Cindy in C-ville Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Most likely we will be moving out of state this summer. Oldest dd has been accepted at a school in our current state and would like to attend. We are considering letting her become an "independent" so that she can keep her residency status. Is this possible? If so, what's the process? TIA!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 I think this is a question I'd run past the financial aid office at the school she's accepted into. Financial aid offices I've talked with have always been helpful - esp for specific questions like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 :iagree: And every state has different residency requirements and every state college has their own :glare:. You just have to ask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganClassicalPrep Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Most likely, no. You can't just become independent. I've known people who have really struggled with this (and it actually has kept friends of mine OUT of school!) because until you are 25, financial aid is calculated with your parents information. It doesn't matter if you live on your own, they still request parental information. Unless you are married or have a child. Then you are considered an independent student. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 But some schools base their residency requirements on where you lived for the last two tears, not your current state of residency. (So you can't just move to Ga in April of Senior year and claim a Hope Scholarship, for example.) And your legal state of residence has nothing to do with being financially independent. Lots of college students change their state of legal residency so they can vote in college instead of back home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in C-ville Posted April 14, 2011 Author Share Posted April 14, 2011 Okay, so she's already received a letter stating her residency status for 2011-12. So, if we move this summer, we would obviously let them know. From what you have said, it sounds like it would be up to the school to either honor that status or rescind it. And then, it sounds like we just need to work with the individual school to determine the best pathway. Is this right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 Yes. I'd ask up front. It will be harder for them to take it away if she is living there, registered to vote, has a driver's license, etc. OTOH, some schools will not change your residency after you start no matter what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 I would talk to the school It seems to me that if your daughter is still living in the state that she has always lived in -- whether at home or at school -- she would still be a resident, wouldn't she? We have some friends whose daughter moved to Montana and is living and working for a year on her own, so that she can be considered a resident of that state and received a reduced tuition. She will still be considered a dependent of her parents', yet will be a resident of Montana after a year. Seems to me that these are two separate issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted April 14, 2011 Share Posted April 14, 2011 You can't claim her on your taxes if she's independent, either--not that they'd call her that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah C. Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Being independent on taxes and being independent on FAFSA are two very different things. I think for my school you had to have lived in the state for a certain amount of time to be considered a resident. However, as far as I know what mattered was where the *student* was living, not the parents. So if your dd stays in the state over the summer, that may be enough to keep her residency. I think it's really something you have to talk to the school about, or see what the state's requirements are, since residency seems to be tied to state college aid in many cases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PentecostalMom Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 (edited) Okay, so she's already received a letter stating her residency status for 2011-12. So, if we move this summer, we would obviously let them know. From what you have said, it sounds like it would be up to the school to either honor that status or rescind it. And then, it sounds like we just need to work with the individual school to determine the best pathway. Is this right? If she already has her residency status, and she stays there to go to school, they will not change her status, at least in my experience. We moved out of Florida (where we were residents) for dh's job. However, we had not been gone 12 months when ds moved back to Florida (alone) to go to college. We had to establish residency in Florida (because we had already moved) which we did with voter registration cards and drivers licenses. He was determined to be a Florida resident for financial aid purposes (and for tuition purposes) and is still a Florida resident even though we don't live there. Residency status is not determined by the FAFSA people, it is determined by the school. The school still calls him a resident because he resides in Florida. Clear as mud? Edited April 20, 2011 by PentecostalMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-FL Posted April 20, 2011 Share Posted April 20, 2011 Also, to determine continued residency, a dorm doesn't count usually. They have to live in the community with a lease, bills, something to prove it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in C-ville Posted April 21, 2011 Author Share Posted April 21, 2011 Thanks, Ladies! This is helpful. We found out on Monday that she is guaranteed residency status for two years. At that point, she could be ready to move off-campus, have her own lease, bills, etc. She will keep her VA driver's license as she won't even be moving to NC. So ... although there aren't *real* guarantees for all four years, we've got enough answers for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PentecostalMom Posted April 22, 2011 Share Posted April 22, 2011 I would ask the school what they need to determine residency. The school my son attends wanted a driver's license & voter's registration. She can get those now if ahe doesn't already have them. They both had to have been issued at least 12 months prior to the date ds was starting classes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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