amount	of	income	earned	from	work,	the	source	of	that	income,	and	the	reason	why	the	W-2	is	not	available	in	a	timely
manner.
Family	Size
Since	family	size	is	based	on	the	number	of	individuals	listed	and	claimed	on	the	IRS	tax	return,	if	transferred	directly
from	the	IRS	and	used,	family	size	does	not	need	to	be	verified.	However,	when	information	is	not	transferred	from	the
IRS,	or	if	the	applicant	updated	their	family	size	when	presented	with	the	opportunity	to	do	so	on	their	FAFSA,	the
following	documentation	is	sufficient	for	verification:
A	statement	signed	by	the	applicant	and,	if	the	applicant	is	a	dependent	student,	by	one	of	the	applicant's	parents,
that	lists	the	name	and	age	of	each	family	member	for	the	2025326	award	year	and	the	relationship	of	that	family
member	to	the	applicant.
For	a	dependent	student,	you	don9t	have	to	verify	family	size	in	the	following	situations:
The	family	size	is	reported	as	two	with	a	single,	divorced,	separated,	or	widowed	parent;	or
The	family	size	is	reported	as	three	with	parents	who	are	married	or	are	unmarried	and	living	together.
For	an	independent	student,	you	don9t	have	to	verify	family	size	in	the	following	situations:
The	family	size	is	reported	as	two	if	the	student	is	married;	or
The	family	size	is	reported	as	one	if	the	student	is	single,	divorced,	separated,	or	widowed.
Additionally,	you	don9t	need	to	verify	family	size	if	the	applicant	manually	updated	their	family	size	and	the	number	is	the
same	as	the	family	size	derived	from	data	transferred	directly	from	the	IRS.
Keep	in	mind	that	family	size	needs	to	align	with	the	answers	to	the	relevant	dependency	status	questions,	such	as	the
one	about	having	dependents	other	than	a	spouse.	If	verification	reveals	that	answers	do	not	match,	the	FAFSA	form
needs	to	be	corrected	so	that	the	information	is	in	alignment.
Identity	and	Statement	of	Educational	Purpose
Students	should	appear	in	person	at	your	school	and	present	a	valid,	unexpired,	government-issued	photo	identification
(ID)	such	as	a	U.S.	passport,	a	driver9s	license,	or	other	state-issued	ID.	<Unexpired=	means	the	ID	has	not	expired	at	the
time	it	is	checked,	even	if	it	will	expire	before	the	end	of	the	award	year.	A	valid	government-issued	photo	identification	is
one	issued	by	the	U.S.	government,	any	of	the	50	States,	the	District	of	Columbia,	the	Commonwealth	of	Puerto	Rico,	a
federally	recognized	American	Indian	and	Alaska	Native	Tribe,	American	Samoa,	Guam,	the	Virgin	Islands,	the
Commonwealth	of	the	Northern	Mariana	Islands,	the	Republic	of	the	Marshall	Islands,	the	Federated	States	of	Micronesia,
or	the	Republic	of	Palau.
You	must	maintain	an	annotated	copy	of	that	ID	that	includes	the	date	it	was	received	and	the	name	of	the	person	your
school	authorized	to	receive	it.	Your	school	may	determine	which	of	its	staff	are	authorized	to	review	an	applicant9s
identity.	We	recommend	that	the	person(s)	be	full-time	staff	and	the	school	keep	a	record	of	who	they	are.
The	following	are	not	sufficient	for	identity	verification:
An	ID	issued	by	a	state	university	or	college.
A	military	ID	(18	U.S.	Code	§	701	prohibits	it	from	being	photocopied).
Family	Size	Documentation
34	CFR	668.57(b)
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