Legal residency strategies for in-state tuition discounts while filing FAFSA

Each state has different residency requirements for tuition purposes, and they're usually pretty strict to prevent exactly what you're trying to do. For Michigan specifically, they look at your \

Thanks for the detailed response. Do you know if there's any way to appeal the residency requirements? Would it help if he worked full-time in Michigan for a year before enrolling? I'm just trying to find a legitimate path to saving some money here.

DON'T DO IT!!!! Schools are SUPER strict about residency fraud and if they catch u (THEY WILL) they could expel him and charge him ALL back tuition at out-of-state rates!!! My cousin tried something similar at Wisconsin and they caught her in second semester. They demanded $18,000 in tuition difference immediately and threatened academic dismissal!!! Not worth the risk!!!

omg thats so scary!! did ur cousin have to pay all that money???

Yeah she had to borrow from her grandparents. They put her on a payment plan but also academic probation. She ended up transferring to her home state school and lost credits. TOTAL NIGHTMARE!!!

To clarify the actual rules here:\n\n1. For FAFSA purposes, the criteria for independent status are very specific and don't include simply not being claimed on taxes. Your son would need to meet one of these: 24+ years old, married, graduate student, veteran, supporting children, orphan/ward of court, emancipated minor, homeless, or at risk of homelessness as determined by certain authorities.\n\n2. For Michigan residency specifically, students must demonstrate that they're in Michigan for purposes OTHER than education. This typically means establishing domicile (permanent home) 12 months before enrollment AND showing Michigan is your permanent home (voter registration, employment, property ownership, etc.).\n\n3. Having your son work in Michigan for a year MIGHT help establish residency IF he can prove his primary purpose was employment, not education. But they scrutinize these cases carefully.\n\nHave you looked into reciprocity programs or regional tuition discount programs? Some states have agreements that reduce out-of-state tuition for residents of specific states.

Thank you for the clear breakdown. No, I wasn't aware of reciprocity programs. I'll have to research if California has any agreements with Michigan, though I doubt it since they're so far apart. What about having him attend community college in Michigan for a year while establishing residency? Would that be viewed as having an \

my brother went to colorado and tried this. got his license there, apartment, even a job. school said nice try but no. they said his \

This is frustrating because I've been dealing with something similar for my daughter. Have you considered having your son look at similar-quality schools where he might qualify for merit scholarships instead? Sometimes out-of-state schools offer significant merit aid to attract strong out-of-state students, and that could potentially save you more than trying to establish residency (which, as others have said, is incredibly difficult).\n\nFor FAFSA purposes, I learned the hard way that students are almost always considered dependent until age 24 regardless of who claims them on taxes. The system is frustrating because they expect parents to contribute based on the calculated SAI even if you're not actually able or willing to pay that amount.

That's a good point about merit scholarships. His grades are decent (3.6 GPA) but not exceptional. I'll have him research schools that might offer good merit packages to out-of-state students. Did your daughter end up finding any good options this way?

Yes! She ended up at University of Alabama which gave her almost $22k/year in merit scholarships as an out-of-state student with a similar GPA. Many state universities in the South and Midwest are aggressively recruiting out-of-state students with decent credentials. Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri all have programs specifically targeting out-of-state students with 3.5+ GPAs. Worth looking into!

I dealt with endless FAFSA headaches trying to reach someone when my daughter had residency issues. We kept getting disconnected after waiting for hours. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual FAFSA representative who answered all our residency and dependency questions. Saved us hours of frustration! They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. The rep confirmed everything others have said - residency for tuition and FAFSA dependency are totally separate issues with strict rules.

omg the phone wait times are the WORST!! i tried calling them like 5 times about my verification issue and kept getting disconnected after 40+ minutes each time!!

Thanks for the tip about Claimyr. Did the FAFSA rep give you any advice about appealing either the residency requirements or the expected family contribution? I'm still hoping there might be some flexibility in the system.

To answer your follow-up question about community college: Unfortunately, attending community college in Michigan would still count as being there for educational purposes, so it likely wouldn't help establish residency for University of Michigan.\n\nHowever, there are legitimate strategies worth exploring:\n\n1. CSS Profile schools (mostly private) often offer more institutional aid than public universities\n2. Some public universities offer competitive scholarships that can reduce out-of-state tuition significantly\n3. Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) offers reduced tuition for students from western states at participating schools (though Michigan isn't part of this)\n4. Some schools have specific transfer scholarship programs that make transferring after 2 years financially advantageous\n5. Some employers (like Starbucks, Amazon, etc.) offer tuition benefits for part-time employees\n\nFinally, you can always appeal your financial aid award if there are special circumstances not reflected on your FAFSA.

These are all great suggestions, thank you. I guess we need to be more realistic about Michigan unless he gets some significant scholarships. I'll have him look at the CSS Profile schools too - I didn't realize they might offer more aid than public universities.

has anyone tried having their kid take a gap year and work full time in the target state? my neighbor said her son did this in oregon and it worked but idk

This can work in some states if done properly, but timing and documentation are critical. The student truly needs to move to the state for non-educational purposes, establish all documentation (license, voter registration, taxes, bank accounts, etc.), work full-time, and clearly demonstrate the move wasn't primarily for education. But even then, some states like Michigan have

have u looked at michigan state instead of u of m? my brother goes there and its cheaper and he got better scholarships! might be less competitive too

That's a good suggestion. I think his heart is set on Michigan because of his girlfriend, but we should at least visit MSU while we're out there. Do you know if their out-of-state tuition is significantly less?