Florida residency????

[cbennett]

Has anyone ever tried to become a florida resident for admissions as well as tuition purpose? My entire family(extended and siblings) other than my parents(pa residents) live in florida and i would love to move down there but i am trying to figure if there is some way i can establish residency there during my senior year of college(ug). I go to Penn and am a Pa resident and have lived here most of my life but i would like to establish residency in florida that way i can with luck go to a florida medical school and then i will not have to worry about moving after med school because i ll already be where i want to be. If anyone knows of anyone who has done this i would love to know what exactly is needed for the legalities. I am classified as independant for fafsa becasue i was a ward of the court untill i was 18 but i am realy dependant on my parents because they help support me some although my grandmother who lives in florida also helps support me some. My question is is there anyway to establish residency in florida either while attending a school not in florida or if i were to transfer to florida school for this fall assuming some colleges have rolling admissions or through continuing education and then transfer in as a matriculated student for the spring and hopefully be able to transfer enough credits to graduate on time with some luck???? Does anyone know if you can establish residency while taking a full-time course load in florida. Also i could stop accepting any funds from my parents if needed that way i would not be in anyway dependant. Also does anyone know how schools in florida determine residency for ADMISSIONS(not tuition) when does the 12 month period begin for the admissions preference because i was under the impression that it must be different than the 12 months prior to registration/begining of the fall semester because of how early students have to apply.

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[McMD]

I will try to help you as much as I can with this...I've been a FL resident my whole life, so I don't have first hand experience with obtaining residency in this state. I DO know that a friend of mine gained residency while attending a state university in FL and was considered a FL resident during dental school (though not during undergraduate).

Anyways, the required documents for FL residency at UMiami are:
1. 2005 Federal Income Tax Return

Provide a copy of your 2005 Federal Income Tax Return. Only the first page and the signature page are required. The form must show the address in Florida from which the return was filed. Your signature or the name of the professional preparer must be clearly visible. Also provide copies of W-2 forms for the wages you earned while working in Florida for the 2005 tax year.


2. Property Tax Notice/Homestead exemption/rent receipts

Provide a copy of your latest property tax notice and/or homestead exemption certificate for the home in Florida that you own. If you rent, provide copies of the lease and/or rent receipts covering the period from August, 2005, to August, 2006. Provide any other evidence that you have to show that you maintained this domicile for at least 12 consecutive months preceding the start of medical school.


3. Driver’s License, voter card, auto registration

Provide a copy of your driver’s license (and the back if it has been renewed), your voter registration card, and auto registration in your name. These documents must be current. Your driver’s license and voter card must have been issued at least one year prior to August 3, 2006. You can also submit a “declaration of domicile” filed at a local Florida courthouse but do not send utility bills, bank statements, or insurance cards.


4. Professional/Business Licenses

Provide a copy of all professional and/or business licenses issued to you by the state of Florida to practice a profession or operate a business. (if applicable)


5. High School Diploma

If you graduated from a high school in Florida you must provide a copy of your diploma or your permanent high school record.


6. University/College Transcripts/Fee Statements

Provide transcripts from all colleges and universities that you have attended. If you attended a college or university in Florida, provide evidence that you were declared a Florida resident for fee paying purposes (fee schedules, tuition bills, etc.).

 

[McMD]

Now...."if" you could be a dependant upon your grandmother and she could claim you as a dependant on next year's taxes (or whenever you are applying)...you could provide all of her documents that are listed above and be considered a FL resident...but the problem is that she has to claim you on her taxes.

For the required documents for UMiami for both dependants and independants, go to: http://www.mededu.miami.edu/Admissions/residency

Hope this helps a little!

 

[vtucci]

graduate students like med students are automatically considered independent. I did this twice established residency during my first year of grad school (both times coming from NY the twelve month period before) in law school and then medical school.

Word of caution.... at USF, the tuition for out of state is 55K/year for the first year and everyone gets residency if you follow the rules for year 2.

Also, if you are not a resident, it can affect your application. Make sure you play up your ties to the state.

 

[cbennett]

Thanks everyone, keep posting if you have more information. Does anyone know if i have to physically be instate for 12 months if i want to be in-state. The thing is that most if you are not concidered in-state lyou will never get to that second year tuition because florida schools weight state residency very heavily but thank you anyway for that info. I could def. get my grandmother to claim me as dependant and stay there over breaks so i think i will look into that option or possible transfering there.



Does anyone know for sure if i can be dependant on my grandmother rather than my parents and use her state residency and how would i go about this. Once again thanks. (by the way i was in foster care till 18, and both my grandmother and parents help financial about the same)

 

[McMD]

Vtucci...you are considered "independent" for financial purposes during graduate/medical school, however, you can claim residency as a dependent still (according to the FL school I'm attending).

CBennett....as long as you have the required documents, you don't have to be physically present in the state during your application year. I would suggest not to transfer to a FL school for the last year of your undergrad degree. #1 because you wouldn't be considered a FL resident for tuition purposes, so the cost of that one year would be huge for an OOS resident...and #2 because no matter what you are majoring in, there are going to be different course requirements for Penn versus a FL school. I transfered between FL schools and had a lot of courses that didn't count for my major anymore and a lot more classes I had to take at the new school...had I transfered right before my senior year, it would have postponed graduation. Anyways, good luck to you!

 

[cbennett]

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[vtucci]

I could not claim dependent for residency purposes because I was over the age of 25.

If you are under 25, you may be able to claim dependent status for residency but I am uncertain as to the requirements on this. I know USF asked for proof of residency in its secondary application so you would need documents from your grandmother.

 

[McMD]

I'm uncertain as to the +/- age 25 thing. REL is the dean of USF and is frequently on SDN...you could ask him about specifics for USF since you do in fact have to include the residency statements in the secondary...so I'm not sure if everything would have to be 12 months prior to the date submitted or 12 months prior to the start of classes (as far as rent slips, driver's license, voter's registration, etc).

 

[cbennett]

Thanks everyone for posting. If anyone else has more information i would love to know. I am sure i am not the first person to be in this kind of situation so please help out if you have been in a similar sit. About asking "REL" information on this topic, how do you get ahold of him, I have found posts by him but i would feel kind of weird PM him given the fact i have never been on a board with him before.

 

[cbennett]

bump

 

[REL]

bump

To be considered a Florida resident for tuition purposes you have to complete the state residency affidavit. While there are many in's and out's it's normally simple: first you determine if you have ties to the state via a menu of about a dozen or so situations. Then you determine if you are dependent or independent -- this is based on who is 51% financially responsible for you. The person who is claiming residency must have been in the state for one year and have a Florida Driver's License plus either a Florida Voters Reg or Florida Vehicle Reg -- each of those documents have to be at least one year old before you can be assessed as a Florida resident. IF your grandmother is the one who is financially responsible for you and she holds these documents, then you can be considered a Florida resident. I recommend staying at U PA, good school, and do well. If in the final analysis you can do as Veroinca did and pay that one year out-of-state, or graduate from U PA, come to Florida, establish residency and work/volunteer. I guess if you wanted to be really sneaky you can apply, as an out-of-stater now, get accepted, and then defer your matriculation for one year during which time you can obtain your residency. The one year off option doesnt appeal to many, but think about it, there are many benefits --- sanity may be one.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

Hey-

I had a bit of a mess with my FL residency too (I went to Penn too actually), and I will tell you, clear these scenarios with the schools first. It can turn into a total nightmare, particularly with the University of Florida, who will rake you over the coals. No joke, before I was even accepted there, I was told to send in every phone bill, credit card bill, they wanted to see my bank statements to make sure I was in Florida, buying groceries (yeah I'm not kidding), every month for a year. I half went to Miami because I was so annoyed at them. It was like an SNL skit by the end.

Trying to get FL residency is worth jumping through all sorts of hoops in my opinion, but make sure you're legit before you start. Nothing is worse than ending up "stateless" and having someone at UF seeing how much you spend at jcrew every month.

 

[cbennett]

Thanks caveman and rel. Your help was very usefull.