What is Verification?
When you submit the FAFSA you may be selected for a process called “verification” by the Department of Education. This means that the Office of Financial Aid is required by the Department of Education to determine the accuracy of the information you provided through your FAFSA. If you are required for verification you must complete the IRS Data Retrieval feature on the FAFSA to comply with federal guidelines before any financial aid can be awarded. For instructions on completing this process, please visit the step by step IRS Data Retrieval Guide.
SHOULD YOU REQUEST AN IRS TAX TRANSCRIPT?
If you or your parent cannot (or choose not to) complete the IRS Data Retrieval then you may request an IRS Tax Transcript (after you complete your taxes) and submit it to the Office of Financial Aid.
YOU MUST REQUEST AN IRS TAX TRANSCRIPT IF:
- You (or your parent) did not use the IRS Data Retrieval process either at initial FAFSA filing or through subsequent corrections.
- You changed information after using the IRS Data Retrieval process.
- Your tax status is “Married, filing separately.”
- Your parents filed separate tax returns.
- You (or your parents) had a change in marital status after the end of the tax year on December 31.
- You (or your parents) filed an amended tax return.
- You filed taxes outside the U.S.
HOW DO YOU REQUEST AN IRS TAX TRANSCRIPT?
STEP 1
- On the IRS website (www.irs.gov), choose “Get a Tax Transcript” under the Tools menu bar (Figure 1-1).
STEP 2
- Click on “Get Transcript ONLINE” or “Get Transcript by MAIL” option (Figure 2-1).
STEP 3A – GET TRANSCRIPT ONLINE
- (If you wish to get your transcript by mail, skip this step and move to Step 3b)
If you click the online option, click on “GET STARTED” if it is your first time requesting a transcript or log in with your credentials if you are a returning user (Figure 3-1).
Follow the prompts from the IRS. Some people may have difficulty using the online tax transcript option. If you run into an issues, please use the mail in transcript option.
STEP 3B
Enter your personal information into the fields (SSN or ITIN, date of birth, and address). See Figure 3-2.
Request a “Return Transcript” as the transcript type and select the appropriate year (Figure 3-3).
You should receive a confirmation page showing that your transcript should arrive within 5-10 business days (Figure 3-4).
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
- If you are having trouble logging into the IRS website to retrieve your Tax Transcript, you must contact the IRS to resolve your issue. The NCMC Office of Financial Aid cannot provide technical assistance for this website.
- If you are still having issues you may call the IRS to request a transcript. Please visit the instructions on our verification page for details.