However,	you	cannot	update	the	marital	status	of	an	already	independent	student	whose	dependency	status	has	not
changed	because	of	their	marriage	or	divorce	and	who	was	not	selected	for	verification.	In	such	a	case	you	must	select
the	student	for	verification	if	you	want	to	exercise	your	discretion	to	update	their	marital	status	and	all	other	associated
information.
Parent	Post-Application	Marriage
While	the	applicant	does	not	typically	update	family	size	because	of	a	change	in	their	marital	status,	if	the	applicant	is	a
dependent	student	and	their	parent	marries	or	remarries	between	application	and	verification,	the	student	must	update
family	size	to	include	the	new	stepparent.	However,	the	student	would	not	count	the	new	stepparent9s	income	and	assets.
A	school	can	use	professional	judgment	to	include	the	stepparent9s	income	or	to	otherwise	account	for	the	change.
Birth	of	a	Child
The	number	of	dependents	included	in	the	family	size	is	based	on	the	number	of	individuals	who	are	claimed	as
dependents	on	either	the	applicant9s	(if	independent)	or	parent9s	(if	dependent)	U.S.	federal	tax	return.	Therefore,	unborn
children	are	not	included	in	the	family	size,	though	the	family	size	can	be	updated	if	the	child	is	born	and	will	receive
more	than	half	of	their	support	from	the	student	(and	spouse,	if	applicable)	or	parent	(and	parent	spouse,	if	applicable)
during	the	award	year.
When	the	child	is	born,	you	may	update	the	family	size	in	two	circumstances:
1.	If	the	addition	of	the	newborn	changes	the	student9s	dependency	status	from	dependent	to	independent,	you	must
update	both	the	dependency	status	and	family	size.
2.	If	the	applicant	is	selected	for	verification,	you	should	update	the	family	size	to	be	accurate	at	the	time	you	complete
verification.	The	newborn	can	be	included	in	the	family	size	if	the	child	could	be	claimed	as	a	dependent	on	the
student9s	(if	independent)	or	parent9s	(if	dependent)	U.S.	federal	tax	return.
If	an	update	is	not	allowed	under	one	of	these	two	options,	you	may	choose	to	exercise	professional	judgment	on	a	case-
by-case	basis	to	add	the	newborn	to	the	family	size	if	you	determine	that	the	student	(or	contributor)	has	a	special
circumstance.	See	Chapter	5	of	this	volume	for	further	discussion	of	professional	judgment	and	special	circumstances.
Correcting	Errors
As	explained	in	the	last	section,	you	only	make	updates	in	specified	situations,	but	for	students	who	are	not	selected	for
verification,	you	or	they	must	correct	and	submit	for	processing	any	errors	reported	on	the	original	FAFSA	form	that	would
change	the	SAI	or	the	students9	eligibility	for	Title	IV	aid.
Changes	in	a	Selected	Applicant's	FAFSA	Form
For	students	who	are	selected	for	verification	and	receiving	subsidized	student	aid,	changes	to	any	non-dollar	item	and	to
any	dollar	item	of	$25	or	more	must	be	submitted	for	processing.	Also,	if	you	are	required	to	submit	any	change	through
FPS	because	of	verification,	you	must	submit	all	changes,	including	amounts	that	are	below	$25.
Updating	information
34	CFR	668.55
Changes	to	FAFSA	Information
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