<p>Hi! I'm fairly new to CC, and I have searched some threads looking for information on becoming a resident of the state, that a student is attending college; but have not been able to get some advice on this matter.</p>
<p>My D will be off to Florida in the fall to attend FSU. We are from WNY. She was granted the Freshman Scholarship, along with the OOS tutition reduction. These will help very much, but would still be paying over 11,000 more because we are out of state. </p>
<p>We have friends that live in Ocala, and have said they would be happy to claim her as a resident of their home after her first year. But how do we go about getting this done? Is is just a matter of her getting a Florida address, and Florida driver's license?</p>
<p>Any info./advice would be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>I’m not familiar with the specifics for Florida, but 99.99% of state school have specific rules to prevent exactly what you are proposing to do. Otherwise there would be no out-of-state students and the taxpayers of the state would be subsidizing everyone. </p>
<p>As a rule the student must live in the state a full year BEFORE matriculating in order to have a chance for in-state.</p>
<p>And you, her parents in WVA, would have to NOT have claimed her as a dependent on your taxes for a certain period of time - probably over 12 months PRIOR to filing for residency. They won’t make this easy to do.</p>
<p>Iron Maiden is right, but let me add on . . .</p>
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<p>This is not always enough. Often, the student must take up residence in the state for some purpose other than going to school. If your D took a job in Florida and then moved there, for example, that might qualify. </p>
<p>It’s actually easy to establish residency in most states; your D can probably establish Florida residency in about 30 days. However, that will not necessarily qualify her for in-state tuition.</p>
<p>As others have said, state residency for in state tuition can be a whole different story than establishing residency for other purposes like for paying taxes, drivers license, voting, etc. Each state school has its own rules as to what defines a state resident for in state tuition rates, and their own verification processes for it. For many schools, unless the student is independent by federal aid definitions (age 24,married, a veteran etc), the student’s resident is that of the parent’s. There are even times when the parent moves in state, but there is a one year waiting period before in state tuition rates kick in. The best way to find out exactly what constitutes state residency for a particular school is to contact the school itself.</p>
<p>And thank you, Iron Maiden for your harsh; but helpful information. I fully understand that EVERYONE would be doing this if they could, just trying to figure everything out–that is why I came here looking for advice. We fully understand the cost of going out of state–so, we will not be looking for “another plan quickly”–and she will still be going out of state. I would never have proposed this thought if I did not already hear a lot of mention of people successfully adopting this plan for their family.</p>
<p>To be a resident for in state tuition purposes, parents or fafsa defined independent student must be a resident of Florida for 12 consecutive months PRIOR to enrollment. You cannot gain residency for tuition purposes by going to school or claiming to live year round in Florida while in school. If you think about this logically, public universities are funded by the taxpayers in that state. Why should someone be given in state tuition residency status just because they came to that state to go to school. Neither they, nor their parents, are
contributing taxpayers.</p>
<p>The reason this subject often arises is that some schools do not investigate or verify state residency carefully. When your daughter goes to UF, she may find students who have managed to get in state tuition through some means or other. I do not recommend any scamming but if the school is such that it is easy to get the residency in practice, it is something to consider.</p>
<p>When I lived in the midwest, there was a one year rule for state rates at the local community college that was simply not enforced. You signed up for the courses and if you checked that you had a local address and indeed had one, then you paid in state rates. End of the matter. It is entirely possible that an audit of the situation could reveal students who were paying in state rates that did not meet the standards, but I never heard of any such thing happen. I knew many families who enrolled theirforeign Au pars in classes there and no one paid OOS rates. Got the local address, no questions asked. My husband’s cousin came a and stayed with us and took some courses before he was there a year and paid in state rates. </p>
<p>But it seems to me that the flagship schools that are accustomed to having OOS student have a more organized tracking system and will verify whether someone is a state resident or not. The community college simply did not get many OOS folks and did not care to snag those that did not have the one year requirement.</p>
<p>At our state flagship the necessary documentation to switch to in-state status includes–</p>
<p>A formal letter written by the student requesting a review of his/her residency status and explaining why he/she should be considered a Pennsylvania resident for tuition purposes. </p>
<p>A complete copy of the registered deed or current, signed lease to the permanent [parents’] domicile in Pennsylvania. A copy of the deed to the home may be obtained from the county court house. If the residence is leased/rented, the landlord should provide a lease. Depending on the term of the lease, more than one lease may have to be submitted to cover the last twelve (12) months.</p>
<p>A copy of the real estate listing or sales agreement to the previous domicile in the previous state of residence, if applicable.</p>
<p>A complete, signed copy of the most recent Pennsylvania Income Tax Return and Federal Income Tax Return.</p>
<p>A formal letter from the employer on their letterhead verifying full-time employment, date of hire or transfer, and the withholding of Pennsylvania income tax, if the change in domicile is due to a job relocation or offer of employment.</p>
<p>A copy of a recent pay stub, if prior year taxes were filed as a non-Pennsylvania resident.</p>
<p>My daugther’s choice of this out-of-state school was always her first choice, even after she was accepted to 5 top private schools, so this is not really a make-or-break deal for her. I just ran off of what people kept saying to me–that I should look into her becoming an in-state resident. After reading some of the comments, I feel horrible even asking the question. I understand everything you have said, and I will tell the next person who asks me–to mind their own business!! This college stuff is all new to me, and I appreciate all the comments–so that I can learn from it!</p>
<p>Did not mean to come off as harsh, sorry. I’ve just seen too many kids go to a school by stretching to the breaking point for Freshman year and figuring they would get in-state status after that. Then they are denied and forced to drop out. </p>
<p>My read of your original post was that Freshman year was going to be a stretch even with the one-year scholarship and that you were counting on in-state to come through in order to pay for subsequent years.</p>
<p>Take other people saying that they got in-state with a large grain of salt.</p>
<p>Mdkskj, you and your D should keep the ears open as to the possibilities. As stated before, some schools have unwritten policies on things. Again, with the main state schools, it is less likely, but who knows? Good luck to your D. It’s a great school.</p>
<p>thank-you!:cptofthehouse–and yes, FSU will be a very good fit for her!</p>
<p>FYI: she got a 4-yr merit scholarship for 2,400/year; and also a OOS 4-yr. waiver for 6,800/yr. We will have 19,000/yr taken out of our college fund–just wanted to see if we could lower that somewhat! Three sisters right at her coat-tail, and it could get a little costly! Kids already know that we will only be funding 50% of thier college costs. Hopefully the last three will pick a very nice school within our state of New York!!</p>
<p>This will not make your daughter an instate resident of Florida for tuition purposes. Her place of residence is where YOU (her parents) live. If it were that easy, every student would just rent an apartment or find a family friend or relative to "declare them) as a resident. This does not work. </p>
<p>Your daughter isn’t a resident of FL. She is a resident of your home state. Congratulations on her getting a tuition reduction…that is something to be happy for.</p>
<p>Actually, I am going to sound a ton more harsh. I used to check fishing licenses as a job. Out of stater’s would try to save $10 by “fibbing” that they lived instate. I cannot even begin to list all the ways I had to “bust” those guys. </p>
<p>For your D, the first thing that will raise eyebrows is her high school transcript that says “Happy High, Somewhereville, NY”. </p>
<p>You are talking about thousands of dollars. Thousands. The University almost certainly has an honor code and any “fibbing” about residency will give the college the option of saying “You are now dis-enrolled for an honor violation.” They could even choose to make an example of her and prosecute her for fraud. This bit of millstone could haunt her for years. </p>
<p>You are NOT Florida residents. Your D is NOT a Florida resident. Neither of you is entitled to the benefits of that state, including state funded higher education at the state resident fee rate. To claim so is fraud, pure and simple. It isn’t “Saving”, it’s fraud.
Please don’t do this and advise all friends and family not to do this either. It is abundantly easy to “bust” the kids that do and the consequences can be brutal.</p>
<p>OP, The reason people may be suggesting it is that, back in the dark ages when many of the parents went to school, it was possible and easy to do this. It has become increasingly difficult.</p>
<p>Sorry to just jump in like this but i was wondering if I could try for in-state tuition next year because my mom has lived in california for the past 2 years (and im trying to go to CSULB for 2011-2012, I’ve already been accepted) but i lived with my dad in las vegas for high school. She has a job in california and he doesnt get paid much, so she pays most the bills from California. But i had to stick with OOS tuition because I live with my dad right now and that was one of the questions asked when it came to residency when I applied (who I was residing with). So do you think it would be possible for me to pay in state tuition next year? Im most likely going to be living with my mom because I highly doubt my parents can afford to pay for on-campus housing. Help anyone?</p>
<p>Each state has its own rules for who counts as a resident – and the rules for a resident driver’s license is different than the rules for a resident physician’s license (ie, you have to check the resident rules for attending college). </p>
<p>Please take time to check yourself at the college that interests you. Do NOT go by what someone’s cousin Cindy did last year. The economy is tight – particularly in CA, so a college that may have been easy going in the past may not be now. </p>
<p>It is strongly to your advantage to be up front with admissions/administration throughout the process. You may get some unhappy news (like you would have to work instate for a year without taking any classes to qualify) but then you know you are within the guidelines and don’t have to spend every day worried that you are about to get busted. </p>
<p>Please, please don’t underestimate how much trouble one can get into when thousands of dollars in fees are at stake. Even if someone’s cousin Cindy skated through, all you need if for a college to decide to make an example of you and then you are having your degree yanked back, and in court (or jail!) for defrauding the state. </p>
<p>I used to book guys into jail for a $10 license violation on residency. At that point some magistrates would say “Ah, a night in jail is punishment enough” and it would all be over with. But another magistrate might be ticked off at out of staters ripping us off and . . then the punishment could be any number of icky things. Who knows which magistrate you might draw??</p>
<p>So, don’t think you are more clever than people whose business it is to make sure the college takes in the money. Be upfront and be happy. A nice person in the admin office probably hears from kids like you all the time and may have some great advice on how you properly become a CA citizen and then your worries are over. Good luck!</p>