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ED issues guidance on dependency overrides

Some students who apply for federal student aid have special circumstances not addressed on the FAFSA. These students often bring these circumstances to the attention of the financial aid office at the schools they attend. The Higher Education Act (HEA) allows financial aid administrators (FAAs) the flexibility to make adjustments to a student's file — on a case-by-case basis — that may affect the student's eligibility for federal student aid.

In its May 2, 2003, Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) GEN-03-07, ED issued comprehensive guidance on one of the criteria that affects a student's eligibility for financial aid — the student's dependency status. GEN-03-07 reviews the conditions for an FAA to make and document dependency overrides, which occur when the FAA determines that an otherwise dependent student is independent due to unusual circumstances.

Background for defining an independent student
Section 480(d) of the HEA defines an independent student as someone who meets one or more of the following six criteria:

• Is 24 years of age or older by December 31 of the award year.
• Is an orphan or ward of the court, or was a ward of the court until the individual reached the age of 18.
• Is a veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States.
• Is a graduate or professional student.
• Is a married individual.
• Has one or more legal dependents other than a spouse.

A student who does not qualify as an independent student under any of the criteria above may be considered an independent student under HEA section 480(d)(7). Under this provision, a student is considered independent if the FAA "makes a documented determination of independence by reason of other unusual circumstances." Unusual circumstances are those situations that make it inappropriate to expect the student's parent(s) to contribute financially toward the student's education.

Identifying unusual circumstances for dependency override
GEN-03-07 details the procedures that allow schools to process dependency overrides, information which is also found in the 2002-2003 Federal Student Aid Handbook in the Application and Verification Guide (AVG). The AVG identifies a student's abusive family environment or parental abandonment as conditions that qualify as unusual circumstances.

The AVG also identifies four conditions that do not qualify as unusual circumstances. Those circumstances are:

• Parents refusing to contribute to the student's education.
• Parents unwilling to provide information on the application or for verification.
• Parents not claiming the student as a dependent for income tax purposes.
• Student demonstrating total self-sufficiency.

Timing of determinations for dependency override
The law requires that determinations of unusual circumstances for dependency override must be made each award year because the conditions that the FAA previously used to determine the student as independent may no longer exist. The FAA at the school the student is currently attending must make the determination and have the proper documentation to support the dependency override decision.

Also, the determination for dependency override made by an FAA at one school may not be binding at another school.

Documenting determinations for dependency override
In order to document an FAA's decision to override a student's dependency status, the FAA should require third-party written documentation supporting a student's unusual circumstances. When that is not available, the FAA must include, in writing, a statement from the student relating to the unusual circumstances. Upon review of all documentation, the FAA must make a specific determination for the student.

After making a determination of dependency override, the FAA must prepare a written statement that includes the specific unusual circumstances used to make the determination. All documentation used to make the dependency override determination must be maintained by the school.

Reviewing policies and procedures for dependency overrides
ED encourages all schools to review their dependency override policies and procedures for consistency with ED's existing guidance and documentation requirements.

More information
To access DCL GEN-03-07, go to the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website at http://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN0307.html.

For questions about dependency overrides, call TG Customer Assistance at (800) 845-6267 or send an message to cust.assist@tgslc.org.

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