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Residency for Tuition Purposes: Graduate Policies

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/ Information & Resources / Residency / Graduate Students

Spring 2024 applications are open from September 15, 2023 to January 5, 2024

Read on to learn about the University of Utah residency policies, exceptions, requirements and deadlines.

Residency Application Forms

Residency Reclassification Application Deadline by Semester

07/01

Fall Semester

11/01

Spring Semester

04/01

Summer Semester

Domiciliary Tie Establishment Deadline by Semester

10/01

Spring Semester

02/01

Summer Semester

05/01

Fall Semester

Mandatory Reading for All Residency Reclassification Applicants

  1. University of Utah Institutional Policy on Residency Determination for Tuition Purposes
  2. Board of Regents R512 Policies and Procedures
  3. Utah State Law, 53B-8-102

There are different tuition rates for Utah residents and non-residents based on Utah State Law, 53B-8-102 and Board of Regents R512 Policy.

Your initial residency classification will be determined when your admissions application is reviewed.

  • Your official letter of acceptance will include your classification.
  • If you are classified as a non-resident but meet the requirements for a policy or exception for resident status, you may apply to change your status.

The resources listed above describe the various ways in which you may be eligible for in-state (resident) tuition under the provisions of Utah state law.

  • These documents explain the general rule of the law and exceptions that may allow you to waive the time requirement and apply for residency immediately.
  • Review these materials carefully.
  • Non-residents eligible for reclassification must submit a complete reclassification, certification, or military form by the applicable term deadline with all required supporting documentation.

Per University of Utah policy, incoming graduate students, including those in Law programs, may apply under the Undergraduate policy or any other policy if they qualify prior to the start of their graduate studies.

  • Graduate students who begin their graduate program as a non-resident are only eligible to reclassify under the Graduate policy, which includes completing 40 graduate-level semester hours prior to reclassification.
  • Medical students are held to the School of Medicine policies.
  • Law students are ineligible to reclassify after beginning their program.
  • Dental students admitted as non-residents are ineligible for reclassification at any time.
  • The only exceptions to Graduate, Medical, Law, and Dental residency policy are for students proving eligibility through military or American Indian exceptions, or the House Bill 144 tuition waiver as described below.

The Graduate Policy

The Graduate Policy applies to most graduate students who have started their graduate programs and are looking to reclassify their residency status at the University of Utah, except for medical, law and dental students (see below and the Institutional Policy for specific policies for these schools.)

The Graduate Policy supersedes all other policies except for:

  • Military exceptions
  • American Indian exceptions
  • House Bills 118 and 144.

Students must meet ALL of the following requirements and submit an application and all necessary documentation by the specified deadlines.

**PLEASE NOTE: All policies are subject to change without notice.

  • Students must hold
    • U.S. citizenship
    • Granted permanent residency
    • Granted asylum or refugee status
    • Special Immigrant Visa
    • Humanitarian Parole
    • Temporary Protected Status
    • Or good faith evidence of a submitted application for refugee status, humanitarian parole, temporary protected status, or asylum under United States immigration law
      • Status cannot be expired, or removed.
      • “Good Faith Evidence” requires verified documentation
      • Students with granted permanent residency, granted asylum or granted refugee status must submit valid and unexpired documentation.
      • Students on other types of visas not listed above are ineligible for residency reclassification but may qualify for a tuition waiver if they have 3 years and completed graduation in a Utah high school.
  • Students must complete at least 40 graduate credit hours prior to the requested term of reclassification.
    • All hours must be graduate credit hours, and must be completed at the University of Utah.
    • Withdrawn, failed or dropped courses will not count towards the 40 credit requirement.
  • Students must relinquish domiciliary ties (driver’s license, voter registration, and vehicle registration) held in any other state and establish them in Utah by the Utah tie deadline.
    • Students must submit a valid Utah driver’s license.
    • Students must submit proof of active Utah voter registration via their voter registration card or a certified letter from the County Clerk’s office. Students with granted permanent resident status are exempt from this requirement and can submit a secondary Utah tie.
    • If the student has a vehicle registered in their name, it must be registered in Utah and the student must submit valid and unexpired vehicle registration.
  • Students must submit verification of financial independence showing that they are not claimed as a dependent on the federal tax return of any person who is not a resident of Utah.
    • Students who are under the age of 24 and not married must submit the first two pages of their federal tax return for the most recent tax year verifying that they were not claimed as a tax dependent by out of state parents or guardians.
    • Students who did not file their own federal taxes must submit a copy of their out of state parents’ or guardians’ federal tax return(s) for the most recent tax year verifying that they did not claim the student as a dependent.
  • Students must submit proof of their physical presence in the state of Utah for at least the 12 continuous months immediately prior to the first day of class for the academic term they wish to be considered a resident student, with fewer than 29 days total unproven/out-of-state.
    • Accepted methods of proof include the following:
      • In-person enrollment at the University of Utah or another Utah institution through transcripts
      • Employment with a Utah employer through dated pay stubs for each date range the student wishes to prove, or through a signed and dated employer letter on letterhead specifying the dates of employment
      • Bank or credit card statements in the student’s name only showing a purchase made in person, in the state of Utah, every six days or fewer for the date range the student wishes to prove
      • Physical Presence Check-Ins at the Residency office once every six days or fewer for the date range the student wishes to prove, during Office of Admissions business hours only
          • For this method, the student must be admitted and eligible to enroll
          • The student requesting resident status must bring two forms of photo ID
            • The first form of ID must be a UCard with the requesting student’s name, photo and UNID
            • The second form of ID can be one of the following provided that it has the requesting student’s name and photo:
              • Valid and unexpired driver’s license
              • Valid and unexpired state ID
              • Valid and unexpired permanent resident card
              • Valid and unexpired passport
      • Gym records in the student’s name and with the name and contact information for the gym, showing visits to a Utah gym in person every six days or fewer for the date range the student wishes to prove
      • University-sponsored programs that are organized or sanctioned by the U supporting documentation and institutional verification through a signed and dated letter on letterhead from the organizing department
      • In some cases, a signed and dated letter on letterhead from a religious, volunteer, or educational leader or a coach, doctor or therapist specifying the dates of presence in Utah may be used (subject to review)
    • The following CANNOT be used to demonstrate proof of physical presence (this list is not exhaustive):
      • Utah utility bills
      • Utah leases or rental agreements
      • W-2s
      • Presence of Utah property
      • Personal statements
      • Letters from friends/parents/landlords
      • Records from apps such as DoorDash, UberEats, Uber, Lyft, Venmo, Door Dash, GrubHub, etc
      • Photographs or images of people/locations
      • Social media posts such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, etc.
      • Cell/Mobile phone records
    • Any form of proof of physical presence in Utah submitted is subject to review; acceptance is not guaranteed.
    • Students are expected to report any days they leave the state of Utah.
    • Any days that a student cannot prove their presence in Utah by one of the accepted methods will count against the 29 day total.

Late Submissions

An application is considered late if it is submitted after the deadline.

The hard late deadline for application submission is the Friday prior to the start of the requested term of reclassification (for example, the hard late deadline for Fall 2023 residency reclassification applications is Friday 08/18/2023.)

Late applications must be submitted with a late petition explaining why you did not submit by the deadline, and there is no guarantee of application acceptance nor a decision by the tuition deadline for the requested term of reclassification.

Required documentation (proof of physical presence, submission of Utah ties, etc.) will be accepted through the Friday of the first week of classes of the requested term of reclassification at the latest (for example, the hard documentation submission deadline for Fall 2023 residency reclassification is Friday 08/25/2023).

Documentation should be submitted as soon as possible prior to this deadline.

Students submitting documentation must have a residency reclassification application on file that was submitted by the hard application deadline.

No documentation will be accepted after the first week of classes of the requested term of reclassification.

Non-Resident Tuition Waiver Specifications

Please note that per the Board of Regents and University of Utah Institutional Policy, no time spent on the following programs can be used towards residency reclassification requirements:

  • Western Undergraduate Exchange
  • Western Regional Graduate Program
  • Professional Student Exchange Program
  • Dixie State University Good Neighbor Program
  • International Student Exchange
  • Alumni Legacy Scholarships
  • Other programs as specified by the state or institution

More information can be found in the mandatory reading of the University of Utah Institutional Policy and the Board of Regents Policies, R512.

Other Exceptions

Please check the sections below to see if you qualify under any of the following exceptions, then complete the Certification Form for Resident Exceptions for Tuition Purposes.

Please make sure to also check the term deadlines above.

Already Applied for Residency?

If you have already submitted your residency application form and have additional documents you wish to turn in for evaluation, please attach the documents using the Post Submission form.

Residency for Non-citizens

Non-citizens that have been granted permanent U.S. resident status or have obtained asylum or refugee status under U.S. immigration law are classified for purposes of resident status according to the same criteria as U.S. citizens.

These students must submit verification of status with their residency application.

Residency reclassification will not be granted to non-citizens without proof of permanent resident, asylum, or refugee status in the United States.

Tuition Waivers for Non-residents

Information on special tuition waivers for non-citizens and other non-residents can be found in Board of Regents Policy R513.

  • The House Bill 144 Non-Resident Tuition Waiver is explained in R513-13 Exemption for Certain Students with Utah High School Graduation. .
  • The House Bill 118 Non-Resident Tuition Waiver is explained in R513-14 Exemption of Nonresident Tuition for Certain Foreign Nationals.

Information on House Bill 144 & House Bill 118 is available here.

Have Questions?

Residency Office Contact Information:

(801) 581-8761, Option 5
residency@utah.edu