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OSAP Appeals or Reviews

OSAP uses standard criteria to determine your financial need and the amount of funding you will receive. These standard criteria cannot take into account any special circumstances that may exist for you and/or your family. If you feel that the amount of funding is insufficient, or perhaps your personal situation has changed since you applied, you should ask a Financial Aid Advisor to review your file. The FAA will consider your situation and using the criteria set by the Ministry for reviews, will advise you whether it is possible to appeal and subsequently receive more funding.

There are certain situations which cannot be considered. Below are some examples of situations that we cannot consider.

• Reviews for a student who is already at the maximum amount of assistance available for his or her current study period.
• Reviews for a student whose parent(s) arbitrarily refuse to assist him or her with education-related costs.
• Reviews concerning a students' citizenship status.
• Reviews submitted after the deadline date for submission.

We can also help students with the following types of situation:

• Bankruptcy and Related Events;
• Credit screening appeals; and
• Income Verification resulting in reassessments or restriction from OSAP; and
• Reviews of Ontario Student Opportunity Grant (OSOG) ineligibility.

Deadline

You must ask for and submit your written request (together with supporting documents) for a review 8 weeks prior to your study period end date. For example: If your study period end date is May 1, 2009, then the deadline date, for the submission of a review, is March 6, 2009.

Guidelines for a Successful Review

Regardless of the type, a review can be a lot of work! Depending on the type of review and the complexity of your situation, you may have to meet with the FAA more than once. The FAA will provide guidance and feedback to you. The following guidelines apply to all types of reviews. For further details on the review process, see the following brochure: "What You Need to Know About the OSAP Appeal Process."

Step One - Letter from the Student
The most important element of the appeal submission is your letter from the student. Your letter should:

• be word processed, if at all possible. This will avoid any misunderstanding due to hard-to-read handwriting;
• be dated and signed;
• describe the circumstances that currently exist or existed at the time in question (or both).
• state specific details and dates
• reference supporting documentation or third party letter that is attached and make up part of the submission
• describe any extenuating circumstances. If you're unsure of what constitutes an extenuating circumstance, ask the FAA.
• contain a clear description of his/her academic and career goals (if applicable)
• address lack of career or academic direction (if applicable)
• include your student number in a visible spot on each page (top right)

Step Two- Supporting Documentation and Third Party Letter
Successful reviews contain supporting documentation and/or a third party letter. The student must be able to substantiate his/her claims. The more supporting documentation the student is able to include in the submission, the greater the likelihood of approval. The Review Manual provides detailed information regarding supporting documentation for each type of review.

A third party letter can be provided by a family member, friend, colleague or professional. In some cases, only a letter from a professional can be accepted. We will confirm which type is acceptable for your situation.

Step Three - Final Submission
When you have completed your letter and obtained all the necessary documentation, you are ready to submit it. You don't necessarily need to book an appointment. Your submission can be dropped off in person at the Registrar's Office (AA142).

In summary, if you have made a strong case and provided all the documentation we will be able to review your submission and make a decision. Please remember that we must abide by Ministry policy when we are making a decision. Although we may feel your case has merit, we may not be able to approve the appeal because Ministry policy will not allow it.

Recommendation Letter from the Financial Aid Advisor
If the appeal is outside our authority, we may recommend the case to the Ministry or the Appeal Board. If this applies to your situation, you will need to include a letter from our office with your submission. We may not always be able to support a student's review.

Different Types of Reviews

Form Number	Review	Description
1	Family Breakdown Involving One or Both Parents	Example: You may be unable to provide some of the information required to complete your application due to severe family problems. See Advisor.
2	Family Breakdown - Step Parents	Same as above. See Advisor.
3	Dependent Student "Switches" Contributing Parent	The parent with legal custody or the parent with whom the student lives or most recently resided with should complete the student's OSAP application. A student can, however, change the parent who completes the application from year to year provided that the student actually changes residence.
4	Separated/Divorced or Deceased Parent	If prior to halfway through the study period a student's parents separate/divorce or if one parent dies, the student can have his/her financial need calculated based on the income of the remaining custodial parent.
5	Request for Assessment on Parent's Estimated Income	A student may request that his/her OSAP assessment be calculated using the parent's current estimated income rather than the parent's actual income from the previous year. See Advisor.
6	Parental Exceptional Expenses	Approved exceptional expense reviews decrease the value of the parent's expected contributions. Only reviews for allowable exceptional expenses incurred in the year that is being used for assessment purposes can be considered. See Advisor.
7	Adjusting Income Contributions for Single Students, Sole-Support Parents and Married Students	Income contributions can be adjusted in the situations outlined below: Student/partner was only able to obtain part-time employment. Student/partner was not available for employment during the period being using for the contribution.
8	Single Independent Students Paying Room and Board to Parents	Income contributions can be adjusted for single independent students living at home. You are considered independent when you have been out of high school for 4 years or more.
9	Dependent Student Living Away from Home for Employment Purposes	Dependent single students are expected to reside at home during the pre-study period. If a dependent single student does not reside with his/her parents in order to obtain full-time employment, he/she can be considered for a higher living allowance based on the actual costs incurred up to the maximum allowance.
10	Student and/or Spouse Incurred Exceptional Expenses in Pre-Study Period due to Part-Time Student Costs	If the student and/or partner studied on a part-time basis during the pre-study period (16 weeks immediately preceding the study period start), the expenses relating to his/her studies are eligible to be considered. Please note the costs must have been incurred and paid during the pre-study period.
11	Student and/or Spouse Incurred Exceptional Expenses	The expected pre-study period or study period income contribution can be reduced based on allowable exceptional expenses incurred by the student and/or spouse during the period. The expenses must be incurred and paid during the pre-study or during the study period in order to be considered. See Advisor.
12	Overcrowded Parental Home	If a single dependent student's parental home is overcrowded and this requires the student to live away from the parental home, a review can be considered.
13	Problems in Parental Home Environment	If a single dependent student cannot live in the parental home due to psychological or physical health reasons, and this requires the student to live away from the parental home, a review can be considered.
14	Maintaining Two Residences	If a student lives away from his/her family during the study period, he/she can claim additional living costs related to the maintenance of the second residence.
15	Spouse's Study Period Education Costs not Funded by OSAP Support	A married student can claim the amount of tuition, ancillary fees and books/equipment incurred for his/her spouse's studies during the study period. In order to be eligible for this review, the spouse's program must be approved for student loan purposes.
16	Joint Custody - Single, Independent Student or Sole Support Parent	Single independent students can be assessed as sole-support parents for 50% of the student's study period if they have custody of the child(ren) for 50% or more of the student's study period.
17	Asset Contribution Adjustments - Vehicle Asset Exemption Level	An adjustment to the asset exemption level for the gross market value of all owned or leased vehicles may be considered. See Advisor.
18	Asset Contribution Adjustments	An adjustment to the assets as listed by the student and partner on the OSAP application in a number of situations may be considered. See Advisor.
19	Loan Overpayment	A student becomes ineligible for further OSAP assistance if he/she has more one overpayment on file. If there are special circumstances (i.e. medical situation, family crisis) that are preventing the student from repaying this funding, the student should book an appointment to discuss the situation.
20	Academic Progress - Funding Withdrawal Release	Students must maintain a minimum satisfactory academic standard to continue to be eligible for OSAP funding. The first time a student fails to meet this minimum standard, she/he will receive a written warning. Should the student fail to meet the minimum standard a second time, the student will be ineligible for further OSAP assistance. If extenuating circumstances contributed to the student's inablility to meet his/her obligation in the area, the student may ask for a review. Please see Advisor for further details.
21	Travel Time Over One Hour by Public Transportation	If a dependent student's parents reside within 40 km of the institution, the student is expected to reside at home. If the one way trip from home to the institution takes over an hour, and the student has moved closer to the institution, the student can be assessed with "away from home" allowance.

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