Financial Aid Policy Changes
Stay up to date on all important changes to the University of Idaho's Financial Aid Policies and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
Summer Session Pell Grant Funds - Available Starting Late March
Pell Grant eligible undergraduate students who have used their full-time allocations of Pell grant funding for Fall and Spring semesters may be eligible for Pell grant funds for the summer session. To receive this additional Pell Grant funding for the summer session, students must be enrolled in at least 6 credit hours for summer session (in addition to the normal Pell Grant requirements) and complete a summer financial aid application on VandalWeb. Additional Pell Grant received for the summer session counts towards a student’s lifetime Pell Grant eligibility.
Read more on the Summer Session Financial Aid page.
FAFSA Changes
The FAFSA is currently available for the 2018-19 academic year, and becomes available Oct. 1 for the 2019-20 academic year.
When do you plan to attend UI?
| You will submit this FAFSA: | You can submit the FAFSA from: | You will use income and tax information from: |
| 2018-19 | October 1, 2017 - June 30, 2019 | 2016 |
| You will submit this FAFSA: | You can submit the FAFSA from: | You will use income and tax information from: |
| 2019-20 | October 1, 2018 - June 30, 2020 | 2017 |
IRS Data Retrieval Tool
Parents and students shall use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) to complete the income information on the FAFSA. This tool allows students and parents to import IRS tax return information to complete the FAFSA, preventing errors and reducing additional documentation requests. When using the DRT, income information will be masked in order to protect your privacy. Please contact the university's financial aid staff prior to making changes to the imported information, as altering it can delay the processing time of your FAFSA and will create unnecessary documentation requests. Download a step-by-step walk through of the IRS DRT.
If you are eligible to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, we highly recommend using the tool for several reasons:
- It’s the easiest way to provide your income and tax data.
- It will speed up your financial aid application processing.
- It’s the best way of ensuring your FAFSA has accurate income and tax information.
- You won’t need to provide a copy of tax transcripts.