Students who have not been living in California with the intent to make it their permanent home for more than one year immediately before the residence determination date for each term in which they propose to attend the university must pay nonresident tuition as well as all assessed fees. The residence determination date is the day instruction begins at the last of the University of California campuses to open for the quarter, and for schools on the semester system, the day instruction begins for the semester.
Law Governing Residence The rules regarding residence for tuition purposes at the University of California are governed by the California Education Code and implemented by Standing Orders of the Regents of the University of California. Under these rules, adult citizens and certain classes of aliens can establish residence for tuition purposes. There are particular rules that apply to the residence classification of minors (see below).
Who is a Resident? If you are an adult student (at least 18 years of age), you may establish residence for tuition purposes in California if you are a U.S. citizen, or a permanent resident or other immigrant, or if you are a nonimmigrant who is not precluded from establishing a domicile in the United States. Check with the residence affairs officer in the Office of the Registrar for the latest information on qualifying nonimmigrant visas.
To establish residence you must be physically present in California for more than one year prior to the residence determination date and you must have come here with the intent to make California your home as opposed to coming to California to go to school.
Physical presence in the state solely for educational purposes does not constitute the establishment of California residence, regardless of the length of your stay.
You must demonstrate your intention to make California your home by severing your residential ties with your former state of residence and by establishing those ties with California. If these steps are delayed, the one-year physical presence requirement will be extended until you have demonstrated both presence and intent for one full year.
If your parents are not residents of California, you will be required to be financially independent to qualify as a resident for tuition purposes.
Requirements for Financial Independence You are considered “financially independent” if one or more of the following apply: (1) you are at least 24 years of age by December 31 of the calendar year for which you are requesting residence classification; (2) you are a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces; (3) you are a ward of the court or both parents are deceased; (4) you have legal dependents other than a spouse; (5) you are married, or are a graduate or professional student, and you were not claimed as an income tax deduction by your parents or any other individual for the tax year immediately preceding the term for which you are requesting resident classification; or (6) you are a single undergraduate student and were not claimed as an income tax deduction by your parents or any other individual for the two tax years immediately preceding the term for which you are requesting resident classification and you can demonstrate self-sufficiency for those two years. (Note that financial dependence is not a factor in residence status for graduate student instructors, graduate student teaching assistants, research assistants, junior specialists, postgraduate researchers, graduate student researchers, and teaching associates who are employed 49 percent or more of full-time in the term for which classification is sought.)
Establishing Intent to Become a California Resident Indications of your intent to make California your permanent residence can include the following: registering to vote and voting in California elections; designating California as your permanent address on all school and employment records, including military records if you are in the military service; obtaining a California driver’s license or, if you do not drive, a California identification card; obtaining California vehicle registration; paying California income taxes as a resident, including taxes on income earned outside California from the date you establish residence; establishing a California residence in which you keep your personal belongings; and licensing for professional practice in California. The absence of these indicia in other states during any period for which you claim residence can also serve as an indication of your intent. Documentary evidence is required, and all relevant indications will be considered in determining your classification. Your intent will be questioned if you return to your prior state of residence when the university is not in session.
General Rules Applying to Minors If you are an unmarried minor (under age 18), your residence is considered to be the residence of the parent with whom you live. If you have a parent living, you cannot change your residence by your own act, by the appointment of a legal guardian, or by the relinquishment of your parent’s right of control. If you live with neither parent, your residence is that of the parent with whom you last lived. Unless you are a minor alien present in the United States under the terms of a nonimmigrant visa that precludes you from establishing domicile in the United States, you may establish your own residence when both your parents are deceased and a legal guardian has not been appointed. If you derive California residence from a parent, that parent must satisfy the one-year durational residence requirement.
Specific Rules Applying to Minors
Divorced or Separated Parents You may be able to derive California resident status from a California resident parent if you move to California to live with that parent on or before your 18th birthday.
Parent of Minor Moves from California You may be entitled to resident status if you are a minor U.S. citizen or eligible alien whose parent(s) was a resident of California who left the state within one year of the residence determination date if
(a) you remained in California after your parent(s) departure,
(b) you enroll in a California public postsecondary institution within one
year of your parent(s) departure, and
(c) once enrolled, you maintain continuous attendance in that institution.
Financial independence is not required in this case.
Two-Year Care and Control You may be entitled to resident status if you are a U.S. citizen or eligible alien and you have lived continuously with an adult who is not your parent for at least two years prior to the residence determination date. The adult with whom you are living must have been responsible for your care and control for the entire two-year period and must have been living in California during the one year immediately preceding the residence determination date.
Exceptions to the Rules Applicable to Minors
1. Deceased parents
Even though you are a minor, you may establish your own residence
if both of your parents are deceased and a legal guardian has not been
appointed for you.
2. Divorced/separated parents
You may derive residence from a California resident parent if you
move to California to begin residing with your California resident parent
before you reach age 18. In addition, you may be eligible for an
exemption from the nonresident tuition if you are the dependent child of
a California resident parent. (See the Exemptions section for more
details.)
3. Parent of minor moves from California
If your parent left California to establish a residence elsewhere and
you remained in California, you may be entitled to be a resident as
long as you enroll at a community college, a state university or a UC
campus within one year of your parent’s departure and attended
continuously until you became an adult.
4. Self-support
If you have lived in California and been totally self-supporting for the
entire year immediately preceding the term, you may be entitled to be
a resident.
Exemptions from Nonresident Tuition: You may be entitled to an exemption from nonresident tuition if one of the following applies to you:
1. Member of the military
Members of the military stationed in California on active duty, except
those assigned for educational purposes, may be exempt from
nonresident tuition until they have resided in California for the minimum
time necessary to establish residence.
2. Spouses, registered domestic partner and dependent children of
military personnel
Undergraduate
The spouse, registered domestic partner and dependent children of a
member of the military stationed in California on active duty may be
exempt from nonresident tuition indefinitely.
Graduate
Graduate students may be exempt from nonresident tuition only for the
minimum time necessary to establish residence -- one year from the
date they arrive in California.
3. Spouses, registered domestic partner and children of a UC faculty
member
If funds are available, the spouse, registered domestic partner and
unmarried dependent children under age 21 of a member of the UC
faculty who is a member of the Academic Senate may be eligible for a
waiver of the nonresident tuition.
4. Spouses, registered domestic partner and children of a UC
employee employed outside of California
The spouses, registered domestic partner and dependent children of a
full-time UC employee who is assigned to work outside of California
may be exempt from nonresident tuition as long as the employee
remains a full-time UC employee.
5. Spouses, registered domestic partner, children and step children
of a deceased police officer or fire fighter
The spouse, registered domestic partner, children and step children of
a deceased law enforcement officer or fire fighter who was a California
resident at the time of his/her death, and who was killed in the course
of his/her official duties, may be exempt from nonresident tuition.
6. Dependent child of a California resident
The dependent child of a California resident may be exempt from
nonresident tuition until s/he has resided in California for the minimum
time necessary to establish a residence. The parent must have been a
California resident for more than one year. Once enrolled, the student
must maintain continuous attendance at a community college, a state
university or a UC campus.
7. Native American graduates of a BIA school
A student who is a graduate of a California school operated by the
federal Bureau of Indian Affairs may be exempt from nonresident
tuition.
8. Employee of California public school district
A student holding a valid credential authorizing service in California
public schools and employed by a school district in a full-time
certificate position may be exempt from nonresident tuition.
9. Student athlete in training at U.S. Olympic Training Center, Chula
Vista
An amateur student athlete in training at the U.S. Olympic Training
Center in Chula Vista may be exempt from nonresident tuition until s/he
has resided in California the minimum time necessary to become a
resident.
10. Graduate of California high school
A student who attended high school in California for three or more
years (9th grade included) and graduated from a California high
school (or attained the equivalent) may be exempt from nonresident
tuition. Nonimmigrant students are not eligible for this exemption. The
application and affidavit can be downloaded from here.
11. Undergraduate surviving dependents of a California resident who
was in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Undergraduate students who are the surviving dependents of a
California resident who was killed in the September 11, 201 terrorist
attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon Building or the crash
of United Airlines Flight 93. Eligible students must meet the financial
need requirements for the Cal Grant A program.
12. Undergraduate recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor.
An undergraduate student who is a recipient of a Congressional
Medal of Honor or who is the child of a recipient of the Congressional
Medal of Honor from nonresident tuition and mandatory systemwide
fees. The recipient of the Medal of Honor must be a California resident
or must have been a California resident at the time of his or her
death. The student may not be older than 27, and the student's annual
income may not exceed the national poverty level.
Temporary Absences If you are a nonresident student who is in the process of establishing a residence for tuition purposes and you return to your former state during noninstructional periods, your presence in California will be presumed to be solely for educational purposes, and only convincing evidence to the contrary will rebut this presumption. Students who are in the state solely for educational purposes will not be classified as residents for tuition purposes regardless of the length of their stay.
If you are a student who has been classified as a resident for tuition purposes and you leave the state temporarily, your absence could result in the loss of your California residence. The burden will be on you (or your parents if you are a minor) to verify that you did nothing inconsistent with your claim of a continuing California residence during your absence. Steps that you (or your parents) should take to retain a California residence include
1. Continuing to use a California permanent address in all records.
2. Continuing to satisfy California tax obligations. If you are claiming
California residence, you are liable for payment of income taxes on
your total income from the date you establish your residence in
California, including income earned in another state or country.
3. Retaining your California voter’s registration and vote by absentee
ballot.
4. Maintaining a California driver’s license and vehicle registration. If it is
necessary to change your driver’s license or vehicle registration, you
must change them back within the time prescribed by law.
Petition for Resident Classification You must petition in person at the Office of the Registrar, 1100 Hinderaker Hall, for a change of classification from nonresident to resident status. All changes of status MUST be initiated before the first day of classes for the term for which you intend to be classified as a resident.
Time Limit on Providing Documentation additional documentation is required for residence classification but is not readily accessible, you will be given until the end of the applicable term to provide it. Nonresident tuition must be paid pending the outcome of the decision.
Incorrect Classification If you were classified as a resident incorrectly, you are subject to a nonresident classification and to the payment of all nonresident tuition not paid. If you concealed information or furnished false information and were classified incorrectly as a result, you may be subject to university discipline. Resident students who become nonresidents must immediately notify the campus residence affairs officer.
Inquiries and Appeals Inquiries regarding residence requirements, residence determination, and/or recognized exceptions should be directed to the Residence Affairs Officer, Office of the Registrar, 1100 Hinderaker Hall, University of California, Riverside 92521-0118. Students denied residence status by the campus residence affairs officer have the right to appeal, in writing, to the Office of the General Counsel/Legal Analyst-Residency Matters, 1111 Franklin Street, 8th Floor, Oakland, CA 94607. Such appeals must be filed within 45 days of notification of the campus residence affairs officer’s final decision. No other university personnel are authorized to supply information relative to residence requirements for tuition purposes.
You are advised that the foregoing is a summary of the law regarding residence. Regulations adopted by the Regents are available for inspection in the Office of the Registrar. Note that changes may be made in the residence requirements between the publication of this statement and the relevant residence determination date.
Privacy Notice All information requested on the Statement of Legal Residence form is required by the authority of Standing Order 110.2 (a)-(d) of the Regents of the University of California for determining whether you are a legal resident for tuition purposes. The residence affairs officer in the Office of the Registrar maintains the requested information. You have the right to inspect university records containing the residence information requested on the form.