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Top 10 January 2025 Announcements for Higher Education Institutions

Here is a summary of the top 10 January 2025 U.S. Department of Education (ED) announcements that apply to higher education institutions, plus information on guides and webinars.

Upcoming Title IV Requirements
  1. Dear Colleague Letter GEN-25-01, Notice of interpretation regarding misrepresentations by third-party service providers engaged by an institution of higher education – This Dear Colleague Letter reminds eligible Title IV institutions of their obligation under the Higher Education Act to comply with regulations prohibiting institutions from providing false, misleading, or inaccurate information about the nature of their educational programs, their financial charges, or the employability of their graduates
  2. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-25-01, Reminder – January 31 Reporting Deadline for Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 – This announcement reminds institutions about the Friday, January 31, 2025 deadline to file a disclosure report with the Secretary of Education whenever the institution is owned or controlled by a foreign source or receives a gift from or enters into a contract with a foreign source, the value of which is $250,000 or more, considered alone or in combination with all other gifts from or contracts with that foreign source within a calendar year.
  3. FSA Electronic Announcement CB-25-01, Deadline for 2025–26 Underuse Penalty Waiver for the Campus-Based Programs is Feb. 3, 2025 – This announcement is a reminder that the deadline to request a waiver of the 2025–26 award year penalty of Federal Work-Study (FWS) and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) for the underuse of 2023–24 award year funds is Monday, February 3, 2025.
  4. FSA Electronic Announcement GE-25-01, Reopening of FVT and GE Debt Reporting Process Until Mid-February – The completers lists associated with Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment (FVT/GE) have been completed and the data will be sent to another federal agency to calculate median earnings information. While the data is calculated, ED has reopened the reporting process for debt and other information (debt reporting) until Tuesday, February 18, 2025, to provide more time to institutions that were unable to complete debt reporting by January 15, 2025.
  5. FSA Electronic Announcement GE-24-02, Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment Topics Page and FAQs Now Available (Updated December 20, 2024) – This announcement highlights the FVT/GE Topics page in the Federal Student Aid Knowledge Center. The page includes information on Federal Register notices, Dear Colleague Letters, electronic announcements, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and other resources.
  6. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-24-146, Reconciliation Information for the Direct Loan, Federal Pell Grant, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant, and TEACH Grant Programs – This announcement provides specific information to assist institutions with reconciling the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program, Federal Pell Grant, Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant, and Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grants (TEACH Grant) Programs.
  7. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-25-03, Frequently Asked Questions on Administrative Capability and Financial Responsibility (Updated January 14, 2025) – This announcement provides links to FAQs on the two topics in the announcement title.
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Simplification Announcements
  1. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-24-150, Reprocessing of 2024–25 FAFSA Records to Address Conflicting Information, Asset Known Issues, and Incorrect Reject Codes – ED announced that it has completed the reprocessing of 2024–25 FAFSA records impacted by three broad reasons, with each assigned a separate Reprocessing Reason Code as outlined in the announcement.
  2. FSA Electronic Announcement APP-25-02, NSLDS Post-screening and new data files – ED said it expects to release the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) site Post-screening functionality in spring 2025. Until then, the NSLDS will provide a file identifying applicants for the 2024–25 award year whose eligibility status has changed since their initial 2024–25 FAFSA submission, based on certain reasons.
  3. FSA Electronic Announcement APP-25-01, Update on timeline for batch corrections processing for 2024–25 and 2025–26 FAFSA forms – ED announced that it is preparing to begin processing batch corrections via the Electronic Data Exchange and shared reminders regarding corrections and adjustments.
Updated Guides and Webinars
  1. FSA Electronic Announcement GENERAL-24-147, Federal Student Aid Handbook – 2025-26 Application and Verification Guide Now Available – The Application and Verification Guide of the 2025-2026 Federal Student Aid Handbook is now available from ED.
  2. FSA Electronic Announcement COD-24-10, 2025–2026 COD Technical Reference (Partial) Now Available – ED has posted a partial version of the 2025–2026 Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) Technical Reference, which contains development information for the 2025–2026 award year.
  3. FSA Electronic Announcement ANN-24-19, Life Internet Webinars – Wednesday Webinar Series, Winter 2025 – These webinars will provide the most recent guidance from ED and the office of Federal Student Aid, including statutory and regulatory updates. Operational information and reminders will also be shared.

Please contact us if you have questions or would like to discuss how these announcements apply to your institution.

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