Establishing Florida Residency

Establishing Florida Residency

It is the policy of the University of Florida that all graduate assistants and fellows, who receive tuition waivers and who are U.S. citizens, permanent resident aliens, or legal aliens granted indefinite stay by the Immigration and Naturalizations Service, must take appropriate actions to become in-state residents for tuition purposes by the end of their first year.

To accomplish this, some actions must be taken before the beginning of their first semester of enrollment and no later than the end of the drop/add period for the first semester. Continuing employment or fellowships are dependent on obtaining resident status. It takes 1 year to establish residency so all Non-Florida U.S. students should start the process prior to beginning at UF.

 

Supply Documentation

Upon receipt of the “Declaration of Domicile” you will need to supply documentation to prove that you have maintained 12 months physical presence in the state of Florida. This can be done by submitting the documents outlined in section IV of the Request for Change in Residency Status.

Supporting documents

Supporting documents MUST be completed no later than one year prior to the start of the term in which you plan to apply for residency.

Supporting documents needed are as follows:

  • Obtain a Florida Driver’s License (original birth certificate required along with secondary identification) If you do not have a car, then obtain a Florida identification card. These can be obtained from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Office .
  • Register to vote at the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections Office and obtain a Florida voter identification card. (You may register in whatever Florida county is appropriate for your residence.
  • Maintain a copy of your offer letter to use as proof of employment for the 12 month period.
  • If you own a vehicle, then register it in the State of Florida, by going to the Alachua County Tax Collector’s Office. If you reside in another Florida county you may register your vehicle at the Tax Collector’s Office there.
  • Open a local bank account as this provides additional documentation that you are a permanent resident.
  • If you file your own Federal income tax return as an independent person, you need to provide a copy of the latest return you filed as documentation when you file the Request for Change in Residency Status with the Admissions Office.
  • If your parents or guardians claimed you as a dependent on their most recent return but are not going to claim you as a dependent on future returns, then they need to provide you with a notarized statement stating this.

Notes

Documents supporting the establishment of legal residence should be dated, issued or filed at least 12 months before the first day of classes of the term for which a Florida resident classification is sought.

You must be an independent person to be able to establish Florida residency unless your parents or guardians or spouse establishes residency in Florida.

When filling out residency affidavit DO NOT LEAVE BLANKS. If something does not apply to you use “N/A”

Application for Residency MUST be done prior to the term AND you must specify the term in which you are applying. You cannot apply for residency retroactively.

TIP: The more documents that you can produce the better.

Bring Request for Change in Residency Status

After you have been in Florida approximately 11.5 or 12 months (but before tuition and fees are due in the first semester in which you have been a resident of Florida for 12 months) bring the completed Request for Change in Residency Status along with the supporting documents to 108 Rhines Hall. We will assist you in processing this paperwork.

Completing these documents do not guarantee Florida Residency. All applicants should read about change in residency information.

If you have complied with the above, it is our (College of Engineering’s) opinion that the Registrar’s Office will change your residency status to “resident”; thus, reducing the amount of the tuition waiver that the University, College, and Department is responsible for. If you fail to do the above things and it results in your residency request being denied then either you or your department will be responsible for your tuition waiver.

Summary of Supporting Documents