Financial Aid Appeals | Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid

For information on financial aid appeals specifically related to special circumstances surrounding COVID-19, please visit the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid’s COVID-19 Information page or contact our office.

Please be aware, students who are no longer enrolled are not eligible for a financial aid, special circumstances appeal.

Cost of Attendance Appeal (COA)

The Cost of Attendance (COA) represents the average expenses paid by University of Arizona students in various student circumstances. The COA helps determine your financial aid offer. Go here to learn more about the COA and how it impacts your financial aid offered.

Understanding your COA

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If you are attending classes on at least a half time status (Undergraduates = 6 units, Graduate/Professional = 5 units), your COA is the estimate of:

tuition and fees
room and board (or living expenses for students who do not contract with the school for room and board)
books, supplies, transportation, loan fees, and miscellaneous expenses (including a personal computer)
iCourse fees

You can view the University of Arizona’s estimated COAs by selecting the appropriate link below:

Reasons for requesting a COA Appeal

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OSFA may be able to increase your COA if you have allowable expenses that you are incurring during the academic year that are either not already included in your standard COA or are larger than what is included in the standard budget.

The following expenses are examples of expenses that can be considered:

Cost of Child Care / Dependent Care
Purchase of a computer
Rent or utility expenses that exceed the estimated COA

A COA Appeal may also be requested in order to help clear an Overaward.

Supporting documentation must be submitted with each appeal in order to verify the paid expenses.

To begin the process of submitting a COA Appeal, please contact OSFA to request an online form.

Dependency Override Appeal (DO)

The Dependency Override Appeal is available for students who have unusual circumstances that may qualify them for independent status which could have an impact on a student’s financial aid eligibility. OSFA may be able to update your dependency status if you have qualifying special circumstances and documentation to support it. Examples of acceptable and unacceptable scenarios are listed below.

Qualifying Dependency Override Special Circumstances

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The conditions listed below,alone or in combination, do not qualify as unusual circumstances meriting a dependency override:

Parents refuse to contribute to the student's education.
Parents are unwilling to provide information on the FAFSA or for verification.
Parents do not claim the student as a dependent for income tax purposes.
Student demonstrates total self-sufficiency.

Qualifying Circumstances

Abandonment by parents
An abusive family environment that threatens the student's health or safety
The student is unable to locate their parents

In such cases a dependency override might be warranted. If you believe that you have other unusual circumstances that do not fall under the qualifying circumstances above, then you will be required to explain your special circumstances and provide the required documentation.

To begin the process of submitting a DO Appeal, please contact the OSFA to request an online form.

Family Contribution Appeal (FC)

Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is used to determine what types of and how much financial aid you are eligible to receive. Your EFC is calculated using all the information you reported on your FAFSA, including the household taxed and untaxed income, assets, and benefits (such as unemployment or Social Security), family size and the number of family members who are attending college during the academic year.

Reasons for requesting a Family Contribution Appeal

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If you or your family's financial situation has changed since filing the FAFSA due to special circumstances or if there are certain expenses not reflected on the FAFSA, you may request to submit a Family Contribution Appeal. The following financial situations are examples of special circumstances that can be considered:

Loss of employment
Reduction in earnings
Paid medical costs not covered by insurance
Death of a parent
Tax Liens
K-12 Private Education Tuition

Supporting documentation must be submitted with each appeal in order to verify the change in circumstances.

The following are not considered special circumstances:

Pending reduction in income due to fluctuating commissions or consumer debt
Refusal of a parent to provide financial support to the student

To begin the process of submitting a Family Contribution Appeal, please contact OSFA to request an appeal.

Note: If you already have an EFC of zero (0), you are not eligible to complete an FC appeal.

Special Circumstances and Required Documentation

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Special Circumstance	Types of Documentation Required	Circumstances Allowed For
Unemployment	o A copy of employment separation letter, including verification of severance pay or retirement benefits (or the lack thereof), o Or a copy of a letter or statement establishing the amount of eligibility for unemployment benefits; o Or copies of recent W2s and 1040 Tax Form or Tax Return Transcript if their current income is less than their previous year’s income.	Student, Spouse, Parents
Disability or Injury	o Copies of statement(s) reflecting eligibility for benefits, monthly amount received and start and end dates of payments; o Or copies of current W2s and 1040 Tax Form or Tax Return Transcript if their current income is less than their previous year’s income.	Student, Spouse, Parents
Loss of Income	o A copy of termination notice of other income (e.g., social security benefits, trust payments, alimony, child support). o If currently employed, submit last 2 paycheck stubs	Student, Spouse, Parents
Death of Spouse or Parent	o Required to provide the date of the event; o And copies of supporting documentation or certificates.	Spouse or Parents
Report of One-Time Income	o Required to provide a copy of your previous year’s 1099-R or other financial statement of one-time income (e.g., early IRA distribution, conversions and rollovers) o Prior, prior year tax forms o Prior year tax forms	Student, Spouse, Parents
Medical Treatment	Copy of the statement(s) from the insurance provider, pharmacy or medical facilities, stipulating the amount of the medical expenses paid that were not covered by insurance.	Student, Spouse, Parent, Household
Private Education (K-12)	Copy of tuition statement that includes total tuition cost as well as any financial assistance received.	Student Siblings (if Dependent), Student children (if Independent)
Tax Liens	Statement from the Internal Revenue Service and/or State Tax Board indicating monthly payment amount on back taxes owed.	Student, Spouse, or Parents
Court Ordered Payments	Receipt of payments	Student, Spouse, or Parents

General Appeal (GAP)

You have the right to appeal any financial aid decision, other than a Scholarship Appeal decision which is final, previously reviewed by OSFA. All students have the right to an initial appeal as well as a final appeal. All appeals must be in writing and are reviewed by the OSFA Appeal Committee.

Note, this form should not be used for:
- Scholarship Appeals or Deferments
- Loss of income or changes to your and/or your family’s financial circumstances. Refer here for additional information about the Family Contribution Appeal.

Appeal Submission Deadline: Friday, August 27th for Fall 2021 admits or continuing students

General Appeal Form

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The General Appeal submission deadline has passed.

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Reasons for Submitting a General Appeal

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Common examples of situations giving rise to a request for appeal include, but are not limited to:

Student’s own mental,physical illness, injury, or disability
Personal Reasons
Family circumstances, including death of a family member
Other extenuating circumstances that are beyond the student’s control

Requirements for General Appeals

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Attach a personal statement explaining the circumstances of the request, which should be no longer than one page in length
Attach supporting documentation (e.g., letter from religious leader related to religious missions, letter of acceptance into non-Arizona-study abroad program, call to active duty, letter from attorney or other individual confirming circumstances beyond the student’s control, etc.)
Complete the General Appeal form in its entirety

Due to the circumstances surrounding COVID-19, the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid realizes that it will not always be feasible for students to collect medical documentation associated with their GAP Appeal request. Effective 3/23/2020, the requirement for students to include any medical documentation will be waived until further notice.

Important: The University reserves the right to modify this process at any time. Submission of a General Appeal does not guarantee approval. Incomplete or missing documentation will delay the appeal process. Any changes to financial aid awards will be contingent on the types of funds available, eligibility policies, and regulations. After initial review, additional documentation may be required. Appeal review may result in required application corrections. Students waiting for an appeal decision should be fully prepared to assume responsibility for all course enrollment and account balance payment, regardless of the appeal decision.

Additional Appeals

To learn more about additional appeal options, such as the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) appeal and the Merit Tuition Scholarship and Arizona Assurance Appeal and Deferment Request, review the appeals section of our forms page!

2020-2021 Appeal Dates and Deadlines

Appeal Type	Summer 2021 Open Date	Summer 2021 Close Date	2020-2021 Open Date	2020-2021 Review Start	2020-2021 Close Date	Accepted Documentation
Family Contribution Appeal	Summer Terms: May 1, 2021	Summer Terms: July 1, 2021	March 20th, 2020	April 13th, 2020	For students attending both Fall 2021 and Spring 2022: April 1st, 2021 For students only attending Fall 2021: November 12th, 2021	Tax Return Transcripts, 1040 Tax Forms, Termination Letters, 1099R, Medical Bills, Death Certificate, etc. Documents can be from 12-months prior to the semester you are first enrolled within the 2020/2021 academic year, or within the current academic year.
Dependency Override	Summer Terms: May 1, 2021	Summer Terms: July 1, 2021	Dec 13th, 2019	Dec 16th, 2019	1 week prior to the student’s last day of enrollment.	Letters or official documents from teachers, counselors, medical authority, government authority, etc.
Cost of Attendance	Summer Terms: May 1, 2021	Summer Terms: July 1, 2021	July 13th, 2020	August 3rd, 2020	For student attending both Fall 2021 and Spring 2022: April 1st, 2021 For students only attending Fall 2021: November 12th, 2021	Itemized Receipts, Bills, Lease/Mortgage Statements, SEVIS fee receipts, etc. beginning May 2020. *Documentation must be in the student’s name.
Requested Cost of Attendance appeal to clear an overaward(OA)	Summer Terms: May 1, 2021	Summer Terms: Last day of the session for which the OA occurred	July 13th, 2020	August 3rd, 2020	Last day of the term for which the OA occurred. Fall: Dec 9 Spring: May 6	Itemized Receipts, Bills, Lease/Mortgage Statements, SEVIS fee receipts, etc. beginning May 2020. *Documentation must be in the student’s name.

2021-2022 Appeal Dates and Deadlines

Appeal Type	2021-2022 Open Date	2021-2022 Review Start	2021-2022 Close Date	Accepted Documentation
Family Contribution Appeal	March 15th, 2021	April 12th, 2021	April 1st, 2022	Tax Return Transcripts, 1040 Tax Forms, Termination Letters, 1099R, Medical Bills, Death Certificate, etc. Documents can be from 12-months prior to the semester you are first enrolled within the 2021/2022 academic year, or within the current academic year.
Dependency Override	Jan 6th, 2021	Jan 11th, 2021	1 week prior to the student’s last day of enrollment.	Letters or official documents from teachers, counselors, medical authority, government authority, etc.
Cost of Attendance	July 12th, 2021	August 2nd, 2021	April 1st, 2022	Itemized Receipts, Bills, Lease/Mortgage Statements, SEVIS fee receipts, etc. beginning May 2021. *Documentation must be in the student’s name.
Requested Cost of Attendance appeal to clear an overaward (OA)	July 13th, 2021	August 3rd, 2021	Last day of the term for which the OA occurred. Fall: Dec 8 Spring: May 4	Itemized Receipts, Bills, Lease/Mortgage Statements, SEVIS fee receipts, etc. beginning May 2021. *Documentation must be in the student’s name.

Policy

Special Circumstances Appeals

Cost of Attendance Appeal (COA)

Understanding your COA

Reasons for requesting a COA Appeal

Dependency Override Appeal (DO)

Qualifying Dependency Override Special Circumstances

Qualifying Circumstances

Family Contribution Appeal (FC)

Reasons for requesting a Family Contribution Appeal

Special Circumstances and Required Documentation

General Appeal (GAP)

Note, this form should not be used for:

General Appeal Form

Reasons for Submitting a General Appeal

Requirements for General Appeals

Additional Appeals

2020-2021 Appeal Dates and Deadlines

2021-2022 Appeal Dates and Deadlines