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Verification Forms

Dependent and Independent Students

The forms listed here may be required of you before your financial aid can be awarded. Check WINGS under “Financial Aid”, “My Eligibility”, then “Student Requirements” to determine if you are required to submit any of these forms. If you are not sure whether you are dependent or independent, see the table below.

At least one of the following criteria must be met to be considered independent for the 2020-2021 school year

  • You were born before January 1, 1997.
  • You are married as of the day you sign the FASFA.
  • You are enrolled in a graduate or professional educational program beyond a bachelor’s degree.
  • You have legal dependents other than a spouse for whom you provide at least 50% of the support.
  • You are an orphan or ward of the court.
  • You are a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces (“veteran” includes a student who attended a U.S. military academy who was released under a condition other than dishonorable).

Signing the FAFSA

The signature page is a document that is generated by FAFSA on the Web. It includes your, name, address, the type of application you completed, and a randomly generated identification number.

You can sign your FAFSA by printing, signing, and mailing a signature page. However, the application process is faster if you use your FSA ID to sign your FAFSA electronically, and you must use an FSA ID to sign a Renewal FAFSA or corrections to a FAFSA. You may also call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) to request a copy of your Student Aid Report (SAR) which can also be used to process a signature.

When a parent signature is required, your parent can print, sign, and mail a signature page if he or she does not want to sign electronically with an FSA ID.

For the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years, the signature page should be mailed to:

Federal Student Aid Programs
P.O. Box 7652
London, KY 40742-7652

By signing and submitting the signature page, you agree, if asked, to provide information that verifies the accuracy of your completed FAFSA. This information may include a copy of your U.S. or state income tax form. If you utilized the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT), you certify that the U.S. income tax form that you filed with the IRS is true and complete to the best of your knowledge and you agree, if asked, to provide information that will verify the accuracy of your income tax return form. Do not mail income tax forms with the signature page.

By signing the signature page, you also certify that:

  • You will use federal student aid funds received during the award year covered by this application solely for educational expenses related to attendance during that year at the institution of higher education that determined eligibility for those funds;
  • You are not in default on a federal educational loan, or have repaid or made satisfactory arrangements to repay the loan if you are in default;
  • You do not owe an overpayment on a federal educational grant, or you have made satisfactory arrangements to repay that overpayment;
  • You will notify your school if you do owe an overpayment or are in default; and
  • You understand that the Secretary of Education has the authority to verify income reported on this application with the Internal Revenue Service and other federal agencies.

If you purposely give false or misleading information, you may be fined up to $20,000, sent to prison, or both.

Last updated: 12/11/2019

Financial Aid • PO Box 8065 • Statesboro, Georgia 30460 • 912-478-5413 • finaid@georgiasouthern.edu