Georgia Residency

The eligibility for an in-state classification depends on whether a student is a dependent or independent student. Students under the age of 24 are considered dependent students and therefore their tuition classification is based on their parent or U.S. court-appointed Legal Guardian’s domicile in Georgia.

Independent students are those aged 24 and older OR those under the age of 24 who can prove they are financially independent from their parents/guardians who live in another state.

The BOR policy regarding Georgia residency includes the following clarifications:

  • Students who are not U.S. Citizens or not an eligible Non-Citizen under Federal Student Aid Title IV regulations are not eligible to receive an in-state tuition classification. In some cases, students will be eligible to submit a waiver of out-of-state tuition application.

  • To qualify for an in-state tuition classification, a dependent student must either graduate from a Georgia high school OR be claimed as a dependent on the Georgia state income taxes filed by their parent or U.S. court appointed legal guardian for the most recent tax year.

  • A person’s domicile is defined as the state where they have physically resided the past 12 consecutive months. This includes where they work, file taxes as a Resident, hold a driver’s license/state ID card, have their vehicle registered, etc. This is the state where they live.

  • Georgia law deems that a person moving to the state of Georgia to establish residency must change their license/state ID and vehicle registration to Georgia within 30 days of moving here.

  • If a dependent student’s parents/guardians or an independent student leaves the state of Georgia for a year or longer by the start date of the term, the student will be classified as a Non-Resident.

  • A student cannot receive an in-state tuition classification if they moved to Georgia for the sole purpose of attending school or college. Moving to Georgia and living in on-campus housing does not show intent to remain in Georgia indefinitely for purposes outside of attending school.

  • Since Georgia Tech is a public university, a large percentage of the cost of attendance for an in-state student to attend comes from Georgia taxpayers. Failure to file taxes as a Georgia resident can result in a student not being eligible to be considered a GA resident for tuition purposes.

  • A student under the age of 24 whose parents/guardians do not reside in Georgia cannot be classified as Resident unless they can prove they are financially independent from their parent/guardian’s support by earning an income over the federal poverty level, not claimed on their parent/guardian’s taxes, and have severed all ties to their previous state.

  • U.S. Citizens under the age of 24 who are considered homeless under the definition of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act may qualify for in-state tuition if they can provide documentation permitted under Georgia Code 20-3-66(4).

Georgia Tech reserves the right to request additional information and delay tuition classification decisions. In some cases, students may have to apply for a waiver of out-of-state tuition or submit a petition for tuition classification. The Registrar’s Office reviews and makes final decisions on all waiver applications and petitions for tuition classifications.