I am a junior considering UT Austin. I live in another state but have lived in Texas in the past and have friends in Austin. I’m wondering if it would be possible to exploit a loophole to avoid paying OOS tuition and establish domicile. I am also interested in attending a Texas graduate school if possible. The current plan is to purchase a small condo or apartment near the school as an investment property and for me to live in. I would move in over the summer and stay there for over a year and be declared an independent to establish residency. By the second year I would qualify for in-state tuition hopefully. I have heard of international students doing this in the past, and I have heard of a family friend doing this about 5 years ago. I am unsure about whether or not this would work according to their policies now. It says that domicile is evidenced by employment, ownership of property, marriage of a resident, or ownership of a business. Is it as simple as meeting one of the requirements or will such an attempt be scrutinized by the school? Will they care about me exploiting a loophole or will they just take the taxes I am paying?
How old are you? Students’ residency is based on where their parents live until they turn 24. You can’t just “be declared an independent.” Are you a junior in high school or college?
I have also heard of students and parents being arrested for trying to fake in state residency.
Actually, it IS possible at UT, although they have tightened up the restrictions. I recommend that you call the school and talk to their residency people. They are very helpful and will be upfront about what you need to do. That’s what I did several years ago. If you fulfill all the requirements, they’re fine with your trying for in-state residency. I can’t really be of more assistance, though, since they’ve changed the rules since 2011 (we were able to get my son in-state tuition rates for his sophomore year, but that’s when he fell ill and had to drop out).
Yes it is possible. They will explain how to you if you call.
When you call, I wouldn’t phrase it that you are looking to “exploit a loophole”. It sounds like you are planning to move to Texas, buy a place to live, and stay permanently (at least as permanently as you can predict from this point), so you would want to ask about what steps are needed to obtain residency and in state tuition.
the marriage option is one that seems to be used a lot as well.
@austinmshauri I am a junior in high school
@MaineLonghorn @mom2twogirls @itsgettingreal17 Thank you for the info. I will definitely do that when the time comes.
After my OOS student was accepted to UT, we got lots of advertising from Texas real estate agents about qualifying for in-state tuition. We didn’t follow up, but it sounds like it may be possible.
LOL. A condo in Austin is going to cost you about $150,000. You couldn’t get financing for it because you don’t have credit history or a source of income to make the mortgage payment. Plus, going into $150k in debt defeats the purpose of in-state tuition anyway 
You’ll have plenty of opportunities to move and branch out after you get your degree.
@coolguy40 The plan is for my parents to buy it in my name or buy it and sell it to me for 1 dollar. My parents do well and the reason why I want to attend on in-state tuition is because we earn too much for financial aid. We have enough money in the bank to buy a house. I am concerned with tuition because it is money we wil not get back. My parents have been considering buying an investment house anyways and we can always resell the house or rent it out but we can never get back tuition money.
That is a lot of gymnastics to save some money on college tuition. Why UT? If you want to save money, go to your instate school, or go to one where the OOS tuition is cheaper. You could do all this and not be accepted to UT and then where would you be?
Can you do this? Probably as an adult, not as a 17 year old. Should you do this? IMO no.
@twoinanddone I would buy a house end of senior year when I’m 18 and I also don’t like my state flagship. I also believe I can get in based on naviance. My stats are also considerably higher than the OOS middle 50%.
I wouldn’t go around exploiting loopholes like that. That sounds a lot like real estate fraud and it has the potential to backfire big. If I were you, I would just stick with a school you can afford.
It’s legal in Texas.
It’s also a good investment.
I looks like they might have closed that loophole and now require a 12 month residency. This is from the website:
If you are independent for tax purposes, you may gain resident status if you establish domicile in the state. If your parent(s) claim you as a dependent on their federal income tax return, they must establish domicile in the state for you to claim residency.
To establish domicile, you or your parent(s) must meet the following criteria:
Live in Texas for 12 consecutive months; AND
Establish and maintain domicile for 12 consecutive months, as evidenced by:
Gainful employment in Texas;
Note: Student jobs do not qualify as gainful employment.
Sole or joint marital ownership of residential real property in Texas by the person seeking to enroll or the dependent’s parent, having established and maintained a domicile at the residence;
Ownership and operation of a business in Texas; or
Marriage for one year to a person who has established domicile in Texas.
^ This is doable.
@LoveTheBard the plan is to pay OOS for one year while I live their and then switch to instate, overall it will still save me money vs my state flagship and I like UT better.
Before you call them, please read the documents. I wonder if you read as far as what you call a “loophole” and missed the other key points.
“The residency for tuition purposes of a student who is not independent is based upon that of the parent or court-appointed legal guardian who claims that student as a dependent for federal income tax purposes or provides more than half that student’s financial support, regardless of the length of time the student has resided in Texas. If the parent or court-appointed legal guardian of a dependent student meets the criteria of having established residency for tuition purposes, the dependent student is eligible to pay resident tuition. Parents and legal guardians qualify for Texas Residency by following the same criteria as independent individuals listed above.”
In other words, your loophole has a mighty big pothole of its own.
Plus, coming to a state for the purposes of education is generally a disqualifier.
And in general, you don’t get to declare yourself an independent. There are rules related to college determinations. And you can’t prove you’re self supporting, originally bought the house yourself, and more.
These admins aren’t so easy to fool. You want a benefit designed for authentic residents whose families pay the taxes thta support these colleges.
There are some states that give instate rates as a form of merit award. You’ll need to see if TX offers that.
And what if you don’t get in? All these machinations, for what?
Add to that: you apply for a residency determination with your freshman app.
I thought the plan was to take a gap year? That’s very different. If you graduate from high school, move to Texas, work for a year, pay your own way, file your own taxes (your parents aren’t forfeiting much under the new tax law by not claiming you as a dependent; Texas doesn’t have personal income taxes), register to vote, get a library card, etc., you’ll be a Texas resident. If you move to Texas and go to college, it is unlikely you’ll be able to support yourself and thus won’t be independent for tax purposes.