What is verification?

Verification is a process to confirm the information you provided on the FAFSA - Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

Verification selection can be random or because your FAFSA data was incomplete, estimated or inconsistent. The U.S. Department of Education selects some students for the verification process. We will select others if we find conflicting information.

We are required to ask you to provide documentation to confirm the information on your FAFSA. This will include a verification worksheet and may include your tax transcript or return. If you are a dependent student, we may also request a copy of your parent's tax transcript or return.

Check your Status

To view your aid status, as well as the forms required to complete verification at WSU, login to WSU Pipeline.

Select the “Financial Aid” tab at the top of the page.
Under the heading, “Financial Aid Links” select “My Financial Aid Requirements."
In the “Select Aid Year” field, choose the appropriate aid year.

Required Documents

Changes for the 2012-13 Academic Year:

When verifying your 2012-13 FAFSA, we are no longer allowed to accept a signed copy of a 1040 tax return form to complete the verification process. This is a federal regulation that we must follow.

To document your tax return, you may:

Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to transfer 2011 tax data to your FAFSA , OR
Request an IRS Tax Transcript

IRS Data Retrieval Tool

If you did not use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when you filed your 2012-13 FAFSA, you may still do so.

Login at fafsa.gov to “Make FAFSA Corrections”
On the FAFSA, in the Financial Information section, click “Link to IRS’”
On the IRS website, fill out the form and click on “Transfer my tax information into the FAFSA”

You will be unable to use IRS Data Retrieval Tool if:

Your marital status changed after December 31, 2011
You filed an amended return (See Tax Transcript below)
You filed married filing separately You filed a tax return using a Tax ID Number (TIN)
You filed a foreign tax return - Submit a signed copy of your return to the financial aid office
The home address on the FAFSA does not match the address on the tax return

Note: Tax information electronically filed within the last 2 weeks or submitted by mail within the last 8 weeks may not be available.

IRS Tax Transcript

If you are selected for verification of your 2012-13 FAFSA, and are unable to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, you must submit an official IRS TAX RETURN TRANSCRIPT, (not an Account Transcript.) There are 3 ways to do this:

Request one electronically on the IRS website at www.irs.gov
- In the Tools section of the homepage click “Order a Return or Account Transcript”
  - Under Choice 3, click “Go get your transcript”
Then select "Return Transcript"

Or you may call the IRS at 1-800-908-9946 and follow the prompts to request a Tax Transcript for 2011
Or you may file Form 4506T-EZ

If you filed an Amended Return:

Submit both an IRS Tax "Return Transcript" and an IRS Tax "Account Transcript," OR
Submit the Record of Account, (using IRS Form 4506-T), which could take 30 days

REMEMBER: Include your student ID number on your tax transcript before you submit it to our office.

IMPORTANT DOCUMENT NOTE: If you are applying for aid at other schools, please make a copy of your tax transcript for your records before you submit to us. We will not keep paper copies of any documents and the IRS will currently only accommodate one request.

For the 2011-2012 Academic Year:

If you are a dependent student, complete the 2011-2012 Dependent Verification Worksheet. Do not leave any section blank or incomplete. You and at least one parent must sign the worksheet before submitting it to our office. Also, submit relevant tax documents with your student ID at the top.

If you are an independent student, complete the 2011-2012 Independent Verification Worksheet. Do not leave any section blank or incomplete. You must sign the worksheet before submitting it to our office. Also, submit relevant tax documents with your student ID at the top.

The Verification Deadline

For the 2012-2013 academic year, you are strongly encouraged to submit all requested documentation by May 31, 2012 in order to receive a timely award with all possible funding.

The verification review process can range from 2 - 6 weeks. Submit copies of the requested documentation within 14 days of the request.

The last date to submit verification documents is the last day of the term or your last day of enrollment in the academic year, whichever is earlier.

Federal Pell Grant Recipients: The deadline for is 120 days from your last date of enrollment or August 31, whichever comes first.This includes making any necessary corrections to the FAFSA, submitting those corrections to the federal processor, and receiving confirmation in return.
Federal Loan Applicants: WSU requires verification to occur before determining eligibility for student loans. A federal loan application cannot be originated for a period of enrollment that has already passed.

Failure to submit all requested documentation will result in the forfeiture of your financial aid eligibility.

How to Avoid Verification Processing Delays

We strongly recommend that you submit all documents within 14 days of receipt of the verification notice.

Submit all documents at the same time to:

Wayne State University
Office of Student Financial Aid
The Welcome Center
P.O. Box 2340
Detroit, MI 48202-0340

You may fax documents to our office at (313) 577-6648

Remember to make photocopies for your records.
Print your name and 9-digit WSU ID number on each page of the documents that you submit.

After Verification is Complete

If the data reported on your FAFSA is confirmed, the Financial Aid Office can determine your eligibility for financial aid. We will notify you to check your financial aid eligibility on WSU Pipeline.
If we find differences between the data reported on your FAFSA and the information that you submitted to us, we may make corrections to your FAFSA. You can monitor your FAFSA verification status on WSU Pipeline.

Expect Financial Aid Emails

We will send an email to your WSU email account to notify you to review you document requests on WSU Pipeline. All document requests must be completed before any financial aid can be disbursed to your account.

Office of Student Financial Aid