E-App and Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form Updates

In December 2023, we implemented expanded FSA Partner Connect features that introduced new online versions of the Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Financial Assistance Programs (E-App) and the Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form. Stakeholders should bookmark this page for regular status updates related to the new E-App and Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form.

Sept. 26, 2024 Update

Guidance for Public Institutions Completing “Section D. Officials of the Institution” on the E-App

We have received questions about “Section D. Officials of the Institution,” and what is required of public institutions when completing or making updates to the E-App.

Public institutions should be aware of the following:

  • For question 2 in this section, if the public institution has a Board, regardless of how the Board is named, that has any control over or interest in the institution, the institution must select “Yes” for the answer. Note: The question on the E-App uses Board of Trustees or Board of Directors, but the same answer applies to other naming conventions such as, Regents, Governors, etc.

  • Following question 2 and the “Yes” response, the public institution must complete the table to provide information about the Board. At this time, public institutions are only required to submit information for two specific positions: the President or Chairman (or similar head title) of the Board and the Secretary of the Board. Public institutions are not required to provide information for the other members of the Board.

This guidance does not apply to private or for-profit/proprietary schools. These schools should continue to follow the instructions and report all members of the Board.

July 19, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • Partner Users must have UNIQUE Email Address for FSA Partner Connect and DocuSign Processes

    We are continuously working to address system issues and identified errors both with access to FSA Partner Connect and with processing of the E-App itself, including the DocuSign process. To help ensure some process flows within FSA Partner Connect and the E-App or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form are successful, it is important that institution or third-party servicer (TPS) staff have unique email addresses that are specific to a person rather than an organization or office. Generic email addresses (for example, president@school.edu or FinAidoffice@school.edu) that are used by or accessible to more than one person should not be used for eligibility and oversight work within FSA Partner Connect, the E-App, or the Third-Party Inquiry Form. Using generic email addresses can also result in the DocuSign email (which is the final step needed to submit an E-App or complete the countersign process for an institution’s PPA) not being sent to the institution or not being sent to an unauthorized user.

    FSA Partner Connect Access – When requesting access to FSA Partner Connect or completing the process to add the Eligibility and Oversight (E&O) roles, users should not use a generic email address. The email address should be specific to the user. Note: Multiple users sharing the same email address could prevent those users from being able to access FSA Partner Connect.

    DocuSign Process – When a school or TPS user is finalizing the E-App and completes the Authorized Signature Authority section, the person who is designated in that section to sign the E-App must have a unique email address (and one that has not been used by another individual at the institution) to receive the DocuSign email. A unique email address will ensure the correct person has access to and completes the DocuSign process.

    Institution and TPS users must work with their IT departments or email providers to receive unique email addresses, if they do not already have one. Users should then make sure the correct email address is listed in the E-App or TPS Inquiry Form. In some cases, users will also need to update the email in other FSA systems, if appropriate.

    In addition, we also highly recommend that users are using and reporting their full legal name when creating an account for FSA Partner Connect. This includes:

    • When a user is receiving access for an FSA system for the first time (i.e., during the FSA ID creation process)

    • When a Primary (or Secondary) Administrator is granting FSA Partner Connect access to a “basic” user

    • When an administrative user (e.g., an E &O Admin) is updating information in the E-App or TPS Inquiry Form

May 15, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • REMINDER – Third-Party Servicer (TPS) users should NOT be added to the E-App as a school user or added as the school’s E&O Administrator or Alternate E&O Administrator – TPS users have their own roles in FSA Partner Connect, and those roles must be granted at the TPS organization level by the TPS’ administrator. Only school users should be designated as school E&O administrators. To properly establish the school-TPS relationship, schools must update the “7 – Third-Party Servicer” section of the E-App and add the TPS organization as an associated organization in the school’s Account Access Management Center (AAMC) – Eligibility and Oversight tab in FSA Partner Connect.

  • Title IV Recertification Upcoming Webinar (Sessions in May, July 2024) – The next training opportunity for the recertification process will be on May 23 and July 25, 2024. This training opportunity is specifically for schools that are due to submit a recertification application by March 31, June 30, or Sept. 30, 2024. You must register to attend the session. Refer to the Training Announcement for a complete description of the webinar, including instructions to register on the FSA Training Center and to access additional webinar resources.

March 28, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • Access and Other Resources for Third-Party Servicer (TPS) Organizations – We have added some new resources for Third-Party Servicers in a new section on the right-hand side of this page. The TPS User Access Guide and Appendix have been created to help make TPS organizations and their schools make the appropriate connections to be able to access FSA Partner Connect and complete eligibility and oversight work on behalf of their schools. The TPS Action Steps for SAIG Mailboxes and Services document will help TPS Primary Destination Point Administrators (PDPAs) review and remove the mailboxes or services that are no longer needed at the TPS organization.

Feb. 21, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • On Feb. 13, 2024, we published an Electronic Announcement that highlights additional steps the Department is executing as part of the FAFSA College Support Strategy to help colleges process student records faster and more efficiently. One of those steps provides flexibility on recertification by waiving the requirement that a school recertify eligibility no later than 90 days before the school’s Program Participation Agreement (PPA) expires. A school whose PPA expires in March, June, or September 2024 will have until the expiration day to submit a recertification application.

    FSA is making the FSA Partner Connect system updates needed to email notifications and dashboard reminders associated with recertification. Until all system updates are in place, schools may receive messages that appear to conflict with the Department’s Feb. 13 recertification flexibility guidance. We regret any confusion caused by these communications and appreciate the financial aid community’s understanding that the recertification flexibility guidance stands.

Feb. 9, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • Title IV Recertification Training Reminder – The next training opportunity for the recertification process will be held on Feb. 15, 2024, at 2 p.m. Eastern time (ET). Registration must be completed on the FSA Training Center using the link provided to affected schools in the Jan. 4, 2024 Recertification Letter. Registration deadline is 11 p.m. ET on Feb. 14, 2024. Can’t attend next week? A webinar recording of the Jan. 25 webinar is now available on the FSA Training Center. Once you log in, go to “Recorded Training” on the main menu bar, select “Webinars and Training Videos,” and locate the recording in the “School Eligibility” category.

Jan. 26, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • FSA Partner Connect Access – Disabled or Deactivated Users – Guidance for Primary or Secondary Administrators for FSA Partner Connect to reactivate users who were deactivated due to more than 365 days of inactivity in the system. An updated version of this document was published on March 28, 2024.

  • Account Access Delays – We are currently addressing a high number of cases related to access to FSA Partner Connect. Some access issues have been tied to a system issue, while other access issues are unique to an individual user. In either case, we are working to prioritize and resolve the issues as quickly as possible, and apologize for the delays users are experiencing. We appreciate your patience as we work through the high volume of cases.

  • Issues Alerts Page Now Available – We have created a new E-App and Third-Party Servicer Issue Alerts page that stakeholders can use to follow issues related to the E-App and Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form that we identify and resolve.

Jan. 23, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • Title IV Recertification Training Reminder – The next training opportunity for the recertification process will be held on Jan. 25, 2024 at 3 p.m. Eastern time (ET). Registration must be completed on the FSA Training Center using the link provided to affected schools in the Jan. 4, 2024 Recertification Letter. Registration deadline is 11 p.m. ET on Jan. 24, 2024. Can’t attend this week? Watch for forthcoming communications for additional dates in February and March.

Jan. 11, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • FSA Partner Connect User Roles for Eligibility and Oversight Work – To complete eligibility and oversight-related case management work, users must have access to FSA Partner Connect (including an FSA User ID and password and a valid/registered Two-Factor Authentication (TFA) token) and have an assigned Eligibility & Oversight (E&O) user role. For reference, we have created a stand-alone table of the key roles related to the E-App and the Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form.

    FSA Partner Connect E&O User Roles*

  • Issue Alert/Resolution – Third-Party Servicer Enrollment Email Issue: We have determined that auto-generated emails related to the enrollment process for FSA Partner Connect were not sent to Third-Party Servicer users since December 2023. The issue has been resolved and enrollment emails will begin going out on Jan. 11, 2024. The emails will come from donotreply@fsapartners.ed.gov and will provide the next steps for account creation to access FSA Partner Connect.

Jan. 5, 2024 Update

Important Notes

  • Answering All New Questions – The first time an authenticated user submits an E-App or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form, regardless of the reason, answers to all new questions and a review of the full E-App or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form will be required.

    For reference, we have created a stand-alone list of the new questions in the E-App and the Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form.

    New E-App Questions*

    New Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form Questions*

  • DocuSign Email Timing – An email with DocuSign signature instructions will be sent to the signee’s business email address generally within an hour after a user clicks on the “Submit for Signature” button on the Pre-Eligibility Application, E-App, or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form. The email will be sent from the docusign-noreply@fsapartners.ed.gov address. Once signed by the authorized signature authority or delegated authority via DocuSign, the E-App or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form will be submitted automatically to Federal Student Aid for processing.

    Note: The signee may need to look for and retrieve the DocuSign Email from the signee’s spam, junk, or quarantine folder.

Dec. 22, 2023 Update

Published Communications

Important Notes

  • Answering All New Questions – The first time an authenticated user submits an E-App or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form, regardless of the reason, answers to all new questions and a review of the full E-App or Third-Party Servicer Form will be required.

  • DocuSign Email Timing – An email with DocuSign signature instructions will be sent to the signee’s business email address generally within an hour after a user clicks on the “Submit for Signature” button on the Pre-Eligibility Application, E-App, or Third-Party Servicer Inquiry Form. Once signed by the authorized signature authority or delegated authority via DocuSign, it will be submitted automatically to Federal Student Aid for processing.

  • Copy of Current ECAR or PPA – To obtain a copy of your institution’s current ECAR or PPA, email your School Participation Division. The most current School Participation Division contact information is available on the Title IV Participation Application page.

Dec. 19, 2023 Update

  • Issue Resolution – Unable to Continue Past Review and Acknowledge Access Page: On Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023, morning, we resolved the issue that caused some FSA Partner Connect users to experience a spinning circle on the Review and Acknowledge Access page when they first log in. Users who previously experienced the issue should now try again. If the issue persists, please contact Customer Support.

Dec. 18, 2023 Update

  • Issue Alert – Unable to Continue Past Review and Acknowledge Access Page: Some FSA Partner Connect users are experiencing a spinning circle on the Review and Acknowledge Access page when they first log in. We are researching the issue and working to resolve it as quickly as possible. Please monitor this page for status updates.

* The Department of Education strives to make all content accessible to everyone. While these documents do not currently meet the standards of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, Federal Student Aid is working to create accessible versions. If you need access to these documents before accessible versions are available, please contact the Information Technology Accessibility Program Help Desk at ITAPSupport@ed.gov to help facilitate.

Last Modified: 10/23/2024 • Published: 12/18/2023