Verification
The Department of Education selected your FAFSA for a process called federal verification. This means we’re required to collect documentation from you and use it to review the accuracy of one or several items reported on your FAFSA. Don’t assume you’ve done anything wrong: this process exists to help ensure students are considered for all of the aid they’re eligible to receive. A finalized award offer can be prepared for you after the federal verification process is complete.
Verification Deadlines
| Undergraduate Early Decision | March 1 |
| Undergraduate Early Action | March 1 |
| Undergraduate Regular Decision | March 1 |
| Undergraduate Continuing Students | March 28 |
| Graduate and Law Students | April 15 |
How to Complete and Submit Verification Documentation
Incoming Undergraduate Student Portal
- L&C Portal to see your “Financial Aid Checklist.”
Continuing Undergraduate Student Portal
- Self-Service Portal via WebAdvisor to see your “Required Financial Aid Documents.”
Graduate and Law Student Portal
- Self-Service Portal via WebAdvisor to see your “Required Financial Aid Documents.”
Locate the name of the verification form that is listed as a missing requirement on your portal. Navigate to the Verification Forms section below.
-
Download, print, complete, and sign/date your required form.
- Typed/digital signatures are not acceptable.
- All dependent students are required to sign the form along with at least one parent signature.
Note: The list of missing requirements on your student portal may show that more than one verification form is needed. If so, complete each verification form listed on your student portal.
Scan your completed form(s) and upload to the secure portal by using the links under the Document Submission section at the bottom of this page.
Verification Forms
The Department of Education selected your 2025/26 FAFSA for federal verification, and sent you a notification on your FAFSA Submission Summary. Specifically, they’ve requested schools verify and correct as needed the family size you reported on the FAFSA.
Note: Corrections made to the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your family size, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
- Form 1 Family Size (PDF)
The Department of Education notified us that you reported an untaxed rollover and/or pension on your 2025/26 FAFSA. You can review your FAFSA Submission Summary for more information. We are required to verify the information, and make corrections if needed.
Note: Corrections made to information reported on the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your untaxed rollover and/or pension income, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
The Department of Education selected your 2025/26 FAFSA for federal verification, and sent you a notification on your FAFSA Submission Summary. Specifically, they’ve requested schools verify and correct as needed the 2023 income reported to the IRS and your family size.
Note: Corrections made to the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your 2023 income reported to the IRS and your family size, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
The Department of Education selected your 2025/26 FAFSA for federal verification, and sent you a notification on your FAFSA Submission Summary. Specifically, they’ve requested schools verify and correct as needed the 2023 income reported to the IRS and your family size.
Note: Corrections made to the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your 2023 income reported to the IRS and your family size, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
The Department of Education selected your 2025/26 FAFSA for federal verification, and sent you a notification on your FAFSA Submission Summary. Specifically, they’ve requested schools verify and correct as needed the 2023 income and family size information you reported.
Note: Corrections made to the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your 2023 income reported and your family size, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
The Department of Education selected your 2025/26 FAFSA for federal verification, and sent you a notification on your FAFSA Submission Summary. Specifically, they’ve requested schools verify and correct as needed the 2023 income and family size information you reported.
Note: Corrections made to the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your 2023 income reported and your family size, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
The Department of Education notified us that you reported a foreign income exclusion on your 2025/26 FAFSA. You can review your FAFSA Submission Summary for more information. We are required to verify the information, and make changes if needed.
Note: Any changes made to information reported on the FAFSA may impact eligibility.
To verify your 2023 foreign income exclusion, complete and submit the following form to the L&C Financial Aid Office.
Special Situation
If you find yourself a victim of identity theft, you will need to submit different or additional documentation to our office in order to verify your income data.
An individual who was the victim of IRS tax-related identity theft who cannot use the Direct Data Exchange (DDX) to import Federal Tax information into the FAFSA must submit the following:
- A copy of the signed 2023 income tax return and applicable schedules filed with the IRS.
- An IRS 4674C Letter (a letter from the IRS acknowledging the identity theft) or a statement signed and dated by the tax filer(s) indicating they were the victim of IRS tax-related identity theft and the IRS is aware of it.
- A completed IRS Filer/NonFiler Verification Form (Dependent OR Independent)
Note: Tax filers may inform the IRS of the tax-related identity theft by calling the IRS’s Identity Protection Specialized Unit (IPSU) at 1–800–908–4490.
Download and Complete Your Verification Form
You will need to print your completed form and sign/date it prior to submitting it to the Financial Aid Office.
Document Submission
To submit documents for verification, you can do so via fax, U.S. postal mail, or by uploading online it to one of our secured portals:
New Undergraduate Student Portal All Other Students - Financial Aid Portal
Federal Verification FAQ
Federal
The Department of Education selects students for verification: some at random, others based on the prospect that an error was made. Students selected for federal verification will receive a notification on their FAFSA Submission Summary.
Lewis & Clark
You may also be selected for verification by the Financial Aid Office. It is rare, but we may request documents to verify some information on the FAFSA to make sure we are able to offer you the maximum amount of aid you’re eligible to receive.
The verification is not mandatory to attend classes; however, it is required to receive a finalized financial aid offer. Failure to complete the process means you will not be considered for aid.
The verification process ensures that you are considered for all of the aid you may be eligible to receive. The documents you submit for verification may require that we make corrections to your FAFSA. Any corrections to the FAFSA, up or down, can result in a change in your eligibility. It is always the goal of verification to make sure the student is offered all of the aid they are eligible to receive.
Once you’ve submitted all forms and corresponding documentation to our office, the verification process can take 2-4 weeks to complete (longer during peak processing times). To make sure your documentation is reviewed as quickly as possible, make sure:
- All documents are completed.
- You sign and date the documents where indicated (no typed or digital signatures can be accepted).
- You submit all of the documents requested.
If you are unsure of which parent(s) to list on your Verification Form(s), please visit the Reporting Parent Information page to learn more about who should be reported for financial aid purposes.
Financial Aid is located in Fowler Student Center on the Undergraduate Campus.
MSC: 56
email fao@lclark.edu
voice 503-768-7090
fax 503-768-7074
Document Submission Portals:
New Undergraduate Students
All Other Students
Associate Vice President Anastacia Dillon
Financial Aid
Lewis & Clark
615 S. Palatine Hill Road
Portland OR 97219