SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCE PETITIONS (SCPJ)

Purpose

The FAFSA does not provide families with a place to explain special circumstances affecting their ability to pay for the student’s education. Professional Judgment refers to the authority of a school’s financial aid administrator to make adjustments to the data elements on the FAFSA and to override a student’s status.  The school does not have the authority to change the need analysis formula itself or to make direct adjustments to the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). Instead, the school may make adjustments to the inputs of the formula. The standard formula is then applied to the new data elements, yielding a new EFC figure.

 

An item need not be rare in order to be special. Congress’s choice of language appears to have been quite deliberate, to allow for conditions that distinguish a student from among a class of students, but which are not necessarily rare. Universities are encouraged to use professional judgment to help families during challenging economic times (layoffs and wage/hour reductions, income loss from a prospective student’s voluntary separation from a job or losing a home to foreclosure). A changed circumstance certainly includes the loss of a job or a reduction in work hours or wages, but it also includes, for example, the income loss associated with a student’s decision to leave the workforce or to reduce work hours in order to return to school. https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/dear-colleague-letters/2013-03-08/gen-13-09-subject-students-unusual-enrollment-history-flag-c-code-isir

 

A student must be enrolled in classes at BYU-I when submitting a petition. As part of the petition process, the student will be required to submit supporting documentation. If the student’s aid application has been chosen for verification, verification must be completed before a petition for special circumstance can be processed. A student may only petition once for the federal award year (FAY).

 

Options for a Special Circumstance Petition:

• Year-to-Date Income Petition: Available only from October 1 to November 30 of the current AY. Only available to graduating seniors or when specifically directed by a counselor. This will change income information on the FAFSA from base year to the current year. This incorporates projected income information through the end of the year.
• Current Year Income Petition: Available after January 1, and before the student’s last date of enrollment once taxes have been completed. This will change the income information on the FAFSA from the base year to the previous tax year.
• Previous Year Income Petition: Available after January 1, and before the student’s last date of enrollment once taxes have been completed. This will change the income information on the FAFSA from the base year to the previous tax year.
• Removal of One-Time Disbursements: Available before the student’s last date of enrollment. This request removes income items resulting from divorce, death of a spouse or parent or unemployment.
• Removal of One-Time Disbursements: Available before the student’s last date of enrollment. This request removes large income amounts resulting from one-time disbursements (retirement distributions, severance pay, etc.) that were reported on the FAFSA and may inaccurately portray a student’s ability to pay for education. These disbursements cannot recure annually. This type of petition may be denied if a student already had a similar one approved in a previous year.
• Unusual Medical and Dental Expenses: Available before the student’s last date of enrollment. This request removes extraordinary medical and dental expenses that were reported on taxes but were not accounted for on the FAFSA. These medical and dental must be reported on taxes.

Procedure

1. Student contacts the BYU-Idaho Financial Aid office regarding a circumstance in which his/her family’s ability to pay for education expenses has changed.  Student will meet with a Counselor who determines whether the student has a reason to petition to compensate for a special circumstance as described previously.

 

2. Counselor will verify that the following are all true:
   1. Student is currently enrolled
   2. EFC must be higher than 0
   3. Verification is complete
   4. No PJ has been approved for the current year already, if so, they cannot do another PJ of the same type

3. If it is determined there is a compelling reason, and student meets the requirements of #2, the Counselor will add the following documents to student’s Regent file

1. Current Year Income or Previous Year Income Petitions:
   1. [School Year] Petition for Special Circumstance
   2. Special Circumstance PJ Letter of Explanation
   3. Special Circumstance PJ Student Tax Information
   4. Special Circumstance PJ Student W2 Statements
      1. Additional Documents for married students:
         1. Special Circumstance PJ Spouse Tax Information
      2. Special Circumstance PJ Spouse W2 Statements
      3. Additional Documents for dependent students:
         1. Special Circumstance PJ Parent Tax Information
         2. Special Circumstance PJ Parent W2 Statements

2. Year-to-Date Income PJ:
   1. [School Year] Petition for Special Circumstance
   2. Special Circumstance PJ Letter of Explanation
      1. Additional Documents for independent students:
         1. Projected Income Form – Independent
      2. Additional Documents for dependent students:
         1. Projected Income Form – Dependent

 

3. Removal of Specific Income Items
   1. [School Year] Petition for Special
   2. Special Circumstance PJ Letter of Explanation
      1. Letter will provide detailed information on what income they are requesting be removed and why
      2. Specific documentation may be required
4. Removal of One-Time Disbursements
   1. [School Year] Petition for Special Circumstance
   2. Special Circumstance PJ Letter of Explanation
      1. Letter will provide detailed information on what income they are requesting be removed and why
      2. Specific documentation may be required
5. Unusual Medical and Dental Expenses
   1. [School Year] Petition for Special Circumstance
   2. Special Circumstance PJ Letter of Explanation
   3. Special Circumstance PJ Student Tax Information including Schedule A (for independent students) OR
   4. Special Circumstance PJ Parent Tax Information including Schedule A (for dependent students)

 

* Students/spouse/parents who did not file taxes must upload a verification of non-filing letter which they request from the IRS, or in situations where they cannot get that letter, they can instead provide a signed letter stating they tried but could not get the letter from the IRS and they were not required to file taxes, specifying the year, and then state the exact amount of money earned that year.

• Example: “In 2020 I was employed part-time and was not required to file taxes because I did not earn enough money. I made $XXX in 2020 working for (names employers and exact amount from each employer). I tried to get the letter of non-filing from the IRS but couldn’t because …”
• They will also have to provide W2’s.
• If they were self-employed and made more than $400, they will be required to file taxes.

* Students/spouse/parents who don’t have W2’s because they didn’t work at all can submit a signed letter explaining that they didn’t work and why. They must specify the year. Example: “I did not work in 2020 because I was a full-time student, had no earnings and was not required to file taxes.”

Adding Documents:

        

1. Click on Documents Tab
2. Click Add Document
3. Click “Select Document Requirements”

 

4. In Document Requirement box, click on “Facilitate PJ Review”
5. In box on the right, find the specific PJ Document needed and click on it
6. If needed, add applicable Award Year
7. Make sure status is “Needed”
8. Put note for student to read in “Reason” box  (See all notes on last page)
9. If needed, put note for office in “Notes” box
10. Click “Save”

11. When documents are received, Counseling Manager reviews them. If they are complete and correct:
    1. Satisfy Special Circumstance documents, clearing all notes in each document
    2. Close Special Circumstance PJ tasks
       1. Click “Tasks” tab
       2. Click box beside the task
       3. In “Change” box, choose “Status”
       4. In “of selected Tasks to” box, choose “Closed”
       5. Click “Submit”

 

3. Add “[school year] Ready for Special Circumstance Review” document as Received
   1. This will create a new task
4. Assign the task to Verification Employee by going back to the tasks tab

6. Click Refresh and the new task will appear
7. Assign the task to Verification employee
8. In “Change” box choose “Assignee”
9. In “of selected Tasks to” choose the employee
10. Submit

5. Verification team will finish process

 

12. If any Special Circumstance documents are not complete or correct
    1. Change that document to Incomplete
    2. Add a note explaining what the student needs to correct or provide
    3. Close the task

 

13. Send email via Communication tab: “Missing Information – Petition – All FAY’s”
    1. Click on Communications tab
    2. In the “Notification” box scroll down to find and click on “Missing Information – Petition - All FAY’s
    3. In the “Email Address Type” find and click on “School” then “Add”
    4. This will create a document in the Activity Log titled “Generated Missing Information – Petition – All FAY’s at [student’s email address] followed by a small envelope

5. Click on the envelope
   1. This will bring up a copy of the email that will be sent to the student review, but does NOT send the email, but gives you a chance to review that it is correct
6. To actually send the email, click the tiny envelope in the top right-hand corner that has a small green arrow
7. A message will pop up above the form stating that the email has been sent
8. Click OK to close the pop-up message
9. Close the email form  

 

10. A new message will appear confirming that the email has been sent

 

14. When all documents are complete, correct and satisfied
    1. Close Special Circumstance tasks
    2. Add “[school year] Ready for Special Circumstance Review” document as Received
    3. Go to tasks tab
       1. Refresh and a new task will appear
       2. Assign the task to Verification employee
       3. Verification team will complete process

NOTES

 

SCPJ Form (For this form, put note only in “NOTES” box for employees only to see):

[2223] SCPJ docs added per student’s request, student (or parent) recently lost job (explain very briefly).

 

Taxes: Put notes in “REASON” box for student to see:

Upload parents’ [2021] 1040, including all pages that say “Schedule” at the top. This form MUST have a signature on the signature line

 

Upload student’s [2021] 1040, including all pages that say “Schedule” at the top. This form MUST have a signature on the signature line

 

Upload your spouse’s [2021] 1040, including all pages that say “Schedule” at the top. This form MUST have a signature on the signature line. (If the student is married and you know they filed jointly, you don’t need to add the spouse taxes document)

 

W2’s: Put notes in “REASON” box for student to see:

Upload all parent’s [2021] W2’s. The total of all W2’s MUST EQUAL the amount on the 1040.

 

Upload all student’s [2021] W2’s. The total of all W2’s MUST EQUAL the amount on the 1040.

 

For Dependent Students: Upload all parents’ [2021] W2’s. The total of all W2’s MUST EQUAL the amount on the 1040.

 

For Independent, Married Students: Upload all spouse’s [2021] W2’s. The total of all W2’s MUST EQUAL the amount on the 1040.

 

Letter: Put note in “REASON” box for student to see:

Please provide a hand-signed letter explaining how your family’s income has changed, and specifically request to use [2