What Should be the State of Residency

Parent Cafe
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<p>We are US citizen and lived in GA.We have been out of US for few years..I continue to file 1040.I do not own house in GA anymore but have maintained my bank account and drivers license and using my friend's address in GA for all my comunication..</p>

<p>Do I fill GA as my state of residency while filing FAFSA and shall I be eligible to claim "In State" for my kid who is with me abroad.</p>

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<p><a href=“https://faaaccess.ed.gov/fotw1213/help/fahelp46.htm[/url]”>https://faaaccess.ed.gov/fotw1213/help/fahelp46.htm&lt;/a&gt; says “The state of legal residence is the student’s true, fixed, and permanent home,” and that “Foreign Country” is an acceptable response.</p>

<p><a href=“https://www.admissions.uga.edu/article/residency-for-in-state-tuition.html[/url]”>https://www.admissions.uga.edu/article/residency-for-in-state-tuition.html&lt;/a&gt; says “Dependents of U.S. citizens living abroad who consider themselves residents of Georgia must provide documentation showing Georgia as their last state of residency, as well as Georgia tax records and proof of a prior domicile in Georgia to which they may return.” </p>

<p><a href=“https://etax.dor.ga.gov/FileReq.aspx[/url]”>https://etax.dor.ga.gov/FileReq.aspx&lt;/a&gt; says “You are required to file a Georgia income tax return if any of the following apply: (a) You are required to file a Federal income tax return; (b) You have income subject to Georgia income tax but not subject to federal income tax; (c) Your income exceeds Georgia’s standard deduction and personal exemptions. These requirements apply as long as your legal residence is Georgia even if you are temporarily absent from the state or live outside the state temporarily.” </p>

<p>So if you’ve always intended to return to Georgia, and have been filing GA income tax returns, GA is probably your state of residency for FAFSA. The sale of your old house may blow the in-state tuition, but it may not. If you haven’t been filing GA income tax returns, you’re either not right with the GA DOR, or you’re not a GA resident.</p>

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<p>Thx for the prompt response and links…As such, we have been filing 1040 Federal along with 2555-EZ…We are planning to return back to GA and start all ovr again for our kid’s sake.But my worrying fact is - is it required to do "Senior Year: in GA to be eligible for In State…He has done it abroad.</p>

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<p>While Georgia recognizes the foreign earned income exclusion, if you’re a resident of Georgia, you still have a filing requirement. (Same way you have a Federal filing requirement, even if none of your income is taxable because of the 2555.) See discussion here: [TaxAlmanac</a> - A free online tax research resource and community - Discussion:Determining residency for tax purposes](<a href=“http://www.taxalmanac.org/index.php/Discussion:Determining_residency_for_tax_purposes]TaxAlmanac”>http://www.taxalmanac.org/index.php/Discussion:Determining_residency_for_tax_purposes)</p>

<p>The University System of Georgia does not have a “has to have attended a GA school senior year to be resident” rule. The fine points of their rules are here: <a href=“http://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section4/C329;[/url]”>http://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section4/C329;&lt;/a&gt; I’ve quoted below the part I think you’re thinking of.</p>

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<p>In either case, you have to have been domiciled in Georgia for the last year. Presumably you’ve claimed his dependency exemption on your tax returns; that’s just as good as him having attended a GA high school.</p>

<p>Note that one of the TaxAlmanac posters interprets the GA statutes to say that GA doesn’t recognize establishment of a foreign domicile. </p>

<p><a href=“http://www.armstrong.edu/images/admissions/residencyclassificationinfo.pdf[/url]”>http://www.armstrong.edu/images/admissions/residencyclassificationinfo.pdf&lt;/a&gt; provides a helpful list of factors consistent with having retained a domicile in Georgia.

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