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Graduate Assistants and Fellows
Obtaining Florida State Residency
It is the policy of the University of Florida that all graduate assistants and fellows, who receive tuition waivers and who are U.S. citizens, permanent resident aliens, or legal aliens granted indefinite stay by the Immigration and Naturalizations Service, must take appropriate actions to become in-state residents for tuition purposes by the end of their first year. To accomplish this, some actions must be taken before the beginning of their first semester of enrollment and no later than the end of the drop/add period for this first semester. Continuing employment or fellowships are dependent on obtaining resident status.
Information to accomplish these actions is included herein and is also available from the graduate coordinator, department office or online at
http://gradschool.rgp.ufl.edu/gradcat/2002-2003/admission.html#residency.
The documentation needed to establish residency is delineated in section IV on the “Request for Change in Residency Status” form (included herein and at
http://www.reg.ufl.edu/pdf/residency-change.pdf ). There are sixteen items listed under this section of the form. It is necessary to prove from the preponderance of the documentation that residency has been established. The completed form is submitted to the Registrar’s Admission Office and they make the final decision. Discussed below are items of documentation that we in the College of Engineering believe are likely to result in establishment of residency. Immediately below are various comments and exerts that indicate what legally constitutes a resident for tuition purposes.
A Florida "resident for tuition purposes" is a person who has, or a dependent person whose parent or legal guardian has, established and maintained legal residency in Florida for at least twelve months. Residence in Florida must be as a bona fide domicile rather than for the purpose of maintaining a residence incident to enrollment at an institution of higher education. To qualify as a Florida resident for tuition purposes, you must be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident alien, or legal alien granted indefinite stay by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Living in or attending school in Florida will not, in itself, establish legal residence. Students who depend on out-of-state parents for support are presumed to be legal residents of the same state as their parents.
Actions to be taken to obtain residency for tuition purposes:
1. Obtain from the Alachua County Clerk of the Court a “Declaration of Domicile” form. Complete the form and return it to the Official Records Office, Room 101, Alachua County Administrative Building, Main Street and University Avenue. There is an $11.37 charge for filing the form and you need a picture ID. This form must be filed as soon as possible after you arrive in Gainesville and before the start of classes as it will be used to document the start the 12-month residency period. Be sure to keep a copy of the declaration for filing with your “Request for Change in Residency Status” form ( http://www.clerk-alachua-fl.org/clerk/Recfees.html).
2. Obtain a Florida Driver’s License (original birth certificate required along with secondary identification). If you do not have a car, then obtain a Florida identification card. These can be obtained from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Office.
(http://www.hsmv.state.fl.us/ddl/faqkeys.html#USC )
3. Register to vote at the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections Office and obtain a Florida voter identification card. (You may register in whatever Florida county is appropriate for your residence.)
(http://elections.alachua.fl.us )
4. Maintain a copy of your offer letter to use as proof of employment for the 12-month period.
5. If you own a vehicle, then register it in the State of Florida, by going to the Alachua County Tax Collector’s Office.
(http://www.actcfl.org) If you reside in another Florida county you may register your vehicle at the Tax Collector’s Office there.
6. Open a local bank account as this provides additional documentation that you are a permanent resident.
7. If you file your own Federal income tax return as an independent person, you need to provide a copy of the latest return you filed as documentation when you file the “Request for Change in Residency Status” form with the Admissions Office.
8. If your parents or guardians claimed you as a dependent on their most recent return but are not going to claim you as a dependent on future returns, then they need to provide you with a notarized statement stating this.
See suggested format
(opens in new window).
9. A comment on item 7 and 8 above. You must be an independent person to be able to establish Florida residency unless your parents or guardians or spouse establishes residency in Florida.
10. Complete a University of Florida “Request for Change in Residency Status” form after you have been in Florida approximately 11 ½ or 12 months but before tuition and fees are due in the first semester in which you have been a resident of Florida for 12 months. This form along with appropriate documentation is filed with the University of Florida Registrar’s Office of Admissions, 201 Criser Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611-4000, telephone (352) 392-1365 ext. 7404. The form is available at:
http://www.reg.ufl.edu/pdf/residency-change.pdf
11. If you have complied with the above, it is our (College of Engineering’s) opinion that the Registrar’s Office will change your residency status to “resident”; thus, reducing the amount of the tuition waiver that the University, College, and Department is responsible for. If you fail to do the above things and it results in your residency request being denied then either you or your department will be responsible for your tuition waiver. |
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