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Scholarships & Residency Services

Residency Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Generally, you need to establish a physical presence in New York State, an intent to stay and financial independence. Then you need to prove those things to the college. New York State requires you to live in the state for at least a full year before establishing residence. Students who are financially dependent and whose custodial parent(s) lives in a state other than New York are generally not eligible for the resident tuition rate.

You may qualify for in-state residency status even if you are not a US citizen. Please review the Residency Form Checklist and NYS Immigration Status Guide to help determine your potential eligibility.

Please allow 3-4 weeks for the resident status to update after submitting the form and supporting documents. The change in status will be reflected in the system within 24 hours of the update. You can verify this by logging into your CUNYfirst account and reviewing your information.

For faster service, please do not mail or fax forms and/or documents. Please scan and email documents to Residency@citytech.cuny.edu.

Please visit General Fees for information about tuition and fees.

When you are admitted to City Tech, you will receive a letter of admission. Your letter of admission will indicate your fee status, which is your residency classification.

To apply for a change from out-of-state/non-resident to in-state status at City Tech, you must file the Resident form with the appropriate documents. To determine what documents are necessary to assess eligibility for in-state residency, please review our Residency Form Checklist.

Dependents of full-time active-duty personnel who are stationed outside NY State may qualify for resident tuition if the service member's "Home of Record" is New York. Please review our Residency Form Checklist to help determine your potential eligibility.

Non-resident international students are not eligible to apply for the NY state resident tuition. However, if an international student is an Adjustment of Status (AOS) applicant to lawful permanent residence, the person may be eligible to apply for in-state resident tuition.

Please review the CUNY Policy Guidelines, NYS Immigration Status Guide, and Residency Form Checklist to help determine whether you're eligible.

Generally, Education Law (Section 661-5) requires a student to be a legal resident of the state of New York to be eligible for the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). If you have not proven your residency status, you may not get the award. If you plan on attending college as an out-of-state student, you should still fill out the TAP application, as it may speed up the process if you decide to attend college in New York State.

If addresses have been changed within New York State, the residency status may not be affected. As a precaution, please keep records of address changes that may be required to update a new address and continuing residency status.

To have financial aid accurately computed for disbursement during the current semester, the CUNY Residency Form and required documentation must be submitted together by no later than the last day of classes for the semester.

No, students aged 24 and older are considered independent and are not considered to have the same state of residency as their parent(s) or legal guardian(s). However, students aged 24 and older still must qualify for in-state tuition by being a U.S. citizen, permanent resident or in qualifying immigration status, and have continuously maintained his/her principal place of abode in the State of New York for at least twelve (12) consecutive months immediately preceding the first day of classes, and having a genuine intention of living in New York permanently.