aid offer even though you have not completed verification. However, financial aid cannot be released to your BW student account until verification of your FAFSA is complete. Merit scholarships and other offers that are not based on financial information can be released. If you are a returning BW student, you will not receive a financial aid offer until verification of your FAFSA has been completed.

New students receive an initial financial aid offer that is based on information provided on the FAFSA before verification is completed. Federal programs such as the Federal Pell Grant, Federal SEOG Grant, Federal Perkins Loans, Federal Work-Study and Federal Direct Loans have strict eligibility requirements and may be affected if the information reported on the FAFSA is incorrect. The Ohio College Opportunity Grant and BW Grant also are dependent on FAFSA information, so these may be adjusted accordingly as well.

If the verification information you provide does not match the information you provided on your FAFSA, the financial aid office will make corrections to your FAFSA on your behalf.

When verification of your FAFSA is complete, you will be notified in one of the following ways:

• You will receive your first offer of the academic year.

• You will receive a revised offer.

• You will receive other communication from our staff.

All students who are selected for verification must submit the Verification Worksheet (Form #3 on our forms page) for the appropriate academic year.

Additional required documentation may include:
Note: Documentation is year-specific, so be sure to use the form for the correct academic year.

• Copy of W2 form(s) from each source of employment, for the student, spouse (if applicable), and parent(s)/step parent(s) of dependent students.
• Official tax return transcript from the IRS - Click to download a FREE copy from the IRS website.
• "Verification of Non-filing" from the IRS attesting that you did not file an IRS income tax return. You may order your "Verification of Non-filing" by submitting IRS Form 4506-T and checking box 7.

Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool for both student and parents of dependent students. It takes three-to-six weeks after filing your Federal tax returns before your information is available to import via the IRS Data Retrieval option. The financial aid office strongly recommends that returning students and families file their Federal Tax Return with the IRS as soon as possible, and then submit the FAFSA online at least two weeks later.

Under certain conditions, some applicants will not be able to use the IRS Data Retrieval option and will be required to submit an official tax transcript from the IRS to the financial aid office. These conditions are:

• When the student (or parent/stepparent of dependent students) did not file a US Tax Return and is considered a non-filer, non-filers will need to submit a "Verification of Non-filing" from the IRS dated on or after October 1, 2016. You may order you're a copy by submitting IRS Form 4506-T and checking box 7.

• When student, spouse (if applicable) and/or parent/step parent(s) of dependent students' information imported into the student's FAFSA using the IRS Data Retrieval option was subsequently changed;

• When the parents of a dependent student filed separate tax returns. (An official tax transcript from the IRS will be required for each parent/step parent);

• When a married student and his or her spouse filed separate tax returns. (An official tax transcript from the IRS will be required for both the student and his or her spouse);

• When the student, spouse (if applicable) or parent/step parent(s) filed an amended tax return;

• When the student or parent/step parent(s) of dependent students had a change in marital status after the end of the tax year; and

• When the student, spouse (if applicable) and/or parent/step parent(s) of dependent students filed a foreign tax return.

The amount of time needed to complete the verification process varies from student to student. BW may asses finance charges if your financial aid cannot be released due to an unverified FAFSA. We strongly recommend that you complete the verification process as soon as possible!

1. Carefully read the notification you received from the financial aid office and the verification worksheet. When completing the worksheet, respond to every question. Do not leave anything blank. If the correct answer is zero, write a zero.

2. Submit every document requested. Make sure the financial aid office can identify the student to whom the documents belong by including the student name and the BW Student ID or SSN at the top of each page.

3. Do not submit unrequested documents. Do not submit tax worksheets or tax year comparison reports. Also, do not submit state tax returns.

4. Keep your originals - send copies to the financial aid office.

5. If you are required to submit a copy of your taxes, be sure to submit the tax return transcript from the IRS, not the tax account transcript.

6. Respond promptly to all requests for information, including the initial request and any follow-up requests due to missing or incomplete information.