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Financial Aid

Important FAFSA Changes Every Student, Parent/Contributor, & Counselor Should Be Aware Of

There’s a new one-time, automatic ID confirmation process for some students.

Image of a young woman seated at a desk in front of a computer, working on the FAFSA online form.

From an email I sent to my students late last week.

The following is applicable to all students who apply for, or plan to apply for, federal student financial aid using the FAFSA. No particular details on what may result in a student being flagged for identity confirmation have been released so, since students applying for federal financial aid file the FAFSA every year, all of my current rising seniors, former students who may potentially still be enrolled in college, and their parents/contributors are receiving this email.

Please share with students/families you know who are applying for financial aid, or counselors/advisors who assist students with their college applications and FAFSA form.

What’s Changing?

Effective April 26, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education implemented a new automatic ID confirmation in the FAFSA online process as part of their efforts to combat federal financial aid fraud. (This has been a problem across the country, particularly at the community college level.) ID confirmation is only flagged for the student applicant, not the student’s contributors.

What should you do to prepare?

  • You, the student, should be present when the student portion of the FAFSA is being completed because the new ID confirmation occurs after inviting contributors and submitting the student section, and must be completed within a “short window of time” during that particular session.
    • Just how long a “short window of time” is has not been shared.
    • Contributors will still be able to proceed to complete their section.
    • You may be flagged if you submit a FAFSA correction later if you weren’t flagged initially.
  • If completing the FAFSA on a non-mobile device (e.g., a laptop or a desktop computer), please have a 2nd mobile device with a camera (smartphone or tablet) available to be used to scan a QR code.
    • The mobile device does not need to be the student’s own device.
  • You, the student, will need a government-issued photo ID to complete the ID confirmation (e.g., driver’s license, passport, tribal identification card, military ID, permanent resident card).
    • If you don’t have a government-issued photo ID, please take steps now to obtain one well before you sit down to complete the 2027-2028 FAFSA. This may involve first obtaining a copy of your birth certificate from the appropriate agency, which can take weeks to months in some locations.

Note: If you are a continuing student, the U.S. Department of Education will be conducting a one-time screening of all previously submitted 2026-2027 FAFSA applications, which you submitted for the academic year beginning this fall (2026).

What if you don’t complete ID confirmation?

  • If you’re unable to complete the ID confirmation, your FAFSA will be flagged with a “reject code” and you’ll need to contact each individual financial aid office for assistance in verifying your identity.

Hopefully, none of you will encounter this, but please be prepared.

Thanks to my colleague, Melissa Mieyr, for alerting fellow independent counselors to these changes!

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