Student Eligibility | 2025-2026 Federal Student Aid Handbook

Introduction

This volume of the Federal Student Aid Handbook discusses the eligibility requirements for all Title IV aid applicants and your responsibilities to ensure that recipients qualify for their aid awards.

There are many factors you must consider when reviewing an application for aid from the FSA programs, such as whether the student meets the U.S. citizenship or eligible noncitizen requirements for Title IV aid, whether the applicant is making satisfactory academic progress, and whether they have a defaulted loan from the Direct Loan, FFEL, or Perkins Loan programs. To answer these questions, you will receive information about the student from different sources, including the Department of Education’s FAFSA Processing System (FPS) for financial aid applications and the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS).

Throughout the year, the Department of Education (The Department) provides updates for schools in the form of Dear Colleague Letters (DCLs). These and other releases, such as Federal Register notices and electronic announcements, contain system updates and technical guidance, and are available on the Knowledge Center (fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge center).

The FSA Handbook does not cover the operation of software. For schools using software provided by the Department, there are technical references on FSA Partner Connect that explain how the software operates. Schools using third-party software should consult the vendor’s reference materials for technical guidance.

Program and systems information on the Knowledge Center

Software:

Technical References and User Guides for:

FPS (FAFSA Specifications Guide, ISIR guide, etc.)
Federal Registers
Electronic Announcements
Dear Colleague Letters
FSA Assessments

FSA Fundamentals

FSA Fundamentals, a self-paced, comprehensive online guide to the Title IV programs, has been updated for domestic schools. For more information, see:

Training Workshops – 2024-25 Fundamentals Training Series | Knowledge Center

Throughout this volume, we have added and updated links for easy access to regulations and other supporting guidance.

Here are some of the other significant changes to Volume 1 for 2025-2026:

Clarified rules for when students must pay the costs of evaluating foreign high school diplomas
Revised list of states with approved state processes for ATB alternatives
Updated criteria for documenting enrollment in an eligible career pathway program
Added guidance on minimum enrollment status standards for certain graduate programs

Expanded information on forms useful for U.S. citizenship/nationality documentation
Updated guidance for eligibility for students from the Freely Associated States
Updated documentation requirements for Jay Treaty students
Clarified third-step verification process and processing times guidance
Expanded guidance on replacing lost, stolen, or damaged DHS documents and contacting USCIS

Revised many section headings for clarity
Updated NSLDS loan status codes guidance

Updated guidance on when students report an incorrect social security number on the FAFSA
Updated guidance for contributors with no social security number.

Questions or comments?

We appreciate any comments that you have on Volume 1 of the FSA Handbook. We revise the text based on questions and feedback from the financial aid community, so please reach out to us about how to improve the Handbook at Contact Customer Support | Help Center (ed.gov), by clicking on “FSA Handbook” in the “topic” dropdown menu.