(GENERAL-23-93) Guidance for Institutions Impacted by National Emergencies in Foreign Countries

Posted Date
November 06, 2023
Author
Office of Postsecondary Education
Electronic Announcement ID
GENERAL-23-93
Subject
Guidance for Institutions Impacted by National Emergencies in Foreign Countries

In this document, we provide guidance to institutions located in countries that have a declared national emergency about requirements under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (Title IV) that may apply in emergency circumstances.

Distance Education Offered by Foreign Institutions

During a national emergency in a foreign country, a foreign institution in that country may need to cease on-campus coursework. In specific cases that meet a set of required criteria, the Department of Education (Department) may use its authority under Section 3510 of the CARES Act (P.L. 116–136) to consider applications from institutions for a waiver of the prohibition on a foreign institution offering distance education to a Direct Loan recipient. The CARES Act permits the Department to waive limitations on distance education and written arrangements for a foreign institution if a national emergency has been declared in the foreign country where the institution is located. This authority applies only to declared national emergencies, and does not apply to disasters or closures that are not part of a national emergency.

The Department will consider granting a waiver of the prohibition on distance education on a case-by-case basis upon request by an institution. The waiver, if approved, will be granted retroactively to the date a national emergency was declared. Unless the Secretary notifies an institution otherwise, the waiver will last until the end of an institution’s first payment period that begins after the end of the declared national emergency.

A foreign institution that seeks a waiver of the prohibition on offering distance education must contact its School Participation Division (SPD) to request the waiver. When contacting the SPD, the institution should provide the following information:

  • The name of the institution and its OPE ID number;

  • The national emergency declared by the country in which the school is located under which the school is seeking the waiver and supporting documentation of such national emergency;

  • An explanation of any temporary interruption of in-person classes, the institution’s plan for dealing with such interruption, and the institution’s expected resumption of in-person classes;

  • An attestation that the school has the capability and is ready to provide high-quality distance education coursework to currently enrolled students that meets the requirements of the institution’s accrediting agency or government oversight body that authorizes the institution under 34 CFR 600.54(g); and

  • Information about the Title IV-eligible programs for which the institution is offering or plans to offer coursework through distance education, including the names of the programs, the number of U.S. students enrolled in each program, and whether students in those programs have confirmed they will attend through distance education.

If the Department waives the prohibition on distance education for an institution, the institution will be required to report its use of distance education to the Department no later than 30 days after it begins offering coursework online to Direct Loan recipients. The institution’s SPD will provide more information on specific reporting requirements when it grants the waiver.

Note that in order to meet the Department’s requirements for providing distance education, an institution must communicate to students through one of several types of technology – including email or by telephone – described under the definition of distance education in 34 CFR § 600.2, and instructors must initiate substantive communication with students, either individually or collectively, on a regular basis. In other words, an instructor may use email to provide instructional materials to students enrolled in the instructor’s class, use chat features to communicate with students, set up conference calls to facilitate group conversations, engage in email exchanges, or require students to submit work electronically that the instructor will evaluate.

The Department has received numerous other questions from institutions regarding students who are located in countries that have experienced a national emergency. Below is a series of questions and answers to assist institutions and their students during the emergency situations.

Questions that Apply to All Institutions (AI)

AI – A1: Generally, if your institution is able to resume coursework and complete the same number of weeks of instruction that you had originally planned, there will be no change to students’ eligibility for Title IV funds.

However, if the institution will be closed for several weeks and you believe the closure will affect your institution’s ability to operate for the number of weeks in its defined academic year, you should contact your SPD to request a temporary reduction in the length of your institution’s academic year. The Department can approve a new academic year length of no less than 26 weeks of instructional time. Additionally, it is important to remember that if the temporary closure results in a change to your academic year, you must make the appropriate changes in COD as soon as possible.

AI – A2: If your institution is approved to shorten the length of your academic year, you are permitted to temporarily alter your payment period definition to include shorter term lengths (e.g., 14 weeks instead of 15 weeks for a semester). You should contact your School Participation Division (SPD) for assistance with altering payment periods.

AI – A3: An institution that has ceased operation for reasons outside the institution’s control should contact its SPD as soon as possible to indicate that the closure has occurred and to provide information about its plans to reopen. Under the regulations, an institution’s participation in the Title IV aid programs ends on the date that the institution closes or stops providing educational programs for a reason other than a normal vacation period or a natural disaster or national emergency that directly affects the institution or its students.

AI – A4: If your institution closes and is unable to reopen by the end of the payment period, your students are considered withdrawn; therefore, the institution would be subject to the Return of Title IV funds requirements for those students. Additionally, if you are able to reopen during the payment period, you must determine which students failed to return when you reopened, conduct an R2T4 calculation for those students, and return funds by the applicable deadlines. Title IV funds drawn for students who never began attendance for that period must also be returned. Contact your SPD if you need assistance with:

  • Determining the withdrawal date;

  • Determining the number of days in the payment period or period of enrollment;

  • Date of determination

  • Leaves of absence;

  • Grant overpayments;

  • Timeframes for returns, post-withdrawal disbursements, and notifications;

  • Enrollment reporting for withdrawn students; or

  • Any other questions related to the Return of Title IV funds process.

AI – A5: Ceasing operation either for a period of time, or indefinitely, does not absolve an institution of its obligation to maintain required records and submit a compliance audit and audited financial statements to the Department by the submission deadline of six months after the last day of the institution’s fiscal year unless it is exempt from this requirement.  If circumstances beyond the institution’s control prevents the auditor from completing the audit on time, contact your SPD to discuss whether a short extension may be approved.

AI – A6: Yes, your institution is still subject to all applicable record retention requirements. You may need to make special arrangements to ensure that student records are protected during a temporary closure, e.g., improving physical security or backing up files to a secure server.

AI – A7: Yes, your institution is still required to evaluate a student’s academic progress (SAP) at least annually to correspond with the end of a payment period. However, if you are unable to evaluate SAP at the end of the payment period, you must perform the evaluation at the earliest possible time for the last payment period the student completed and before any subsequent disbursement are made. If you have any questions with SAP, timing due to payment period extensions, special circumstances, etc., please contact your SPD for assistance.

AI – A8: There are no exceptions to the restriction on maintaining excess cash for more than three days in this situation. Similarly, your institution is still required to pay Title IV credit balances to students within 14 days following the date the balance occurred.

AI – A9: Yes, you are permitted to temporarily adjust your deadlines for resolving UEH flags and resolving conflicting information if you close temporarily due to unforeseen circumstances out of your control. However, if a student fails to submit the necessary materials by the adjusted deadline, the normal consequences still apply.

AI – A10: Yes, an institution that has temporarily closed is still required to perform the normal reporting in accordance with the Department’s established deadlines.

AI – Q11: Yes, your institution should make every effort to continue to report student enrollment information to NSLDS. If you are unable to report by your normal deadline, you must contact NSLDS Customer Service at 800-999-8219 to modify your reporting schedule. Additionally, NSLDS can grant exceptions to an institution’s normal reporting deadlines on a case-by-case basis.

AI – A12: Yes. Financial aid administrator(s) may make professional judgments based upon special circumstances, including adjustments to cost of attendance. However, it is important to remember that you must document the reasons for making an adjustment and must make such determinations on a case-by-case basis.

Questions that Apply to Foreign Institutions (FI)

FI – A1: Yes. Written arrangements between two Direct Loan-eligible foreign institutions are subject to the regulations under 34 CFR 668.5. There is no limitation on the amount of the program that may be offered by the other eligible foreign institution except that the home institution must provide the degree or recognized credential and offer at least some portion of the program.

Current guidance on written arrangements between U.S. institutions and foreign institutions can be found in the Dear Colleague Letter GEN-23-07 which was published on April 28, 2023.

FI – A2: Yes. As explained in the definition of a foreign institution under 34 CFR 600.52, if a student enrolls in an eligible program offered by a foreign institution and the foreign institution enters into a written arrangement for a portion of the program to be completed at a Title IV-eligible U.S. institution, the amount of coursework that can be completed at the U.S. institution is capped at 25 percent.

Current guidance on written arrangements between U.S. institutions and foreign institutions can be found in the Dear Colleague Letter GEN-23-07 which was published on April 28, 2023.

Questions that Apply to Domestic Institutions with Foreign Locations or Study Abroad Programs (DIFLSAP)

DIFLSAP – A1: Yes. In a term-based program, unless students are able to resume attendance in the same coursework in which they were enrolled through distance education or at another location, they would be considered withdrawn in this situation. You will need to perform an R2T4 calculation using the applicable withdrawal date, e.g., if the foreign school did not require attendance-taking, the date the student was forced to discontinue coursework due to the emergency or the midpoint of the payment period.

DIFLSAP – A2: Yes. A U.S. institution that is eligible to participate in the Title IV programs may establish written arrangements with a foreign institution or organization acting on behalf of a foreign institution whereby the foreign institution provides part of an educational program so that the students enrolled in that program may receive FSA program funds.

However, an arrangement between a U.S. institution and a foreign institution or organization acting on behalf of a foreign institution is always considered to be one between an eligible U.S. institution where the student enrolls, and an ineligible foreign institution, even if the foreign institution is otherwise eligible to participate in the Direct Loan Program. As a result, the provisions of 34 CFR 668.5 regarding written arrangements between an eligible institution and an ineligible institution or organization would apply.

Current guidance on written arrangements between U.S. institutions and foreign institutions can be found in the Dear Colleague Letter GEN-23-07 which was published on April 28, 2023.

DIFLSAP – A3: Yes. Provided your institution meets all normal requirements to offer distance education in a Title IV-eligible program, including accrediting agency approval, there is no restriction on a domestic institution providing online coursework to students who are currently located in another country.

Additional Support and Contact Information

We are committed to providing information to students and schools as quickly as possible that are experiencing an emergency situation. Institutions with additional questions should contact their SPD or send an email to CaseTeams@ed.gov.

Last Modified: 11/08/2023