Maintained for Historical Purposes

This resource is being maintained for historical purposes only and is not currently applicable.

Making changes

AwardYear: 1997-1998
Edition: PostSecondary
Part: 2 - - The application process for financial aid
SectionNumber:
SectionTitle: Making changes

PageNumbers: 37-38


Making changes

If the student's application information on the SAR or ISIR is
incorrect, the information must be corrected or updated.
You may recalculate the student's EFC for the federal campus-based
and FFEL programs without having the student report the corrected
or updated information to the processing system. However, for the
Federal Pell Grant Program, in most cases corrections must be
reported to the CPS for recalculation of the EFC. Please see The
Verification Guide 1997-98
for exceptions to this rule. (Please note
that corrections to a student's Social Security Number must always
be reported back to the CPS for data match purposes.)

When a student files a FAFSA, it creates a "snapshot" of the
financial situation of the student's family as of the date the
application was signed. However, errors may occur if a student files
the wrong information on an application or if there are errors in data
entry at the FAFSA processor. A student may use the SAR or the
EDE system to correct application errors.

For instance, a dependent student mistakenly reports her parents'
total taxable income ($24,000) rather than their AGI ($19,000). The
student must make the correction through EDE at her school, or on
Part 2 of the SAR under the column headed "Write in only new or
corrected information:" and return the signed SAR to the FAFSA
processor.

Please note that even if a school did not transmit a student's
application via EDE, it can still make the corrections electronically if
the student takes the corrected information to the school. If the
student's corrections are being made through EDE, the corrected data
is processed by the CPS and an electronic ISIR will be returned to
the school; the student will receive the one-page SAR Information
Acknowledgement. The school must keep signed documentation for
corrections submitted electronically; the documentation must be
collected before the school sends data to the CPS.

The student may not, however, update income or asset information to
reflect changes to her family's financial situation that took place after
the FAFSA was filed. For example, if the same student's family sold
some stock on June 1 (after filing) and spent the money on a
nonreported asset such as a car, the student may not update her
information to show a change in the family's assets.

However, there are three items that a student must update if they
change after filing (except if these changes result from a change in
the student's marital status). The second and third items listed below
(next to the second arrow below) must be updated only if the
application is selected for verification. Thus, please note that if an
applicant is not selected for verification, household size and
number in postsecondary education cannot be updated.
(Verification was explained on page 35.)

- Dependency Status. Any change to dependency status, regardless
of whether the student was selected for verification.

- Number of family members (household size) and number of
college students in the household. A change in household size or
number of college students need be reported only if the student
was selected for verification.

Any changes in these data items can be reported on Part 2 of the
SAR or through EDE. Remember, a student cannot update any of
the above items if they change as a result of a change in marital
status.
Adding a School

If a student wants to have his or her application information sent to
an additional school after filing a FAFSA, the student may correct
the SAR to add the new school. (See Part 3, Section H of this
handbook for additional information on adding a school.) The
student with a FAFSA on file now also has the option to call the toll
number (319-337-5665) to request changes in the student's address
or in the schools (institution codes) to which the SAR is to be sent.
The student will need to provide his or her Personal Identification
Number (PIN) from the SAR.