The partial Government shutdown has left the IRS shuttered. We rely on the IRS heavily to provide official tax data to award students financial aid, and without the IRS some students aren’t able to pay their Fall bill and register for Spring. The Office of Student Financial Aid has a solution.

Instead of official IRS documents, you (and your parents) may submit a hand-signed copy of your 2016 Federal Tax Return only if you meet all of the following criteria.

1. You cannot register for the Spring semester because of an overdue balance from the Fall 2018 term.
2. You are being asked to turn in a 2016 Tax Return Transcript, Record of Account, or Verification of Non-Filing Letter.
3. You have tried and cannot use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (this requires logging into your FAFSA and linking it to your tax return).
4. You have submitted all other documents being requested

If you or your parent(s) meet all of these criteria, OSFA will accept a hand-signed copy of your 2016 Federal Tax Return (or temporarily waive the Verification of Non-Filing Letter) instead of a tax transcript to create a temporary award letter. Please write “Fall bill” at the top of the first page when you submit it. You should then:

1. Plan you schedule and be ready to register quickly online
2. Wait for Financial Services or Student Financial Aid to confirm the registration hold has been temporarily lifted (check your email)
3. Register for your classes that same day
4. Continue to request copies of your tax transcripts from the IRS. Your aid will not disburse to your account until you have turned in official tax transcripts.

If we are asking for copies of your W-2s, please retrieve them from your personal records or request those from your previous employer.

Your aid will not pay to your student account until you have turned in official tax documents, so please keep trying to request one (or use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool instead).

Welcome back to campus!

~OSFA