FAFSA Verification Process
Each year, the U.S. Department of Education selects a number of FAFSA applications for a process known as verification. If you are selected, please note that this decision is made by the Department of Education—not Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU). However, you are still required to complete the verification process by submitting the appropriate documentation to PLNU’s Student Financial Services (SFS) office.
What Verification Involves
If selected, you may be required to verify information such as:
- Income and taxes paid
- Household size and number in college
- Child support paid or SNAP (food assistance) benefits received
- High school completion status and identity
PLNU will notify you if you have been selected for verification after your FAFSA has been filed.
To facilitate the verification process, PLNU partners with Inceptia’s Verification Gateway, a secure third-party platform approved by the Department of Education. In some cases, students may be contacted directly by PLNU’s SFS office, particularly if selected for institutional or custom/aggregate verification.
Documentation and Deadlines
Returning PLNU students (undergraduate, accelerated undergraduate, or graduate): All requested documents and tax information must be submitted before financial aid can be awarded.
- New PLNU students: Required documents must be submitted before any financial aid can be disbursed.
- If verification is not completed by the first day of classes or another specified deadline, federal, state, and institutional need-based aid may be canceled.
Submitting Tax Information
Before submitting tax documents, you must have already filed your federal taxes. IRS data typically becomes available:
- 2 weeks after electronic filing
- 8 weeks after mailing a paper return
- If taxes are owed, information may not be accessible until after May
Failure to submit tax documents in a timely manner may delay the processing of your financial aid.
Option 1: IRS Data Retrieval Tool (Recommended)
We strongly recommend using the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) when completing or updating your FAFSA. This tool links your FAFSA directly to the IRS, reducing errors and expediting the verification process. If you’ve already filed your taxes, visit fafsa.gov to use this feature.
Option 2: IRS Tax Return Transcript
If the IRS DRT is unavailable to you, you may request a Tax Return Transcript directly from the IRS. We recommend choosing the option that allows for immediate printing. Once received, submit the transcript to PLNU’s SFS office.