Students selected for a check of their 2027–28 FAFSA may need to document income, family size or identity under an Education Department notice published October 23. The notice does not require every applicant to submit every document: each selected applicant's assigned verification group determines the information to be checked.
The selection tells students what comes next
The FAFSA Submission Summary tells an applicant when the application has been selected for verification and directs the applicant to contact the institution for instructions. The institution's student-information record also identifies the verification group.
- V1, Standard Verification: specified income information and family size, with different income requirements for tax filers and nonfilers.
- V4, Custom Verification: identity.
- V5, Aggregate Verification: the income and family-size information plus identity.
Depending on the applicant's circumstances, the information can include that of a parent or spouse. These groups do not make all three types of verification universal.
Income records and family size
The notice uses 2025 tax information for the 2027–28 award year. When specified income data transfer directly from the IRS and remain unedited, they generally need no further verification. Manually entered information may be checked. The table separately addresses foreign income exempt from federal taxation and manually entered IRA or pension rollovers.
For income that must be documented, acceptable records include a tax transcript obtained at no cost from the IRS or other relevant tax authority, or a copy of the filed return and applicable schedules. The return must meet the notice's signature or preparer-identification requirements.
The table gives separate document combinations for joint returns after a change in marital circumstances, extended filing deadlines, tax-related identity theft and amended returns. Nonfilers have their own list, including a signed statement about income and resources and employment records where applicable. A student should use the institution's instructions rather than treat one document as sufficient for every situation.
Family size transferred directly from the IRS and used in the aid calculation generally does not need verification. When the information was not transferred or was updated, a signed statement listing family members, ages and relationships may be required; a dependent student's parent also signs. The notice lists exceptions, including when an applicant's manual update matches the IRS-derived family size.
How identity can be checked
An applicant may present acceptable identification in person to an authorized institutional representative. An institution may also use an identity-verification provider meeting NIST Identity Assurance Level 2, even when the applicant can appear in person.
If the institution determines that an applicant cannot appear in person, the notice permits specified notarized documentation or a video call with institutional personnel. The institution must retain the required identity-verification documentation. The notice also sets out a separate route for confined or incarcerated students in eligible prison education programs.
This is an award-year documentation notice. It does not set a general student submission deadline; the selected applicant's next step is the institution's verification instructions.