I’m seeking advice on whether I should pursue submitting a tuition appeal to my university. Any advice one might have would be greatly appreciated. I’ve tried to find advice from a pro bono lawyer in my area but that doesn’t seem to be happening.
Has anyone else dealt with a similar issue? Apparently by KY state law you have to give your university tax return transcripts DIRECTLY from the IRS, they won’t take one from your tax provider, even though it’s just as legitimate. I was officially de-registered from my classes last fall, as I could not meet the school’s deadline to get the required document to them. The de-registration occurred because without the transcript from the IRS, they could not allow my financial aid to be activated. Essentially, I was backed into a corner. I tried everything I could. I called the IRS, I tried to order my transcript from their website, I faxed them from Staples, I called a physical office in downtown Cincinnati which told me they DO NOT hand them out to people like that. Now the university has charged me half of the tuition owed for the semester all because of this. I don’t have 2,000 to blow away on the school, that financial aid should have covered in the first place.
Basically, they are demanding that money to be paid, just to activate the aid that was supposed to cover that amount. How does that make any sense?? Very frustrated with the situation and I know that it’s not right what they’re doing–even though on paper this is what they’re legally allowed to do.
Do I even have a chance of appealing this when the school is putting the fault completely on me? If not, is there any sort of agency out there that could help me to lower the amount owed?
Seems like OP is saying that school will only accept the tax transcript from the IRS directly.
I think the IRS only sends it to the taxpayer. Not the school.
Aid is applied to student account at the earliest 10 days before term starts. If they didn’t have your transcript by then, and un-enrolled you from your classes then why are they saying you owe them money?
Does the school participate with FAFSA? Why did they require the tax transcript?
I am not sure the OP is saying that. I think she misunderstands how she messed up in the fall by not giving the school the IRS transcript (which is different from the tax return itself from the paid preparer).
I am also thinking she may have been de-registered from the classes this semester but that is probably because she didn’t get last semester’s fixed first. So she still owes tuition for last semester.
I would suggest that, since this is an issue relating to the IRS, that perhaps she contact her congressman. The House Representative for her district likely has staff members dedicated to helping resolve questions like this.
I don’t think it needed to get this bad, but action tends to happen when the congressman’s office steps in to help bring clarity.
I hope she returns to post how she gets this resolved.
Then if the school were to only accept the transcript directly from the IRS no student would have aid. I think the OP has messed up somehow and needs to work the phone lines to get things fixed.
From my understanding the IRS website will not send transcripts by mail to 3rd parties, so the only way for that to work for verification purposes would be for the student to submit the transcript to the school that the family receives. I don’t think this is a scenario where the school wouldn’t take the transcript, but rather OP had issues with the IRS mailing the transcript from the order form.
I agree the Op messed up and did not fill out the paperwork to request the transcript from the IRS. when school needed transcript directly from the IRS and not your turbo tax copy or copy printed out fro your tax preparer. The IRS will usually mail the transcript to your home (or the home of the taxpayer) with in 10 days.
It has been my experience with my students that they must submit a copy of the IRS transcript in order to receive any aid. I give the forms to the whole senior class in May so that their parents could order it. This way they have it in May / June to send to the school. I know that kids have brought their IRS transcripts to school and I scanned and emailed them to the financial aid office.
If op needed it all s/he needed to do was order it from the IRS when she received it take it to the school unopened.
Op has no basis for an appeal because Op messed up. Op needs to find out if s/he turns in the transcript can the school get the aid since the term is not over yet.