Financial Aid

1. DSDT may use a dependency override determination made by a financial aid administrator at another institution in the same or a prior award year.

2. Institutions must make and document professional judgment determinations on a case-by-case basis without regard to how broadly an event may affect its student population.

3. In making case-by-case determinations, the FAA must substantiate the student’s circumstance with supporting documentation.

4. Previous reasons for exercising professional judgment (e.g., unemployment, dislocated worker, school tuition expenses) are still allowable.

5. A dependency override for unusual circumstances is considered unique from a determination of independence for homeless youth or at-risk homeless youth.

Additional Flexibility for Assisting Students with Unusual Circumstances

The FAFSA Simplification Act provides a clearer directive for FAAs to assist applicants with unusual circumstances to adjust dependency status on the FAFSA form to reflect students’ situations more accurately. Like other types of professional judgment, institutions must make students aware of their ability to request for an adjustment for unusual circumstances by publicly posting the option on their website. For the award years, applicants must still indicate an unusual circumstance and request a determination of independence with DDBS to allow the Financial Aid Administrator to process their FAFSA form.

Starting with the 2024-2025 Award Year, both initial and renewal applicants who indicate they have an unusual circumstance on their FAFSA form will submit their application under a provisional independent status. This will allow such applicants to receive a Student Aid Index (SAI) with an estimate of their federal student aid eligibility, subject to a final determination by their school.