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Residency

In-State & In-District Residency

In-State Tuition Classification

A Petition for In-State Tuition Classification form is used for students whose residency status has been determined as Out-of-State. (not "Student Action Required") and who believes they meet the qualifications of In-State residency status. This form can be submitted for review to the Registration team up to 90 prior to the start date of the term that the student is petitioning for a change in. Please visit our Deadlines page for more information.

In-State residency status is based on the "qualified person" –either the student or the parent or legal guardian of a student– and requires that the qualified person prove domicile (legal, primary residence) in Colorado for 12 months prior to the term that the student plans to attend. More information regarding "qualified persons". 

Per Colorado Law, changes to residency status for a term in question must be made prior to the student's earliest course drop date in that term. Changes requested after that date can only be approved for future semesters. 

In-District Tuition Classification

Students who live in the Aims tax district (most, but not all, of Weld County) may qualify for the In-District tuition rate.  Students who move into the Aims Tax District may request the tuition discount by filling out an In-District Tuition Classification request form. Changes will be subject to posted deadlines. 

Exceptions to 1-year In-State Rule

The following information is considered general guidance and should not be taken as legal advice. Please refer to the Colorado State Statue to view the actual requirements. 

Tuition classification is governed by C.R.S. 23-7-101, et. seq. (1973), as amended, and in published policies of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (CCHE).

Granting In-State student status to a child who moves to Colorado during the child’s senior year of high school as the result of the child’s parent or legal guardian taking a job in the state that requires relocating to Colorado. 

  • Child’s parent or legal guardian moved their family to CO for the purpose of accepting a job in the state during the child’s senior year of high school.
  • Child moved with their parent or legal guardian to CO during the child’s senior year of high school and they graduated from a CO public high school.
  • Are a legal resident of the US.

§23-7-111 Colorado Residency Statutes.  If you believe you qualify for this exception, please contact Records@aims.edu for more information.

If your parents (or court-appointed legal guardians) maintain Colorado domicile for four years and subsequently establish domicile elsewhere, you will remain eligible for resident tuition if:

  • Your parents leave Colorado after your junior year of high school and you enroll at a Colorado public college or university within three years and six months after your parents leave Colorado.

OR

  • You maintain continuous Colorado domicile. This provision will generally be met if you continue to reside in Colorado after your parents leave or if you reside outside the state only temporarily (for example, to attend college or for military service) while maintaining Colorado domiciliary connections such as voter registration and income tax filing.

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please contact Records@aims.edu for more information.

A student, other than a nonimmigrant alien, must be classified as an In-State student for tuition purposes if:

  • Attended a public or private high school in Colorado for at least one year immediately preceding the date graduated from a Colorado high School or was physically present in Colorado for at least one year immediately preceding the date the student successfully completes a high school equivalency examination, AND
  • The student has been physically present in Colorado for at least twelve consecutive months prior to enrolling in an institution. 

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please submit a High School Exemption Request.

The Economic Development Incentive provides exception to the one-year domicile requirement for employees (not spouses) and employee’s children (unmarried child under 22 years of age on the first day of the term) of companies who move to Colorado pursuant to an incentive from the Office of Economic Development or a local government economic incentive program. The employee must have been employed by the employer prior to the relocation. 

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please contact Records@aims.edu for more information.

This application is for children of new faculty at Colorado state-supported colleges and universities who otherwise would not qualify for In-State tuition as one-year Colorado residents.

The student may receive In-State tuition if the student moved to Colorado in the 12 months preceding enrollment because the student's parent or legal guardian moved to Colorado to take a paid faculty position at a state-supported institution of higher education.

The faculty member and the faculty member's spouse do not qualify for this exception.  Refer to section C.R.S 23-7-109(1)b

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please contact Records@aims.edu for more information.

Colorado State law HB17-1081 went into effect on Aug. 9, 2017. This law allows state-supported institutions of higher education to charge In-State tuition to elite athletes residing anywhere in Colorado and training in an elite-level program approved by the United States Olympic Committee and the governing body of an Olympic, Paralympic, Pan American or Parapan American sport.

Verification of participation in a qualifying elite training program is required from the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the national governing bodies of Olympic, Paralympic and Pan American or Parapan American sport field teams on or before the first day of class each semester

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please contact Records@aims.edu for more information.

Legislation was signed into law (effective June 28, 2021) stating that "American Indian students who are registered members of a federally recognized American Indian tribe with historical ties to Colorado" will be eligible for In-State tuition at Colorado public universities and colleges. 

For more information about Colorado Senate Bill SB21-029, and the list of the 48 federally recognized indigenous tribes to Colorado, please view our request form on our website or through your Workday account. 

If you believe you qualify for this exception, please submit a request through Workday.  For assistance, view this Student Resource Page.