The Department of Education defines "verification" as the process of your school confirming the data reported on your FAFSA. Federal regulations provide Davenport University both the authority and the responsibility to contact you for documentation that supports income and other information that you reported. Schools are required to verify students that have been selected prior to disbursing aid.

If you have been selected for verification, you will be notified by the U.S. Department of Education on your FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) and/or by Davenport University. Please respond to all requests for documentation as quickly as possible to prevent delays in the awarding of your financial aid. The following three items are required to complete verification.

  1. Institutional Verification Form
  2. Income Verification from Tax Filers
  3. Income Verification from Non-Tax Filers

Verification Process for Financial Aid

Tax and income data provided on the FAFSA is for 2 years prior to the academic year of the FAFSA being filed.

INSTITUTIONAL VERIFICATION FORM

Very often students must complete the Institutional Verification Form (IVF). Click here to see if this form is being requested of you. In addition, the form can be found here IVF (Institutional Verification Form).

TAX FILERS

Applicants who are selected for verification, their parents (if dependent), and their spouses (if applicable) are required to verify income and other information if they have filed a federal income tax return. (Students, parents, and spouses who did not file taxes can go here to review what paperwork is required.) Income can be verified using one of the three following methods.

Method 1--Submit a signed copy of the Federal 1040 Tax Return Form

  • Submit the federal (not the state) 1040 and Schedules 1-3 for the applicable tax year.
  • Ensure it's signed by one of the filers.

OR

Method 2--IRS tax return transcript

The tax transcript is free. 

Online Transcript Request--Available Immediately 
  1. To request a tax return transcript, go to https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript
  2. Click the “Get Transcript Online” button. If a returning user, log in with your username. If you are a new user, you will have to create an account. In order to use the get transcript online option you will need one of the following:
  • Credit Card
  • Mortgage or Home Equity Loan
  • Home Equity Line of Credit
  • Auto Loan

In addition, you will need a mobile phone number that your name is associated. If you do not have a mobile phone number associated with your name, you can request an activation code via mail. The activation code takes 10-15 days to receive. If you have to wait on an activation code, please follow the instructions below to request a tax return transcript by mail; please allow 10-15 days for documents to arrive by mail.

Online Transcript Request--Mailed to you
  1. To request a tax return transcript, go to https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript
  2. Click the “Get Transcript by Mail” button
  3. Fill in Social Security Number, Date of Birth, Street Address, and Zip Code
  4. Click “Continue”
  5. Type of Transcript: “Return Transcript”

You should receive the transcripts in 10 to 15 days via mail.

Notes:

  • If you had a change of address, you will need to contact the IRS regarding this situation. 
  • If you are a victim of identity theft, please contact the IRS at 1-800-908-4490 for assistance in obtaining your documents.
  • If you have amended your tax return, you will need to provide a copy of your tax return transcript as well as a SIGNED copy of the Federal form 1040X (amended return).
  • If an applicant has reported an IRA rollover on his or her federal tax return, this information should be brought to the attention of the Financial Aid Office.

NON-TAX FILERS

Applicants who are selected for verification, their parents (if dependent), and their spouses (if applicable) are required to verify income and other information even if they have not and are not required to have filed a federal income tax return.  To verify income for those who have not filed federal income taxes, the Financial Aid Office will need:

  1. A signed Income Verification for Non-tax Filers form
  2. Copies of IRS W-2/1099 Forms for each source of employment income received for the calendar year.

All paperwork can be submitted via the Financial Aid Document Upload Page