(GENERAL-24-58) Volume 5: Withdrawals and the Return of Title IV Funds and Errata to Volumes 1 and 4 Now Available [2024-25 Federal Student Aid Handbook]

Author
Federal Student Aid
Electronic Announcement ID
GENERAL-24-58
Subject
Volume 5: Withdrawals and the Return of Title IV Funds and Errata to Volumes 1 and 4 Now Available [2024-25 Federal Student Aid Handbook]

Federal Student Aid is pleased to announce the publication Volume 5 of the 2024-2025 Federal Student Aid Handbook which discusses overpayments, which occur when the student receives more aid than they were eligible to receive. One kind of overpayment, traditionally called an over award, results from changes in the student’s aid package; a second occurs when a student withdraws. This volume covers how a school should respond when a student withdraws.

We have also made the following edit to Volume 1:

  • Chapter 1: In Chapter 1, we addressed an error in the description of the two methods a school can use to calculate the pace at which a student is progressing, for SAP assessment purposes. The two correct methods are (1) dividing the total number of hours the student has successfully completed by the total number they have attempted, or (2) determining the number of hours that the student should have completed by the evaluation point in order to complete the program within the maximum timeframe.

Additionally, we have made the following edits to Volume 4:

  • Chapter 2: In the section “When Schools Can’t Make Interim Disbursements,” we provided updates to the temporary flexibilities around interim disbursements to align with guidance provided in the Electronic Announcement (GEN-24-55) “2024-25 FAFSA: Update on Processing Paper FAFSA Forms, Implementing School-Initiated Corrections, and Temporary Changes to Process for Reporting Disbursements to Provide Institutional Flexibility”.

  • Chapter 3: Under “Interim Disbursements – School Responsibility,” we provided updates to the temporary flexibilities around interim disbursements to align with guidance provided in the Electronic Announcement (GEN-24-55) “2024-25 FAFSA: Update on Processing Paper FAFSA Forms, Implementing School-Initiated Corrections, and Temporary Changes to Process for Reporting Disbursements to Provide Institutional Flexibility”.

The Federal Student Aid Handbook is posted digitally on Federal Student Aid’s Knowledge Center and consists of the Application and Verification Guide; nine numbered volumes; and appendices. Each time we post a volume, appendix, or errata, we will inform the community through an Electronic Announcement on the Knowledge Center.

Contact Information

Questions and suggestions concerning the Federal Student Aid Handbook can be sent through the Customer Support form in the FSA Partner Connect Help Center. To submit a question about the Handbook, please complete the form and select “FSA Handbook” as the topic.