<p>I have my two different feet in two different states right now. I am looking seriously at a school in each. I would like to receive each state's financial aid offer before I choose schools, and once I do pick, I'm fairly confident that I can make my records support the conclusion that I am qualified to "count" as a resident of either. </p>
<p>But FAFSA. Do I need to pick an address and a state when I fill it out? Is there anyway to say on my FAFSA that I am a resident of two different states at once? Or do I need to pick which school I want to be in-state for right now?</p>
<p>The schools WILL be able to see which address I give FAFSA, right?</p>
<p>Actually, for tuition purposes, residency is defined by whatever rules the state school applies, not by the address on the FAFSA. </p>
<p>So let's say that State A has a law that says all graduates of public high schools in that state who attended the schools for 3 years or more are entitled to in-state tuition. And lets say that you attend and graduate from a high school in State A, but at the beginning of your senior year your parents move to State B. You move into your cousin's house for the remainder of the year, but you join your parents in State B during the summer.</p>
<p>Lets also suppose that State B provides that in-state tuition for dependent students is based on where the parents have established residency.</p>
<p>So in that circumstance, you would provide your State B address on the FAFSA -- but you might still qualify for in-state tuition in State A. You would simply provide the proper documentation when you enroll. </p>
<p>So rather than worrying about the FAFSA, you should be looking at the web sites for the colleges you are interested in to see what rules they apply to determine residency. I can assure you that the FAFSA is NOT the document they will rely on, at least not solely.</p>
<p>Ah!
So I could put down one state on FAFSA, but then in my application to other-state-U, I would provide the other address and claim that I am a resident and wait for them to ask for documentation? </p>
<p>I don't want to be dishonest, but I also don't want to pay $11,000 more/school year if it isn't necessary as a result of trying too hard not to be dishonest.</p>
<p>FAFSA is to determine your eligibility for federal funds; it has nothing to do with state residency.</p>
<p>Once you start to apply to each school, contact the admissions office for the in-state eligibility rules. Some states say that if one of your parents is a resident of that state, you're in-state even if you lived out of state with your other parent. Some don't. Each state has its own rules that have nothing to do with FAFSA.</p>
<p>The State of residency you put on the FAFSA form is used in the FAFSA formula to calculate allowances for State taxes to be deducted from your reported income. For some odd reason FAFSA uses your real federal taxes in the formula but an estimated number (based on tables within the formula) for State taxes and social security taxes. </p>
<p>As other posters have said - the State of Residency on FAFSA is not used by your school to determine whether you are a resident for tuition purposes. Though I imagine it might look somewhat odd to show different residences on different forms.</p>
<p>Since you're worrying about in-state tuition, that means you're applying to public universities. Those tend to have rolling admissions, which means that if you apply now you might know by the end of the year whether you get in or not. FAFSA can't be filed until January, so you might not even have to worry about it.</p>
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I'm fairly confident that I can make my records support the conclusion that I am qualified to "count" as a resident of either.
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<p>Make sure you understand the schools' in-state residency requirements for tuition purposes. That can be markedly different that residency for other purposes. Chances are your situation is not unique and there may be already guidelines in place to cover it. Why be "fairly confident" if you can find out for certain?</p>