FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. A written request should be made to the University Appeals Committee on Residence Classification. You may submit additional documentation with your request for appeal, but the Committee will get a copy of your residency case file from the Residency Officer, so there is no need to resend any information previously submitted.

The student is notified in writing of the Committee's decision.

In order to appear at the Committee meeting, the student must provide notice when the make the appeal, so that they may be notified of the meeting time and date. It is not necessary to attend the meeting in person, but if a student does attend, they will have the opportunity to verbally present their reasons for believing they should be granted in-state residency. A decision is NOT made while the student are present. Please Note: Only the student may meet with the Committee. Parents, other parties, advocates or representatives are not permitted to attend.

This committee meets monthly. Therefore, if the student’s initial petition is denied, it is advantageous to submit the petition for appeal as soon as possible.

No. You must be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident immigrant with a green card or I-551 passport stamp to be considered for residency for tuition purposes. If you have some extraordinary circumstances you would like considered, you may contact the Residency Officer for your campus.

For purposes of determining residency status, a guardian must be an individual who has been appointed by the United States court system (i.e., court-appointed guardian). Guardianship can only be established through court order, and the student must prove that any change in guardianship is not for in-state tuition purposes, and that their guardian's presence within the state is not primarily for the purposes of education. The student must submit a copy of the file-stamped court decree appointing their guardian(s) if the student is using the guardian(s) to establish residency status.

Please note that a person other than a parent who claims the student as a dependent for income tax purposes is not considered the student's guardian solely due to that tax claim. Notarized letters, signed Affidavits, claims of guardianship under Pennsylvania school code, guardianship documentation from foreign courts, and Power of Attorney paperwork are also insufficient to establish guardianship.

Residency status is determined based on the factors identified in the policy. The presumption that an undergraduate student under the age of 24 is domiciled in Pennsylvania only attaches based on the domicile of the student’s parent(s), or court appointed guardian(s), not other relatives or family friends.

Please refer to the Residency Policy for an overview of the process.  

Once the residency review documentation has been received, the student will receive an email confirmation sent to the student’s Penn State email address.

If the student graduates from a Pennsylvania high school and maintains a separate domicile within Pennsylvania, it may be possible to be considered a resident for tuition purposes, even if the student’s parents move out of state, depending on the circumstances of the case. If a student graduates from a Pennsylvania high school and relocates with their parents to the new state, that student would typically not meet the criteria for in-state residency, as he/she is no longer domiciled in Pennsylvania.

If a student can provide documentation to show that one parent of a student is domiciled in Pennsylvania, the student would be considered a Pennsylvania resident for tuition purposes, even if that student resides primarily with the other parent. 

No. The alumni status of a student's parents does not determine his/her residency status, per Penn State's Residency Policy.

Generally, unless a student has 12 months of continuous residence in the state prior to enrollment, the student is considered a non-resident.

The 12-month requirement cannot be met while attending Penn State - the student is assumed to be in the Commonwealth for educational purposes.

Although the student might be considered a resident of the Commonwealth, the student would remain as a non-resident for tuition purposes, unless there was clear evidence that the student's circumstances had changed and that they have established a permanent, independent domicile in Pennsylvania. 

Yes. Residency for tuition purposes is a policy of Penn State. While you may meet the requirements to become a registered voter or a licensed driver, you still may not qualify for residency for tuition purposes.

Not necessarily. Marriage to a resident of the Commonwealth is just one factor considered in the decision regarding residency. The larger factors would be whether the student has established permanent domicile in the Commonwealth and whether the student’s presence in Pennsylvania is primarily for educational purposes.

No. Ownership of real estate or payment of real estate taxes in Pennsylvania does not necessarily qualify a student for residency for tuition purposes.

Residency is based on a person's domicile (a person's existing and intended fixed, permanent and principal place of residence).

Unless your parent(s) live in the home and pay PA state taxes as resident(s) of the state, ownership of real estate does not qualify a student for residency.

A student who wishes to establish that they are independent from their parents will need to request a residency review and submit documentary evidence of their independence, including a copy of their parent(s)' Federal tax return or a notarized statement from them indicating they are not providing the student's support or claiming the student as a dependent for tax reasons. The student should submit documentation to show that he/she earns adequate income to support him/herself.

If the parents have taken out loans to support the student's education (such as Federal Direct PLUS loans) or otherwise provide financial assistance or guarantees for the student, the student would not be considered independent, unless compelling evidence to the contrary is presented.

Domicile is a person's existing and intended fixed, permanent, and principal place of residence.

The Admissions office determines a student's residency status based on the information provided on each student's application.

Yes. Refund requests should be directed to the Bursar's office. Use the Contact Us form to submit your question or request.

A student has until the last day of the effective semester to file his/her petition with the Residency Officer.

Any reclassification would be effective at the beginning of the semester or session during which the appeal was filed or at the beginning of the following semester or session at the discretion of the person or committee rendering the decision on reclassification.

Please refer to the Residency Policy page for information and details on the required documentation. Once the residency review documentation has been received, the student will receive an email confirmation sent to the student’s Penn State email address.

Yes. Military personnel and their dependents who are assigned to an active duty station in Pennsylvania and who reside in Pennsylvania can be classified as residents for tuition purposes.

A student should submit a cover letter, a copy of the service member's orders, and a copy of his/her parent's deed or lease as documentation.

Veterans, military personnel, and other classes of members of qualifying Federal service, their spouses and dependents, may be eligible for in-state tuition under regardless of residency status under state or federal law. The Office of Veterans Programs or your campus’s School Certifying Official should be contacted regarding eligibility.

All military-connected students using Department of Veterans Affairs education benefits are eligible for in-state tuition regardless of residency status. The Office of Veterans Programs or your campus’s School Certifying Official should be contacted regarding eligibility.

National Guard or Reserve members eligible to use Chapter 1606 or other Dept. of Veterans Affairs education benefit(s) will be eligible for in state tuition regardless of residency. 

Yes. Any member of the armed forces who was a resident of Pennsylvania immediately preceding entry into the service and who has continuously maintained Pennsylvania as his/her domicile is presumed to have a Pennsylvania domicile.

A student should submit a cover letter in addition to documentation of the service member's home of record.

Possibly. A student who changes their place of residence from Pennsylvania to another state is required to give prompt written notice of this change to the University and will be considered for reclassification effective the date of the change. The written notice should be provided to the Residency Officer, 103 Shields Building, 664 Curtin Rd., University Park, PA 16802.

However, if a dependent student’s parents move out of state after the student’s enrollment, the student may be able to retain their in-state classification if the student and their parent(s) were domiciled in Pennsylvania for a period of at least 12 months immediately prior to the student’s initial enrollment at The Pennsylvania State University and the student did not move with their parents, but, rather, continues to maintain a separate residence in Pennsylvania after their parents relocation to another state.

If you are an international student and you obtain an F or J visa, you will be classified as a non-PA resident for tuition purposes. If you previously met the policy definition for in-state residency, then your residency status will be reclassified from PA resident to non-PA resident when you change your visa status. Students with an F or J visa do not meet the requirements for in-state residency under Penn State's Residency Policy.

Yes. Residency status is not fixed. The University can reclassify a student from resident to non-resident if they no longer meet the criteria for in-state residency status.