Student Eligibility | 2026-2027 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 federal student aid 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 the student has 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:

FSA Basic Training for New Staff

FSA Basic Training for New Staff, a self-paced, comprehensive online guide to the Title IV programs. For more information, see:

FSA Training 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 2026-2027:

Added new section on Enrollment Status Effect on Annual Loan Limits, which announces proration of annual loan limits for new loan periods beginning on or after July 1, 2026 for certain students enrolled less than full-time. New regulations and further guidance will be published prior to July 1, 2026.
Added new section on Recent SAI Changes, including assets excluded from SAI, and new rules for Pell eligibility.
Outdated information about the FAFSA form has been removed.

Revised documentation guidance for Conditional Permanent Residents
Guidance added on children of Notice of Prima Facie Case VAWA applicants
Deferral of Removal added to the list of ineligible statuses

SSN matching systems guidance updated

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.