1220 Georgia Resident Status

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Residents of Georgia pay lower tuition rates than those who are not residents of Georgia. Establishing residency for tuition purposes as defined by the Board of Regents is different than residency for purposes such as voting, obtaining a Georgia driver’s license/tag, etc., and requires more than establishing eligibility to vote, securing a driver’s license, and/or paying taxes. Georgia residency status is also distinct from the academic residency requirement for graduation.

A person may be a Georgia resident for tuition purposes if, and only if, either one of the following two criteria are met.

Criterion 1

A person may be a Georgia resident for tuition purposes if that person, that person’s parents, or (if the person is a minor) that person’s court-appointed guardian meets all of the following conditions:

• The person has always resided in Georgia or can demonstrate that they currently reside in Georgia and residency in any other state or country has been abandoned. Maintenance of ties with another state or country will contribute to a non-resident decision including: financial support from a person who is a resident of another state or country, payment of income taxes to another state, and payment of property taxes. Registering a vehicle or securing a driver’s license in that state or country may be considered.
• The person has lived in Georgia for the 12 consecutive months immediately preceding the start date for the term and their 12-month durational requirement has not included time attending any educational institution in Georgia.
• The person can demonstrate that they moved to Georgia for purposes other than attending any educational institution in the State of Georgia.
• The person can demonstrate economic self-sufficiency and has contributed to the state by paying meaningful taxes.
• The person is a U.S. citizen, Resident Alien or is in a visa status permitting indefinite or permanent residence in the United States.

Criterion 2

A person may be a Georgia resident for tuition purposes if that person meets all of the following conditions:

• The person is a U.S. citizen, Resident Alien or is in a visa status permitting indefinite permanent residence in the United States and
• The person can demonstrate that she or he previously held residency status in Georgia but moved from the state and returned within the last 12 months.

If a parent or legal guardian of a student is a Georgia resident and then changes his or her legal residence to another state, the student may retain his or her classification as a resident student as long as he or she remains continuously enrolled at an institution in the University System of Georgia.

Please note that these regulations are subject to change by the Board of Regents. The most current regulations can be found on the Board of Regents’ website at www.usg.edu/regents/policymanual/400.phtml.

1220.10 Petitioning for Georgia Residency for Fee Payment Purposes

Prospective students and accepted applicants who have questions regarding their residence status should contact the Office of Graduate Admissions in their college.

Students classified as out-of-state shall retain that status until officially reclassified as in-state. A student classified as out-of-state who can subsequently provide clear and convincing evidence that he/she meets the requirements for in-state classification can be reclassified as in-state. The burden to support the contention that he/she qualifies for in-state tuition classification under University System of Georgia policy and applicable laws always rests with the student. The petition form for Georgia tuition classification is located at http://sfs.gsu.edu/tuition-fees/tuition-classification/petition-for-georgia-tuition-classification/.

Deadlines for Petitions

To ensure timely processing, petitions and all required documents must be submitted to the Registration and Compliance department within the Office of the Registrar, 225 Sparks Hall, no later than the deadlines listed below. Final determination of Georgia tuition classification prior to the deadline date for fee payment cannot be guaranteed for petitions received after the priority date. Petitions filed after the final deadline will be considered for the subsequent semester.

If a petition is approved, classification will not be retroactive to prior semesters. A student wishing to appeal the decision resulting from his or her Petition for Georgia Tuition Classification may request a review of that decision by the University Committee on Residency and must submit such request in writing to the Office of the Registrar within 5 days of the decision.