Many schools may now need to dedicate staff to performing individual corrections to FAFSA information.
In an already frustrating award cycle, the Department of Education announced that it will not offer schools the ability to do batch corrections for 2024-25 and has deferred this functionality until 2025-26.
The news was released via a July 30 Electronic Announcement. It was not the news that financial aid administrators wanted to hear, especially after being told in June that it would be available in early August.
The Department also announced the availability of no-cost technical assistance to help schools submit corrections via the FAFSA Partner Portal (FPP). Schools can then utilize third-party services for assistance in submitting corrections.
Interested schools who wish to utilize third-party services for assistance, learn more about eligibility requirements, and how to request support can do so via FAFSA School Support.
The Department also announced the extension of several existing flexibilities:
- Routine program reviews – The suspension of program reviews will be extended through September 2024, except in the case of serious issues such as suspected fraud or a severe breach of fiduciary duty.
- Recertification – The Department is also waiving the 90-day requirement for recertifying eligibility for schools whose Program Participation Agreement (PPA) expires in December 2024.
- Disbursement reporting timeline – Disbursements for the 2024-25 award year will not be required to be reported until November 30 or 15 calendar days after the disbursement is made, whichever is later.
Schools with questions about the Electronic Announcement can use the Contact Customer Support form link in Federal Student Aid’s Help Center. Enter name, email address, institution, topic, and question. Select “2024-25 FAFSA” as the topic.