The Department of Education has updated Volume 1, Chapter 2 of the 2024-25 FSA Handbook to reflect changes in documentation requirements for Indigenous Americans born in Canada following consultations with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). These new regulations will not affect Native Americans students who claimed Title IV eligibility under the Jay Treaty and received those funds prior to the 2024-25 academic year. Read the full announcement below to learn about the new regulations for students who want to establish their eligible non-citizen status moving forward.
Posted Date: January 15, 2025
Author: Office of Postsecondary Education
Electronic Announcement ID: GENERAL-25-06
Subject: American Indian Born in Canada (formerly Jay Treaty student) – Student Eligibility
Summary
After consultation with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) about acceptable documentation for confirming the Title IV eligibility of American Indians born in Canada (formerly Jay Treaty students), FSA updated the acceptable documentation in the 2024-25 FSA Handbook. This electronic announcement outlines changes made to the acceptable documentation for American Indians born in Canada.
Implementation
If an American Indian born in Canada claiming Title IV eligibility under the Jay Treaty received Title IV aid in the 2023-24 award year (or any prior award year), then the institution may elect under 34 CFR 668.133(b) to not require such a student to submit additional immigration documentation to establish their title IV eligibility where the documents used to establish that eligibility have not expired, and where the institution does not have reason to believe that the student’s claim of citizenship or immigration status is incorrect.
If an American Indian born in Canada claiming Title IV eligibility under the Jay Treaty did not previously receive Title IV aid in the 2023-24 award year (or any prior award year) and is seeking to establish their status as an eligible noncitizen for the 2024-25 award year or later, then the student may submit any of the following immigration documentation to establish Title IV eligibility:
- Form I-551 PRC with the code S13;
- An unexpired temporary I-551 stamp with the code S13 in a Canadian passport; or
- An unexpired temporary I-551 stamp with the code S13 on an I-94
If you have questions for the U.S. Department of Education, contact the Application Processing Division at applicationprocessingdivision@ed.gov. To obtain acceptable documents a prospective student may request documentation by appointment directly with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services: https://my.uscis.gov/en/appointment/v2. For more general information see: https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-eligibility/green-card-for-an-american-indian-born-in-canada.
SOURCE: (GENERAL-25-06) American Indian Born in Canada (formerly Jay Treaty student) – Student Eligibility