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I may be testing my powers of prediction when I say that the numbers 400 and 401 are going to be huge this coming academic year.

Before you buy any lottery tickets, let me say that my prediction is based on the August 7 Electronic Announcement and will impact those financial aid professionals dealing with verification issues. I expect to see a lot of discussion as we encounter some new codes for the ISIR and SAR.

As we reported in the June 28 Tip of the Week, Jeff Baker with FSA (now retired), said schools will be responsible for corrections and updates on the FAFSA. The new comment codes of 400 and 401 will alert financial aid administrators that information requiring confirmation or correction could not be done online and will need to be resolved by the financial aid office. Some of the reasons for the comment codes to appear could be conflicts with adjusted gross income (AGI) and total income earned from work or conflicts between the financial information reported on the FAFSA and the AGI transferred from the IRS. The Electronic Announcement outlines other reasons that the comment codes might be generated.

Learn more about the 2018-19 FAFSA by attending one of Mapping Your Future's upcoming webinars.

For more information, contact Mapping Your Future at feedback@mappingyourfuture.org or 1-800-374-4072.

– By Catherine Mueller