How Would You Distinguish a Student Who Indicates She Is Self-Supporting From a Student Who Is an Unaccompanied Homeless Youth?

According to Dear Colleague Letter GEN-23-06, a student who is "self-supporting" is one who is paying for her own living expenses, including fixed, regular, and adequate housing.

A student who is “self-supporting and at risk of homelessness” is a student who pays for her own living expenses, however the student’s housing may cease to be fixed, regular, and adequate, for example, a student who is being evicted and has been unable to find fixed, regular, and adequate housing.

On the other hand, an "unaccompanied homeless youth" is one who is not in the custody of his parents and is homeless. See GEN-23-06 and "Special circumstances" in Chapter 5 of the Application and Verification Guide (AVG) volume in the FSA Handbook.

Tools: Refer to the following tools to assist with this student population:

• Tip Sheet for Unaccompanied Homeless Youth (UHY)
• Homelessness--Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Determinations: 2023-24 Template
• Homelessness--Unaccompanied Homeless Youth Determinations: 2024-25 Template

P&P Builder: NASFAA’s Policies & Procedures (P&P) Builder guides you step-by-step through the creation of a centralized, accessible policies and procedures manual. This is included in the cost of NASFAA Value Plus membership. There is an additional cost for other membership levels.