Exceptions

Temporary Resident Information

Section 1009.21, Florida Statutes, permits certain applicants who do not meet the 12-month legal residence requirement to be classified as Florida residents or “temporary residents” for tuition purposes. The institution will require documentation in support of the following exceptions; however, the student does not have to show 12 months of residence in Florida prior to qualifying.

If you are a new student to UWF or a former student returning to UWF after three consecutive semesters, please contact either Undergraduate Admissions or The Graduate School (based on the type of admission application being submitted) for assistance in determining eligibility for temporary Florida resident status.

Students who are seeking a change in residency status for their second or subsequent semester of enrollment (after their first semester of enrollment or first semester of re-enrollment at UWF) should contact The Office of the Registrar for assistance in submitting a Residency Reclassification Form and determining eligibility for temporary Florida resident status.

Some categories listed below may require an additional point of contact (i.e. Cashier's Office) to those listed above.

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Statutory Exceptions and Qualifications

• Dependent children residing continuously with a legal resident adult relative other than the parent for at least five years immediately prior to the first day of classes of the term which Florida residency is sought.
• Persons married to legal Florida residents and who intend to make Florida their permanent home, and who relinquish their legal ties to any other state.
• Persons who were enrolled as Florida residents for tuition purposes at a Florida public institution of higher education, but who abandon Florida residency and then re-enroll in Florida within 12 months of the abandonment – provided that he/she continuously maintains the re-established domicile during the period of enrollment. (This benefit only applies one time.)
• Active duty members of the Armed Services of the United States residing or stationed in Florida (and spouse/dependent children); active duty members of the Florida National Guard (and spouse/dependent children) who qualify under 250.10(7) and (8); or military personnel not stationed in Florida whose home of record or state of legal residence certificate, DD Form 2058, is Florida (and spouse/dependent children).
• Active duty members of the Armed Services of the United States and their spouses/dependent children attending a public community college or university within 50 miles of the military establishment where they are stationed, if such military establishment is within a county contiguous to Florida.
• U.S. citizens living on the Isthmus of Panama, who have completed 12 consecutive months of college work at the Florida State University Panama Canal Branch, and their spouses and dependent children.
• Full-time instructional and administrative personnel employed by the State public school system, community colleges and institutions of higher education (and spouse/dependent children).
• Students from Latin America and the Caribbean who receive scholarships from the federal or state government. The student must attend, on a full-time basis, a Florida institution of higher education.*
• Southern Regional Education Board's Academic Common Market graduate students attending Florida's state universities.
• Full-time employees of state agencies or political subdivisions of the state when the student fees are paid by the state agency or political subdivision for the purpose of job-related law enforcement or corrections training.
• McKnight Doctoral Fellows and Finalists who are United States citizens.
• United States citizens living outside the United States who are teaching at a Department of Defense Dependent School or in an American International School and who enroll in a graduate level education program which leads to a Florida teaching certificate.
• Active duty members of the Canadian military residing or stationed in this state under the North American Air Defense (NORAD) agreement, and their spouses and dependent children, attending a public community college or university within 50 miles of the military establishment where they are stationed.
• Active duty members of a foreign nation's military who are serving as liaison officers and are residing or stationed in this state, and their spouses and dependent children, attending a community college or state university within 50 miles of the military establishment where the foreign liaison officer is stationed.
• Qualified beneficiaries under the Florida Prepaid Postsecondary Expense Program per s. 1009.988(2). (Prepaid ID Card Required.)**
• Linkage Institute participants receiving partial or full exemptions from S. 1009.21, FS, based on criteria approved by the Florida Department of Education per S. 288.8175, FS, which establishes linkage institutes between postsecondary institutions in this state and foreign countries. See Section 7.0, Immigration and International Student Issues, for more information on Linkage Institutes.**

*Qualifying participants should contact The Office of the Registrar (registrar@uwf.edu; 850.474.2244) for assistance, even new students.

**Qualifying participants should contact The Cashier's Office (cashier@uwf.edu; 850.474.3110) for assistance.