Eligibility & Disclosures

Am I eligible for aid, and do I stay eligible? This page answers both. Some criteria determine which types of aid you can receive. Others determine whether you continue receiving aid once you have it, and those apply every year rather than once.

Aid for ASSET and DACA students and veteran and military students is here too, along with who can see your financial aid information and the standards our office holds itself to.

What You Have to Meet

These are the federal aid rules, and they apply to grants, scholarships, work-study and loans alike. ASSET and DACA students have their own path in the section below.

Citizenship or Eligible Noncitizen Status

Federal aid requires U.S. citizenship or an eligible noncitizen status. We may ask for documents confirming it. Colorado students who do not qualify federally should read ASSET and DACA.

Enrollment in an Eligible Program

You have to be seeking a degree in a program the university has determined is eligible for aid, and your courses have to count toward it.

A New FAFSA Every Year

Aid does not carry over. Apply for financial aid each year and send any documents we request.

Satisfactory Academic Progress

You have to keep meeting the grade and completion standards in our Satisfactory Academic Progress policy. Students who fall below them are not eligible for aid.

No Student Loan in Default

Being in default on a federal student loan blocks new aid. It can be resolved, so talk to your servicer and to us.

Aid Used for Education Only

You certify that your aid pays for educational costs. You also certify that giving false or misleading information on purpose can mean a fine of up to $20,000, imprisonment or both.

THE FEDERAL SOURCE FOR ALL OF THIS These conditions come from the U.S. Department of Education. Read them at StudentAid.gov eligibility requirements.

Keeping the Aid You Have

Aid is not permanent once awarded. These two things decide whether you keep it.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Grades and completed credits are checked against a standard. Falling below it can suspend your aid. Learn the numbers before you are close to them. If You Withdraw Your aid was calculated for a full term. Dropping courses or leaving early can mean paying money back, sometimes more than you expect.

CALL US BEFORE YOU DROP A CLASS

Both are easier to prevent than to fix. A short conversation before you drop a course can save you an appeal, a repayment or a suspended award.

Call 303-724-8039

ASSET and DACA Students

Colorado ASSET is a state law that lets eligible undocumented students pay in-state tuition and receive state financial aid. DACA is a federal program that grants temporary protection from deportation and work authorization. They are separate, and you may qualify for one, both or neither. This section covers what each one means for paying for school.

Colorado runs its own financial aid programs, and many CU Anschutz scholarships do not require citizenship. Your registration advance payment is also waived once you are admitted.

ASSET

Advancing Students for a Stronger Tomorrow is a Colorado law. It lets eligible undocumented students pay in-state tuition, receive the College Opportunity Fund stipend and qualify for state aid based on need.

You Qualify If Both Are True

1 You attended a Colorado high school for at least one year before graduating. Completing a high school equivalency exam here also counts, if you were in Colorado for the year before it.

2 You lived in Colorado for at least 12 months in a row before enrolling in college.

DACA

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals is a federal immigration status. It is not a Colorado program.

Hold DACA status and can show Colorado domicile? You may be considered for the in-state tuition rate. Our residency page explains how domicile works.

ONE DOES NOT MEAN THE OTHER Qualifying for ASSET does not make you a DACA recipient. Holding DACA does not give you ASSET status. You might have one, both or neither, and that changes what aid you can receive. If you are unsure, ask us.

Find your status, then read what applies at your level. All of it still depends on your need and on funding.

IF YOU HAVE ASSET STATUS

In-state tuition rate
College Opportunity Fund stipend, for undergraduates
Colorado Student Grant for undergraduates, or the Colorado Graduate Grant for graduate and professional students
Colorado Work-Study, if you also hold DACA status
Scholarships, including those reserved for Colorado residents

IF YOU HAVE DACA BUT NOT ASSET

In-state tuition rate, if you can show Colorado domicile
Scholarships that do not require citizenship, including awards from your school

Without ASSET status, state grant aid and federal aid are not available. Scholarships are the main route. Ask your school or college directly, since many awards are made at that level.

NO STATUS AT ALL? STILL APPLY

Students without lawful immigration status who do not meet Colorado ASSET qualifications are still encouraged to file the CASFA. It is how we measure your need for institutional aid, and many CU Anschutz scholarships do not require citizenship. File one application per aid year, either the CASFA or the FAFSA, not both.

Start Your CASFA

File the CASFA

The Colorado Application for State Financial Aid replaces the FAFSA for you. It is how we determine your need for state aid and need-based scholarships. The priority date for grant aid is March 1.

File the CASFA

Apply for the College Opportunity Fund, If You Are an ASSET Undergraduate

The COF stipend reduces what you pay in in-state tuition. Apply once, after you are admitted. If you do not have lawful immigration status, the application includes a one-time affidavit you complete inside it.

Apply for COF

Authorize Your COF Stipend

The stipend does not reach your tuition until you authorize it in UCDAccess. Applied without a Social Security number? You were given a COF ID, and the Registrar needs it to connect the funds to your account.

Registrar Instructions

Apply for Scholarships

Scholarship applications at CU Anschutz go through your school or program's own process. Start with the Scholarships page, then check with your school or program for their application and deadlines. Nursing students can start with the College of Nursing scholarships page.

Go to Scholarships

Two parts of the form cause most of the questions we get. Here is what each is asking.

THE STUDENT STATUS QUESTIONS

These decide whether we look at your finances alone or your family's too. For a dependent student, we review parent information alongside yours to see the full picture.

Being dependent does not mean your parents have to pay anything. It is a consistent way of assessing everyone.

Answered No to All Have your parents' tax information ready

Answered Yes to Any Have your own tax information ready, and your spouse's if you are married

WHICH PARENT TO REPORT

If you have to report a parent, these rules decide which one.

Married to Each Other Report both

Not Married to Each Other Report the one who gave you more financial support over the past 12 months

Equal or No Support Report the one with the greater income and assets

That Parent Remarried Report your stepparent's information too

Widowed or Never Married Answer for that parent

STUCK ON A QUESTION? ASK US If your situation does not match anything above, contact our office rather than guessing. Email [email protected] or call 303-724-8039.

Veteran and Military Students

Your veterans benefits and your financial aid are separate systems. You can use both. Filing the FAFSA keeps you in line for grants, work-study and loans while your benefits do their own work.

FOR YOUR VA BENEFITS

Veteran and Military Student Services handles certification, paperwork and anything to do with benefits. Contact them before your term starts so nothing is delayed.

Veteran and Military Student Services

FOR FINANCIAL AID

We handle the FAFSA, grants, work-study and loans. If your situation is complicated, ask for an advisor and we will book time with you.

Apply for Aid

Veteran status makes you an independent student on the FAFSA, which means no parent information is required. The federal definition is narrower than you might expect. It is also not the same as veteran status for VA purposes.

YOU ARE, IF BOTH ARE TRUE

You served on active duty, including basic training, in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard. National Guard and Reserve members count if called to active duty for something other than state or training purposes. Cadets and midshipmen at a service academy also count.
You were released under a condition other than dishonorable.

YOU ARE NOT, IF ANY APPLY

You have never served on active duty, including basic training.
You are currently in ROTC, or a cadet or midshipman at a service academy.
You are in the National Guard or Reserves and were activated only for state or training purposes.
You were released under dishonorable conditions.
You are serving now and will still be serving through June 30 of the FAFSA year.

STILL SERVING? YOU MAY STILL BE INDEPENDENT Not counting as a veteran does not automatically make you dependent. Active duty service for something other than training can make you independent on its own. Unsure how to answer? Ask us before you file, not after.

DO NOT REPORT

Education benefits. Most do not affect your aid and do not belong on the form.
Untaxed combat pay. Enter zero.

DO REPORT

Non-education benefits: disability, death pension, dependency and indemnity compensation and VA work-study allowances.
Combat pay that was taxable and already counted in your adjusted gross income.

Why Combat Pay Confuses People

For enlisted members and warrant officers, combat pay is entirely non-taxable, so the answer is zero. For commissioned officers, everything up to the highest enlisted rate plus imminent danger and hostile fire pay is non-taxable; only pay above that line is taxable. Reporting the taxable portion keeps it from counting against your aid. IRS Publication 3, the Armed Forces' Tax Guide (PDF file), has the detail.

School Code 004508

Add it to your FAFSA so your information reaches us. It is listed as University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz, the correct code for CU Anschutz students.

Selective Service No Longer Matters

Your registration status does not affect federal student aid eligibility. For questions about registering, call Selective Service at 888-655-1825 or visit SSS.gov. Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau are exempt.

The FAFSA uses tax information from a prior year, which may look nothing like your situation now. A Reconsideration of Income asks us to use your current circumstances instead. Recently discharged, or earning less? Talk to an advisor about whether it would help.

Reconsideration of Income

If your parent or guardian died in the line of duty while serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces on or after Sept. 11, 2001, or while serving as a public safety officer, you can receive the maximum Pell Grant, $7,395 for 2026-2027, no matter what your Student Aid Index is. You must have been under 33 on Jan. 1, 2026.

This replaced the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant. Answer yes to the FAFSA question about a parent who died in the line of duty, and we will ask for documents to confirm your eligibility.

See Pell Grant Details

Your Information and Our Standards

You meet standards to get aid. We hold ourselves to standards too: your financial aid record is confidential, and our office follows a code of conduct. The two panels below spell out both.

Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), your education record is confidential. We do not release it, with limited exceptions, without your written consent. That includes your parents and your spouse.

Letting Family Discuss Your Record

Give consent electronically in the profile section of UCDAccess, or file the paper Release of Confidential Information Request Form with the Office of the Registrar.

Guest Access Is Not the Same Thing

CU Guest Access gives a family member read-only access to certain screens. It does not authorize anyone to call us and discuss your record. See the Registrar's Guest Access instructions.

Releases to Outside Agencies

To have us send information straight to a county social services office, a landlord or a similar agency, complete the authorization on our Forms page. If you would rather receive the completed paperwork yourself, no authorization is needed and it goes to your university email.

STUDENT LOAN CODE OF CONDUCT

Federal law requires schools to adopt a code of conduct governing staff dealings with lenders. Ours protects the integrity of the aid process: no revenue sharing, no gifts from lenders and no steering you toward a particular lender.

Choosing a private loan is your decision. See Choosing a Lender.

COMMITMENT TO YOU

We award aid to eligible students equitably and on a consistent timeline, and we tell you what we need in writing at your university email.

What you can expect from us in full, and what we need from you, is on Rights and Responsibilities.

What Now?

Start With the FAFSA Eligibility only matters once you have applied. One form starts everything. Know Your Costs Your cost of attendance sets the ceiling on how much aid you can receive. See Your Aid Options Grants, scholarships, work-study and loans, and how they differ. Colorado Aid Options State grants, the COF stipend and work-study open to Colorado residents. Look for Scholarships Many awards are made just for veterans, service members and dependents. Dropping a Class? Withdrawals count against your completion rate and can mean paying aid back. Check Academic Progress The GPA and completion standards you have to keep meeting to hold your aid. Something Changed? Lost income, a change at home or unusual costs can all be reviewed.

Tools & Resources

CU Campuses

CU Anschutz

Student Finances

Financial Aid

Eligibility & Disclosures

What You Have to Meet

Keeping the Aid You Have

ASSET and DACA Students

Veteran and Military Students

Your Information and Our Standards

What Now?

Financial Aid & Scholarships Office

Eligibility & Disclosures

What You Have to Meet

Keeping the Aid You Have

ASSET and DACA Students

Aid Details for ASSET and DACA Students

ASSET vs DACA

Tyoes of Aid

What To Do

Help with the CASFA

Veteran and Military Students

Aid Topics

Who Handles What

Are You a Veteran for Aid Purposes?

What to Report on the FAFSA

If Your Situation Has Changed

Lost a Parent or Guardian in the Line of Service?

Your Information and Our Standards

Disclosure Topics

Who Can See Your Information

How Our Office Conducts Itself

What Now?

Financial Aid & Scholarships Office