Residency for Tuition Purposes

There are different tuition rates for Utah residents and for non-residents, based on the Utah State Law, 53B-8-102 and Board of Regents, R512, Policies and Procedures. Your initial residency classification is made when you are admitted, and will be included in your official letter of acceptance. If you are classified as a Non-resident but feel you should qualify for Resident status, you may submit an application for reclassification with the appropriate supporting documentation.

Students who have been classified as Non-residents and who plan to apply for residency reclassification must first read:

University of Utah Institutional Policy (pdf)

NOTE: The University of Utah does not charge non-resident tuition for summer term so all students enjoy summer classes at the in-state tuition rate.

Exceptions to the Policy

There are a number of exceptions in the Board of Regents Policies and Procedures R512 that may make you eligible to apply for a waiver of the time requirement (undergraduate students) or the credit hours requirement (graduate students). Learn about possible exceptions...

Apply for Residency Reclassification

Non-resident students who are eligible for a reclassification of their residency status must complete the residency reclassification application and submit the required supporting documentation.

Students must first take steps to establish resident student status. Establish ties to Utah by getting a Utah driver’s license, registering a vehicle the student is operating in Utah, and registering to vote in Utah. You must be able to demonstrate that these ties were issued or registered by these dates:

Fall: May 1

Spring: Oct. 1

Summer: Feb. 1

If you submit your residency application within the 12-month residency period, you will be expected to continue providing proof of physical presence even after the residency application is submitted. You will be allowed to continue submitting documentation required to prove eligibility for reclassification until the first Friday of the semester.

Apply for residency reclassification by the deadline:

Fall: July 1

Spring: Nov. 1

Summer: Apr. 1

If you are applying for Utah Resident-based scholarships and your scholarship deadline is prior to June 1, please indicate at the top of your residency application that you are requesting a Priority Rush evaluation for resident scholarship consideration. If you have not heard from our office within two to three weeks of submitting a “Rush Request,” please contact our office to determine the status of your residency application.

Complete the Application for Residency Reclassification (pdf)

Special Information for:

Students at other Utah State Colleges/Universities

We will honor residency status granted by another Utah state institution, unless the residency classification was obtained under false pretense or the facts at the time of the granting of residency have significantly changed. If you have attended another Utah System of Higher Education school within the past year as a resident, you may obtain a letter from the other Utah school and submit it to our office instead of filing the full residency reclassification application.

U.S. Military Personnel, Reservists, and Veterans

The Utah Residency Law (Board of Regents, R512, Policies and Procedures) allows exceptions for certain military personnel and reservists, military veterans, and in some cases, the military member’s immediate family residing with the member in Utah, to qualify for residency immediately. Please read R512 to find the detail on these exceptions and to determine how to apply.

Religious/Humanitarian Service Outside of Utah

Students planning to leave Utah for religious or humanitarian service may be allowed to retain their Utah residency after they return. If you were classified as a Resident prior to leaving, then your Resident status will continue to apply when you return, as long as you return to Utah within thirty days of the end of your service period.

If you leave Utah before you have been granted residency for tuition purposes, you will have to start the 12 consecutive-month requirement over when you return to Utah. (You cannot split the 12 months before and after your service period.)

Graduate Medical & Dental Students

Non-resident graduate students admitted to the School of Medicine as medical students or admitted to the School of Dentistry as dental students are not eligible for residency reclassification once they begin their Medical/Dental School studies, and will pay tuition at the Non-resident rate for the duration of their medical/dental school studies even during approved “Leaves of Absence".

Medical/Dental students may establish residency if, before starting Medical/Dental School classes, the students meet the undergraduate or graduate (non-medical/non-dental) residency requirements listed above and apply for reclassification prior to starting their medical/dental studies. Once medical/dental school classes begin, medical/dental students with a non-resident classification will maintain it throughout their studies. Possible exceptions to this policy will be found in Board of Regents Rule R512-6.

Residency for non-citizens

Some non-citizen students may be eligible for Utah residency reclassification in order to pay tuition at the in-state rate. Non-citizen students who meet the residency requirements may be eligible for residency if they also have one of the following:

Have received the Resident Alien card to verify Permanent Resident status in the United States,
Have received the Notice of Action form after submitting an I-485 Application to Adjust to Permanent Resident Status,
Have Refugee or Asylum status, or
Have one of the following visa types: A1, A2, A3, H1B, H4, K3, K4, L1, L2, T1, T2, T3, T4, U1, U2, U3, U4, V1, V2, or V3. Students holding these visa types must submit a residency reclassification application to request eligibility for residency for tuition purposes.