Residency for Tuition Purposes
When students apply for admission, resident status for tuition purposes is also determined. When students apply for admission, resident status for tuition purposes is also determined. Students are classified as either a resident of Wisconsin (in-state) or a nonresident (out-of-state) for tuition purposes. Residency determinations are made based on standards established in Wisconsin Statute 36.27(2), which govern resident status for tuition purposes. Residency is based on many factors. Therefore, it is important to understand the legal requirements to qualify as a Wisconsin resident for tuition purposes.
Am I a Resident for Tuition Purposes?
You are considered to be a resident for tuition purposes if you meet the criteria for “bona fide” residency for at least 12 months prior to the semester in which you enroll. Residency for tuition purposes is not the same thing as other forms of state residency, such as being eligible to vote in the state.
Bona fide residence is defined in Wisconsin Statute § 36.27(2)(e). It requires that a person be able to demonstrate intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin.
To be eligible for resident tuition, you or your parent/guardian must be a bona fide resident of Wisconsin during the 12 months prior to enrollment. Individuals who enter and remain in Wisconsin primarily for educational purposes do not qualify as bona fide residents for tuition purposes even after living in Wisconsin for a year or more.
Bona fide residency requires that a person can demonstrate the intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin. If your primary reason for entering Wisconsin is to attend college or university, you cannot qualify as a bona fide resident, even after living in Wisconsin for 12 months or more.
Factors that can help demonstrate bona fide residency include, but are not limited to:
- Physical presence in the state for at least 12 months
- Payment of Wisconsin income taxes
- Wisconsin employment
- A Wisconsin driver’s license
- Wisconsin voter registration
- Wisconsin vehicle registration
- Involvement in local organizations and community life
You may also qualify for in-state tuition if:
- You graduated from a Wisconsin high school and your parent(s)/guardian(s) are bona fide residents of Wisconsin for at least 12 months prior to enrollment
- You are a minor or eligible to be claimed as a tax dependent and one of your parents/guardians has been a bona fide Wisconsin resident for at least12 months prior to enrollment
- You, your spouse, or a parent/guardian was relocated to Wisconsin for work, or accepted employment in Wisconsin before an application for admission was submitted.
- You are a refugee who came to Wisconsin immediately upon entering the United States and have resided in Wisconsin since then.
- You, or your parent, lived and worked in Wisconsin as a migrant worker for at least 3 months in at least 2 out of the last 5 years prior to enrollment.
- You, your spouse, or your parent is an active-duty member of the Armed Forces stationed in Wisconsin, or is living in Wisconsin and stationed at a federal military installation within 90 miles of the Wisconsin state border
- You, your spouse, or your parent is or was on active duty in the Armed Forces and meets other requirements outlined in the state statute
- You are a member of the Wisconsin National Guard or a reserve unit of the U.S. Armed forces for six months immediately prior to enrollment in a semester, and you have lived in Wisconsin for a six-month period immediately prior to enrollment in that semester.
In all of these cases, you may be required to provide additional documentation, and additional criteria may apply beyond what is described here.
For more information about veteran status, see I Am A Veteran/Military-Connected Student page.
In determining your bona fide residence at the beginning of a semester and for the preceding 12 months, you must demonstrate an intent to establish and maintain a permanent home in Wisconsin.
You may demonstrate bona fide residency through factors such as the timely filing of Wisconsin income tax returns, voter registration in Wisconsin, motor vehicle registration in Wisconsin, possession of a Wisconsin driver’s license, place of employment, self-support, involvement in community activities in Wisconsin, and your physical presence in Wisconsin for at least the 12 months immediately prior to beginning university classes.
The residency information provided during your admissions review will initiate your residence review. You may be asked to provide further information to determine your eligibility for resident tuition. Contact a UW university and speak to a Residence Specialist if you have questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you graduated from a Wisconsin high school and one or both of your parents have lived continuously as bona fide residents in Wisconsin for at least 12 months prior to enrollment, or your last surviving parent was a bona fide resident of the state for the year before death, you will be classified as a resident. There is no age limitation on claiming residence under this section of the Statute.
Generally, if you are a minor and your parents move out of the state during the 12 months prior to your enrollment at University of Wisconsin, you will be classified as a non-resident unless you have lived in Wisconsin during a substantial portion of your life and for the full year before enrollment. If your parents move out of the state, you are 18 or older, and you are living in the state of Wisconsin and maintaining your legal ties, you can retain your resident status for tuition purposes in your own right; however, you may be asked to demonstrate that you are self-supporting. If you are 18 or older and move out of the state with your parents, you generally will be considered a non-resident.
If you are not a U.S. citizen, in most circumstances, you need to be in possession of a visa that permits indefinite residence in the United States, or have been approved as a Permanent Resident of the United States for the 12 months immediately prior to the beginning of your intended term of enrollment and qualify for residency under some part of Wisconsin Statutes 36.27(2). See the Statute for categories where the 12-month duration is not required.
Visa types eligible to establish bona fide residency in Wisconsin include: A-1 to A-3, E-1 to E-3, G-1 to G-5, H-1B, H4, K-1 to K-4, L-1 to L-2, NATO-1 to NATO-7, O-1, O-3, P-1 to P-4 (but not a Personal Attendant or their dependent), R-1 to R-2, S-5 to S-6, T-1 to T5, U-1 to U-5, and V-1 to V-3. Individuals who have approved Asylum, Refugee, Humanitarian Parolee, or VAWA Self-Petitioner statuses will be considered to have an eligible visa beginning from the date of approval. Individuals on the visa types listed above are not required to affirm a domicile in their country of origin.
A student who holds a visa such as the F, J, M, TN, TD and B, has as a condition of the visa, a requirement to affirm a permanent and unrelinquished domicile in another country, and is not eligible to be classified as a resident for tuition purposes at the university. Individuals with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or other forms of deferred status, or who do not have a visa status, do not have visas that permit indefinite residence in the United States and cannot demonstrate eligibility for bona fide residency under the statute.
Section (cm) of Wisconsin Statutes 36.27(2) allows the following persons–and their spouses and dependents–to qualify for exemption from nonresident tuition immediately upon moving to Wisconsin, without having to wait a twelve-month period to be eligible to be classified as a resident:
- Individuals who have been relocated to Wisconsin for employment purposes by their current employer and who remain continuously employed full-time by that employer.
- Individuals who accepted their current full-time employment with a new employer before moving to Wisconsin and before filing an application for admission to the UW university. In addition, such individuals must have moved to Wisconsin for employment purposes and must have remained continuously employed full-time by that same employer since their arrival in order to continue to qualify under this section of the Statute.
The Wisconsin home must be the full-time, permanent home. People who own property in Wisconsin but split residence between Wisconsin and another state are generally not considered bona fide residents. Property ownership is not considered to be a significant factor in residence for tuition determinations.
Reach out to the Residence Specialist at your UW university to discuss your case further. In some cases, they may be able to reconsider your eligibility.
If you still feel your residency classification is incorrect, you have the right to appeal according to Wisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter UWS 20–Nonresident Tuition Determination Procedures and Appeals. Every UW university has an established appeal process and deadlines to submit an appeal. When an appeal is in process, you are responsible for paying academic fees that have been assessed according to your initial residency determination.
To obtain more information or to consult with a staff member about whether an appeal is appropriate in your case, contact the Residence Specialist at your UW university.