Affidavit for 5 Year Children and Spouses
Sections 36.27(3n) (bd) and 38.24(7) (bd) of Wisconsin law create a 5-year residency requirement for the child or spouse of a disabled or deceased veteran who is eligible for the WI GI Bill based on the veteran’s 5-year Wisconsin residency. Children and spouses must be Wisconsin residents for at least 5 consecutive years immediately preceding the beginning of any semester or session for which the child or spouse registers at one of the UW universities or a Wisconsin Technical College (WTC).
If you are a spouse or child seeking to qualify for the Wisconsin GI Bill based on the 5-year residency of a veteran, you must complete a notarized WIGI Bill Residency Affidavit form along with the WDVA form 2029 and submit them to your campus certifying official.
Non-Resident Coverage for In-State Tuition
Federal laws passed over the past decade exempt non-resident students using federal Veterans Administration (VA) GI Bill© education benefits from non-resident tuition charges. GI Bill education benefits for the purposes of non-resident tuition coverage are limited to students living in the state and using the Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33), the Montgomery GI Bill (Chapter 30), Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Chapter 31), and, as of August 1, 2022, the Dependents Education Assistance (the DEA or Chapter 35) benefit. Other federal VA benefits (e.g. Chapter 1606, Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve) are ineligible for non-resident tuition coverage.
Students using Chapter 33, Chapter 30, Chapter 31 and Chapter 35 are eligible for non-resident tuition coverage without regard to when a qualifying service member or veteran separated from military service.
The University of Wisconsin System has also established guidance to ensure eligible students can easily access the non-resident tuition coverage and ensure uniform implementation. Implementation guidelines include:
- Defining initial enrollment as equivalent to the date of matriculation (the date on which students may first register for classes) or the date of a paid enrollment deposit, whichever is earlier for qualifying students.
- Defining continuous enrollment to include students transferring from or between UW or Wisconsin Technical College System institutions in acknowledgement of the number of students who routinely move between institutions.
- Allowing breaks in enrollment of up to two standard academic terms to recognize that family and financial obligations frequently require non-traditional students such as veterans to “stop out” and re-enroll.
- Extending in-state tuition treatment to recipients of the Fry Scholarship without regard to the date of death of the service member. The Fry Scholarship is awarded to children and surviving spouses of service members who die in the line of duty after Sept. 10, 2001.
- Extending coverage to qualifying students who are participating in institutionally sponsored or approved programs including internships, study abroad and the national student exchange.
- Informing qualifying students about the requirements to become bona fide residents for tuition purposes and encouraging the pursuit of residency.
- Applying resident rates to qualifying students through functionality in PeopleSoft under pages commonly labeled “Additional Residency Data.”
- Recommending close collaboration between the Veterans Certifying Official (VCO), Registrar and Admissions Offices to determine eligibility.
‘GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.