Posted Date: May 17, 2019

Subject: Upcoming Federal Student Aid System Access Changes for Professional Users

On June 16, 2019, we will implement several changes that will impact financial aid professional users of systems and websites behind Federal Student Aid's Access and Identity Management System (AIMS). These changes include updates to the process by which system access is disabled or deactivated after a period of inactivity, as well as a new monthly report to assist institutions with monitoring user activity status.

AIMS provides the authentication process for many Federal Student Aid systems, allowing an authorized user to log in once with an FSA User ID, password, and TFA token security code and then access multiple systems during one active session. The systems and websites that are behind AIMS are the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) Web Site, Electronic Cohort Default Rate Appeals (eCDR Appeals), FAA Access to CPS Online, National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) Professional Access, Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) Enrollment, and the EDconnect software.

In the sections below, we provide more detail about the following topics:

• System Access Disabled after 90 Days of Inactivity

• System Access Deactivated after 365 Days of Inactivity

• Monthly User Status Report for Primary DPAs

• Contact Information

System Access Disabled after 90 Days of Inactivity

On June 16, 2019, we will begin tracking the number of days a user is inactive in each authorized system. If a user does not access a specific system for 90 calendar days, we will disable the user’s access to that system. The number of days of inactivity is unique to each system the user is authorized to access.

As an example, a user is authorized to access the COD Web Site, NSLDS Professional Access, and FAA Access to CPS Online. This user frequently accesses the COD Web Site and NSLDS Professional Access but not FAA Access to CPS Online. When this change is implemented, the user’s access to FAA Access to CPS Online will be disabled after 90 days of inactivity. The user’s access to the COD Web Site and NSLDS Professional Access will not be impacted.

The number of days of inactivity will reset to zero when the user logs in to that specific system; however, the number of days of inactivity for other authorized systems will not reset to zero. Each system the user is authorized to access must be accessed within 90 days or access to that system will be disabled.

A user that loses access to a system due to 90 days of inactivity will receive an error message when attempting to log in to that system.

In order to restore system access that has been disabled, the user must call the customer service center of the system behind AIMS that the user needs to access. The user will be required to answer additional security questions to validate his or her identity and restore system access. After completion of this process, the user will be able to log in to the system.

To avoid the disabling of system access due to a 90-day period of inactivity, a user must simply log in to that system before 90 days have passed.

System Access Deactivated after 365 Days of Inactivity

After 365 calendar days of inactivity in a specific system, the user’s access will be permanently deactivated.

Deactivated system access cannot be restored by calling a customer service center. If the user still requires access to that particular system, the user must be re-enrolled by the institution’s Primary Destination Point Administrator (DPA) via the SAIG Enrollment website.

Monthly User Status Report for Primary DPAs

A new monthly report will be available to assist Primary DPAs with monitoring the activity status of all institutional users (DPAs) in the Primary DPA’s portfolio. The report will provide each DPA’s activity status (“Active” or “Disabled”) in each system the DPA is authorized to access. Careful attention should be paid to DPAs with one or more “Disabled” statuses, as disabled system access will be permanently removed (deactivated) after 365 days of inactivity, as described in the section above.

The monthly report will be sent to the Primary DPA’s SAIG mailbox, in the PDPAEAOP message class.

Note: It is important that Primary DPAs also maintain an active status for all authorized systems, as activity for Primary DPAs will be tracked as described in the sections above. If a Primary DPA’s system access is disabled or deactivated, the Primary DPA will not be able to enroll new system users or modify the enrollment of existing users.

Contact Information

We appreciate the assistance of all Federal Student Aid system users as we implement these important system access changes.

If you have questions about how to reinstate system access after 90 days of inactivity, contact the customer service center for the specific system or website you need to access. Service center contact information is available on the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website's Service Centers for Schools page or is provided on the specific website.

If you have questions about how to re-enroll for system access after 365 days of inactivity, contact your institution’s Primary DPA for assistance.

Primary DPAs with SAIG enrollment questions should contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 1-800-330-5947 (TDD/TTY 1-800-511-5806) or by email at [email protected].

For access and enrollment questions specific to eCDR Appeals, contact the Default Prevention and Management Hotline at 202-377-4259 or by email at [email protected].

Publication Date: 5/17/2019