Federal Financial Information Verification Policy

Your application for Federal Student Financial Aid may be selected by the U.S. Department of Education or GCU for review in a process called verification. Verification is a systematic means of comparing various financial and informational documents with the information you provided on the FAFSA. The following information is an outline of the policies and procedures that govern the verification process, your responsibilities and the appropriate deadline dates for the Federal Student Aid Programs. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Office of Financial Aid.

Our Verification Policy

Students selected for verification will be notified of the requirement to submit specific documentation of items included on the FAFSA. First-time GCU students will receive a tentative award letter that may be revised upon completion of the verification process. It is the policy of GCU to withhold the disbursement of Federal and/or State Student Financial Aid until the verification process is considered completed. This policy ensures that the information provided on the Student Aid Report to our office and your aid eligibility determination is correct before any funds are disbursed to you.

Returning students will not receive their financial aid award notification until verification has been completed.

Verification Completion

The verification process will be considered complete once the following have been accomplished:

  1. The Office of Financial Aid has received the completed Verification Form along with copies of the student’s (and spouse’s if married) Federal Tax transcripts, and the Federal Tax transcripts for the student’s parents (if parent data was required on the FAFSA) for the tax year used on the FAFSA. 
  2. Copies of any other documents requested have been submitted to the GCU Office of Financial Aid.
  3. The Office of Financial Aid has compared the federal processor results with the documents requested.
  4. If verification reveals that data provided to the federal processor is accurate, verification is considered complete and awards will be finalized.

If verification reveals that data provided to the federal processor is incorrect, the Office of Financial Aid will electronically correct data with the federal processor and the student will receive notification of the corrections, either by mail or e-mail, from the federal processor. If a financial aid offer has been extended to a first-time student, the award may be revised based on these corrections.

The Consequences of Failing to Complete Verification

Federal and/or State Student Aid will be withheld until verification is complete.

If your application is selected for verification by the New Jersey Higher Education Assistance Authority (HESAA) for a New Jersey Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) award, you will receive notification directly from HESAA to provide additional documentation and your estimated TAG award will be removed from your aid package until HESAA confirms your eligibility.

Please respond to all requests promptly so your financial aid award can be finalized prior to the beginning of the academic year.