Residency Information for Current Students

Students who wish to change their tuition classification from non-resident to resident must fill out and submit a Petition for Resident Tuition Classification by the published deadlines. Students must have established 12 months of Colorado domicile prior to the first day of the term they are petitioning for. Further information regarding establishing Colorado domicile is available through the Colorado Department of Higher Education.

Colorado tuition classification is governed by Title 23, Article 7, of the Colorado Revised Statutes. The university is not free to make exceptions to the rules except as specifically permitted by state law. A copy of Article 7 is available online.

Students who have been officially offered admission to or have already matriculated to a CU Anschutz school or academic program, who are also considered financially emancipated from parents/legal guardians are eligible to fill out the online form.

Students are considered emancipated if they meet any one of the following criteria:

• They will be at least 23 years of age by the first day of the term they are petitioning for;
• They have completed a full academic year of a graduate level program by the first day of the term they are petitioning for;
• They have been married for a full year by the first day of the term they are petitioning for.

International students holding certain types of visas may not qualify for resident tuition classification status.

If you do not meet the qualifications listed on this form please contact the CU Anschutz Tuition Classification Coordinator: [email protected]. Financially non-emancipated students are still eligible to complete an alternate petition form.

Gather all required documentation. The form may not be saved and returned to at a later time. Consult the Petition Documentation Guidelines and gather all documentation before beginning the form.

Access the electronic petition at the following link.

Fill out the petition fully and completely with all required documentation. Failure to submit required or complete documentation may result in a petition denial.

Submit the petition with your electronic signature. You will receive a confirmation email once your petition has been submitted.

Colorado in-state tuition classification requires Colorado domicile for 12 consecutive months. A person must be 22 years of age or older, married, a graduate student or an emancipated minor in order to begin the 12-month period of establishing domicile in Colorado. Unemancipated minors qualify for in-state status if their parents have been domiciled in Colorado for at least one year.

The specific requirements for establishing residency for tuition classification purposes are prescribed by state law. No person may establish domicile in Colorado solely for the purpose of changing a student's classification for tuition purposes from nonresident to resident. Because Colorado law governs Colorado residency status, the fact that a student might not qualify for resident status in any other state does not guarantee resident status in Colorado.

Resident status requires domicile in Colorado for 12 continuous months or more immediately preceding the first day of class of the semester for which resident status is sought. "Domicile" is a person's true, fixed and permanent home and place of habitation. It is the place where the individual intends to remain and to which the individual intends to return when he or she leaves.

Establishment of a new domicile in Colorado occurs when an individual is physically present in Colorado and does not intend to return to the state from which he or she was formerly domiciled (or to acquire a domicile at some other place outside of Colorado). The domicile of a non-emancipated minor is the same as that of a parent or legal guardian. Students over the age of 22 years, second-year graduate students, married students and emancipated minors are qualified to determine their own domicile.

Evidence of intent to make Colorado your permanent home and legal residence is demonstrated by giving up all your legal ties with any prior state and establishing them with Colorado for at least 12 continuous months. Intent is demonstrated by completing all applicable actions to legally tie yourself to the State as would be expected of any other Colorado resident.

Pursuant to Colorado law, the following legal ties may be considered evidence of Colorado domicile:

• Payment of Colorado state individual income tax.
• State of Colorado driver’s license or state of Colorado ID, established for a minimum of 12 months.
• State of Colorado voter registration, established for a minimum of 12 months.
• Vehicle registration in Colorado, established for a minimum of 12 months.
• Graduation from a Colorado high school.
• Continued residence in the state of Colorado during periods when not enrolled as a student or during periods between academic sessions.
• Employment in Colorado (other than that provided to students on a temporary basis by CU or other temporary employment).
• Acceptance of future permanent employment in the state of Colorado.
• Ownership of residential real property in Colorado.
• Any other factor particular to the individual that tends to establish the necessary intent to make Colorado a permanent home.

NOTE: No single factor or combination of these factors may be considered conclusive evidence of domicile.

Any connections maintained with any other state during the 12-month period for establishing domicile may be viewed as negative intent to make Colorado one’s permanent home. A variety of evidence can indicate domicile outside Colorado.

• Failure to pay Colorado state income tax, if your income is sufficient to be taxed
• Filing a Colorado state income tax return as a non-resident or filing with an out-of-state address
• Failure to obtain a Colorado driver’s license or Colorado ID
• Residing in another state between academic terms or when not enrolled as a student
• Maintenance of a home in another state
• Prolonged absence from Colorado, except for military or civilian government service or for temporary absences required by an employer
• Being registered to vote in another state
• Any other factor particular to your situation that indicates non-Colorado domicile