In-State Tuition: The Office of Bursar

Physical Location
516/518 Main Street
Between Blossom & Wheat St.
Columbia, South Carolina

Office Hours
Monday - Friday
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Telephone (803) 777-4233
Fax (803) 777-7953

Mailing Address
University of South Carolina
Office of the Bursar
Columbia, SC 29208

By state law, legal residency may not be acquired by an individual while they are residing in South Carolina for the primary purpose of attending the University of South Carolina.

For the purposes of determining a student’s state of legal residence, students are typically categorized in one of two ways. Students are either financially Independent or financially Dependent. Note: these designated categories are specific to the state guidelines governing South Carolina’s legal residency eligibility. This should not be confused with the federal guidelines governing financial aid eligibility.

Financially Independent students are those who provide the MAJORITY of their own support. That support may come from earnings or income from employment, investments, or payments from grants, scholarships, commercial loans or payments made in accordance with a court order and some, but not all, trusts.
Financially Dependent students are those who do not provide the MAJORITY of their own support. The majority of support for these students is typically provided by a parent, spouse, or guardian, who claims the student on his or her federal income tax return. In the case of those individuals who are supported by family members that do not earn enough reportable income for taxation purposes, a dependent individual can be defined as one who qualifies as a dependent or exemption on the federal income tax return of the parent, spouse, or guardian. A dependent individual is also one for whom payments are made, under court order, for child support and the cost of the dependent individual’s college education.

Independent Individuals

If you are financially independent, your residency is based on whether you have physically resided, and been domiciled, in South Carolina for the twelve (12) continuous months immediately preceding the date classes are scheduled to begin for the semester in which you wish to claim South Carolina as your state of legal residence. You must also meet the following applicable requirements (Note: No single indicator will be considered conclusive evidence of primary residence):

Designating South Carolina as state of legal residence on military record;
Possession of a valid South Carolina Driver’s License, or if a non-driver, a South Carolina Identification Card (Note: Failure to comply with state law requiring residents to obtain this within 90 days of establishing intent to become a South Carolina resident will reset the beginning date of residency eligibility to the date on which the appropriate document is obtained.);
Possession of a valid South Carolina Vehicle Registration Card (Note: Failure to comply with state law requiring residents to obtain this within 45 days of establishing intent to become a South Carolina resident will reset the beginning date of residency eligibility to the date on which a South Carolina Vehicle Registration Card is obtained.);
Maintenance of domicile in South Carolina;
Paying South Carolina income taxes as a "Resident" during the previous tax year, including income earned outside of South Carolina from the date on which intent is being claimed;
Ownership of principal residence in South Carolina; and
Licensing for professional practice (if applicable) in South Carolina.

The absence of indicia in other states or countries is required before an independent individual is eligible to pay in state rates. Therefore, you must not be in possession of a driver’s license or vehicle registration certificate issued by another state.

Dependent Individuals

If you are financially dependent, your residency is based on the legal residency of the person upon whom you are dependent. As such, the person upon whom you are dependent must have physically resided, and been domiciled, in South Carolina for twelve (12) continuous months immediately preceding the date classes are scheduled to begin for the semester in which you wish to claim South Carolina as your state of legal residence. The person upon whom you are dependent must also meet the following applicable requirements (Note: No single indicator will be considered conclusive evidence of primary residence):

Designating South Carolina as state of legal residence on military record;
Possession of a valid South Carolina Driver’s License, or if a non-driver, a South Carolina Identification Card (Note: Failure to comply with state law requiring residents to obtain this within 90 days of establishing intent to become a South Carolina resident will reset the beginning date of residency eligibility to the date on which the appropriate document is obtained.);
Possession of a valid South Carolina Vehicle Registration Card (Note: Failure to comply with state law requiring residents to obtain this within 45 days of establishing intent to become a South Carolina resident will reset the beginning date of residency eligibility to the date on which a South Carolina Vehicle Registration Card is obtained.);
Maintenance of domicile in South Carolina;
Paying South Carolina income taxes as a "Resident" during the previous tax year, including income earned outside of South Carolina from the date on which intent is being claimed;
Ownership of principal residence in South Carolina; and
Licensing for professional practice (if applicable) in South Carolina.

The absence of indicia in other states or countries is required before the parent, spouse or guardian that claims a dependent individual is eligible to pay in state rates. Therefore, you must not be in possession of a driver’s license or vehicle registration certificate issued by another state.

Exceptions
If you are an independent person, or the dependent of an independent person that meets the eligibility criteria for any of the following categories, you may qualify to pay in state tuition and fees without having to establish a permanent home in the state for the twelve (12) continuous months immediately preceding the date classes are scheduled to begin for the semester in which you wish to claim South Carolina as your state of legal residence. The following categories apply only to in state tuition and do not apply to state supported scholarships and grants. Individuals who qualify for in state tuition and fees under the following exceptions do not automatically qualify for Life, SC Hope or Palmetto Fellows Scholarships.

"Military Personnel and their Dependents": Members of the United States Armed Forces who are permanently assigned in South Carolina on active duty and their dependents are eligible to pay in state tuition and fees. When such personnel are transferred from the state, their dependents may continue to pay in state tuition and fees as long as they are continuously enrolled. Such individuals (and their dependents) may also be eligible to pay in state tuition and fees as long as they are continuously enrolled after their discharge from the military, provided they have demonstrated an intent to establish a permanent home in South Carolina and they have resided in South Carolina for a period of at least twelve months immediately preceding their discharge. Military personnel who are not stationed in South Carolina and/or former military personnel who intend to establish South Carolina residency must fulfill the twelve month "physical presence" requirement for them or their dependents to qualify to pay in state tuition and fees.
"Faculty and Administrative Employees with Full Time Employment and their Dependents": Full time faculty and administrative employees of South Carolina State supported colleges and universities and their dependents are eligible to pay in state tuition and fees.
"Residents with Full Time Employment and their Dependents": Individuals who reside, are domiciled, and are full time employed in the state and who continue to work full time until they meet the twelve (12) month requirement and their dependents are eligible to pay in state tuition and fees, provided that they have taken steps to establish a permanent home in the state. Residents with Full Time Employment and their Dependents are evaluated by the same criteria described above in the sections entitled "Independent Individual" and "Dependent Individual".
"Retired Persons and their Dependents": Retired persons who are receiving a pension or annuity who reside in South Carolina and have been domiciled in South Carolina as prescribed in the statute for less than a year may be eligible for in state rates if they maintain residence and domicile in this state. Persons on terminal leave who have established residency in South Carolina may be eligible for in state rates even if domiciled in the state for less than one year if they present documentary evidence from their employer showing they are on terminal leave. The evidence should show beginning and ending dates for the terminal leave period and that the person will receive a pension or annuity when he/she retires.

Changes to Your State of Legal Residence
Occasionally, a student has documented his or her South Carolina residency but then must move to another state or, the person upon whom the student is dependent must move out of South Carolina. This might change a student’s residency status, depending upon the circumstances of that move. It is important to contact Legal Residency when these situations arise and document the new situation so that the student will not have a financial hold placed upon his or her registration, transcript or diploma.

OFFICE OF THE BURSAR