2005-2006 Federal Student Aid Handbook in PDF Format

We updated the margin note to show that the deadline date notice for the 2004-2005 award year was published on April 13, 2005.

P. AVG-7

The instruction for the veteran status match was corrected to read that for match flags 2 and 3 the CPS will now assume the answer to the veteran question on the application is "yes."

P. AVG-27

In the upper half of the table, in the parent row and IRS form column, the text was corrected to read that the tax return must be signed by the parent, not the student.

P. AVG-33

We added a sentence to the end of the second paragraph under "Remedial coursework."

P. 1-2

We updated some contact information for the CELSA and Wonderlic ATB tests.

P. 1-7

The following correction was not made to the print edition of the Handbook, and also is not reflected in the PDF files for Volume 2.

In the sidebar Counseling materials for overseas or correspondence students, delete the words "at that school."

P. 2-102

There are a couple of numerical changes to the example at the bottom of the page on GI Bill exclusion packaging.

P. 3-107 of Vol. 3 of the 05-06 up on IFAP

Chapter 1: Added discussion on payment periods for students who withdraw and then transfer or reenter a credit-hour nonterm program or a program that measures progress in clock hours

p. 3-13

Chapter 1: Added discussion on payment periods and the credit hour/clock hour conversion formula

p. 3-13

Chapter 2: Updated costs waived or paid by other sources section

p. 3-20

Chapter 3: Updated enrollment status for students taking regular and correspondence courses guidance

p. 3-28

Retaking Coursework guidance updated

p. 3-41

Chapter 3: Initial Calculation sidebar added

p. 3-44

Chapter 5: Expanded the crossover payment period discussion for greater precision

p. 3-96

There is some some extraneous language that should not be there. Under the heading "medical technician," the following phrase should be ignored "The Department of Defense maintains an updated listing of hostile fire/imminent danger pay areas at the following URL:"

P. 6-96

Some schools have required students to fill out supplemental forms (in addition to the FAFSA) in order to apply for federal student aid. This is not permitted, and we have added text to that effect.

P. AVG-3

We inserted the caution that students should not give their PIN to anyone, nor should anyone ask for it, even if they plan to assist the student with receiving aid. A Dear Colleague Letter (GEN-04-10, September 2004) explains this further.

P. AVG-4

The margin note was changed to discuss the limited circumstances for which one can receive a paper renewal FAFSA; most returning students will now receive a renewal reminder rather than a paper renewal FAFSA.

P. AVG-5

We added a margin note stating that same-sex unions do not count as marriages on the FAFSA.

P. AVG-10

We added a margin note describing how to determine the income earned from work when values on lines 12 or 18 of the 1040 form are negative.

P. AVG-12

We noted that when a parent receives untaxed Social Security benefits on behalf of a child who is a student, the benefits would be reported on the parent's side of Worksheet A.

P. AVG-15

We added a margin note on the treatment of combat pay on the FAFSA.

P. AVG-16

We added guidance under "Question 50" stating that a student who is independent due only to marriage becomes dependent for the next award year when divorced.

P. AVG-23

We clarified guidance regarding financial support for children of students. Such support from anyone other than the student's parents may be counted as support provided by the student for determining whether the child is a dependent of the student and whether the child should be counted in his household size.

P. AVG-26

We removed the veteran match charts in Chapter 2 that reproduce information from the ISIR Guide because they were redundant with the text on p. 27. We added the pertinent page references for the ISIR Guide.

P. AVG-27

We clarified the instruction at the top of the page to state explicitly that FAAs cannot accept a faxed or copied signature for the application.

P. AVG-34

Because schools can no longer pay on the secondary EFC under any circumstance, we emended the language on the top of the page to show that, rather than use the secondary EFC, schools must correct and re-submit an application for which the student wrongfully met the simplified needs test.

P. AVG-36

We added a margin note to allay worries about the size of IRS Publication 17. While it is a long document, we have specified the page numbers to which you might need to refer when resolving cases of conflicting information.

p. AVG-102

We inserted a margin note about contacting the pertinent state department of education to determine what is a valid high school diploma.

P. 1-3

We added a new Ability-to-Benefit test: the WorkKeys Program assessments by American College Testing (ACT).

P. 1-7

We corrected a statement regarding USCIS procedures. Conditional permanent residents receive an I-551 form that is valid for two years. The text had stated that they must file a petition with the USCIS to remove their conditional status in the 90 days following the expiration of their I-551, but it actually must be done in the 90 days prior to the end of the two years.

P. 1-23

We removed the summary chart of documentation because the material in the chart should be read in full in the body of the chapter.

P. 1-34

At the end of the second paragraph on the total and permanent disability cancellation, we noted that a defaulted loan that is conditionally discharged remains in default until it is permanently discharged at the end of the three-year conditional period.

P. 1-43

We added a margin note explaining the meaning of "substantial gainful activity."

P. 1-43

We added an explanation of the new Master Death File check by the CPS.

P. 1-50

We added a margin note stating that aid administrators may not perform a credit check on students as a condition for awarding them federal student aid.

P. 1-62

We inserted new sections on the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP) Program and the Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholarship Program.

Pp. 1-67-70

We have added a discussion: What constitutes written consent (to disclose personally identifiable information).

P. 2-158

Chart of System Configurations has been updated.

P. 2-167

Discussion of PLUS MPN -- some minor deletions to eliminate information covered elsewhere.

P. 4-6

Sidebar on COD -- revised to reflect full participation by all schools in 05-06.

P. 4-7

Boxed text on Additional Unsubsidized Stafford: adds a condition that does NOT make a dependent student eligible for additional Stafford funds (school's decision not to participate in PLUS) and a condition that DOES make the student eligible (parent documents that condition of bankruptcy filing prevents any additional borrowing).

P. 4-9

Chart revised for clarity.

P. 4-12

Titles of second and third sidebar notes -- revised for clarity.

P. 4-14

Sidebar note on Loan Disbursements -- revised for clarity. Also, a substantially revised and expanded discussion of "Retaking Coursework" has been added, beginning on this page. (The "Retaking Coursework" discussion did not appear in the 04-05 FSA Handbook, but was previously a part of the Pell Volume of the 03-04 FSA Handbook.)

P. 4-28

Late Disbursements -- this discussion has been substantially revised for clarity and to remove dated historical references.

P. 4-30

Late Disbursement Requests -- procedures have been revised based on the most recent Dear Partner letter.

P. 4-32

Holding FFEL Stafford Loans for Verification -- this has been corrected by removing the reference to interim disbursements. A school may NOT make interim disbursements of DL/FFEL funds while waiting for verification to be completed.

P. 4-35

Sidebar note on Advance Requests for Perkins Funds -- revised to give more specific guidance on comparing available Perkins funds against anticipated disbursements.

P. 4-38

Reimbursement/Cash Monitoring -- these discussions have been revised and set apart from the main discussion, as they affect relatively few schools.

P. 4-39 and 4-50

Deleted "Maintaining FSA funds in a separate account" because the information is already presented in previous discussions.

P. 4-41

Deleted "Timely return of funds when a school does not maintain a separate federal bank account" because this topic is covered in Volume 5.

P. 4-42

Allowable Excess Cash Tolerances -- deleted as unnecessary the example that formerly appeared in the third paragraph.

P. 4-44

Treatment of overpayments created by inadvertent overborrowing has been clarified.

P. 5-7

We have added two topics under Funds to include in a Return Calculation: GEAR UP program funds and Student Support Services grants to students.

P. 5-38 and 5-39

Percentage of Title IV aid earned for withdrawal from a credit hour nonterm program: We describe how, if a student withdraws from a self-paced non-term credit hour program before earning any credits, the institution must have a reasonable procedure for projecting the completion date of the period.

P. 5-68-70

Amended promissory note guidance to reflect ability of schools to notify the borrower in writing in lieu of sending the original promissory note when loan is paid off.

P. 6-18

Added guidance on carrying out Perkins Loan liquidation.

P. 6-24

Updated guidance on military service cancellations, clarifying the requirements of months and years of military service for Perkins Loan cancellation.

P. 6-93

Clarified acceptable Perkins Loan rehabilitation parameters.

P. 6-115