how to become a colorado resident

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Residency & Who Qualifies

Residency Determination

No person may establish domicile in Colorado solely for tuition purposes. There are three components to residency determination; domicile and intent, and the 12 month rule. It is important to know that once you become a qualified petitioner you must then establish a minimum of 12 months of domicile and intent prior to the term you are petitioning for, making it possible to petition the following year.

Domicile

Domicile – a student's true, fixed, and permanent home and place of habitation. A person can have only one domicile at any one time. Domicile is a person's legal, primary residence for a minimum of 12 consecutive months.

- Domicile can only be established as an adult (22 or older), or once a person is married, or if a person is legally emancipated, or if a student under the age of 22 is considered homeless youth as identified by the state. Domicile begins immediately after such date of these conditions.

Intent

Intent – Upon arrival to the state, students should take all actions that would be expected of any permanent resident of Colorado. These actions include severing ties from your former state and establishing these connections in Colorado.

Qualified Petitioners

The institution must follow state rules and regulations. Therefore, residency petition requirements may be subject to change without notice. Petitions can be found by clicking the appropriate petitioner category below.

Parent Petitioners

To be eligible to petition for residency as a parent you must have:

An undergraduate student under 22 years of age prior to the start of classes;
The parent/legal guardian, must be living in Colorado for a minimum of 12 consecutive months prior to the start of classes;
The parent/legal guardian, must show intent and legal ties to the state of Colorado for a minimum of 12 months prior to the start of classes.

DACA students whose parent/legal guardian meet the requirements to complete a parent petition will be required to provide their valid approved DACA status that was issued at least 12 months prior to the first day of classes.

If you believe you meet the requirements outlined above you can complete the PARENT PETITION .

Undergraduate students who do not qualify to submit a parent petition should read the requirements carefully before attempting to complete the student emancipation petition. Proving emancipation is rare for most undergraduate students.

Emancipated Petitioner

Proving emancipation is rare for most undergraduate students. It is important you review the information below before petitioning.

Failure of parental support due to economic hardships of the parent does not qualify a student as being emancipated.
Financial support or gifts of any kind (including PLUS loans), regardless of date, and regardless if it was from a parent, other relative, or even a friend doesnot qualify a student as being emancipated, pursuant to section 103(2)(i)(ll) of the Colorado tuition classification law.

To be eligible to petition for residency as an emancipated individual you must:

Be an undergraduate student under the age of 22 prior to the start of classes;
Be financially and residentially independent;
Establish 12 months of domicile and intent after emancipation is legally declared and prior to the term you are petitioning for;
AND show either a court decree of legal emancipation or marriage certificate.

DACA students who meet the requirements to complete an emancipation petition will be required to provide their valid approved DACA status that was issued at least 12-months prior to the first day of classes.

If you believe you meet the requirements outlined above you can complete the STUDENT EMANCIPATION PETITION.

Adult Petitioner

To be eligible to petition for residency as an adult you must be:

Living in Colorado for a minimum of 12 months prior to the first day of classes;
AND showing intent (legal ties) to the state of Colorado for a minimum of 12 months prior to the first day of classes.

You must also be one of the following:

Undergraduate student at least 23 years of age prior to the first day of classes .
Married for at least one year prior to the first day of classes

DACA students who meet the requirements to petition as an adult will be required to provide their valid approved DACA status that was issued at least 12-months prior to the first day of classes.

If you believe you meet the requirements outlined above you can complete the ADULT STUDENT PETITION .

Graduate Petitioner

Graduate students can verify they qualify by clicking HERE.

Qualified Individuals (non-petitioners)

The state signed these bills into law making it possible for qualified students to receive in-state status for tuition purposes at the time of admission. If you believe you meet the requirements to qualify under one of the categories below, you do not need to petition. Please contact the Admission's Office for more information, admissions@mines.edu.

ASSET

Advancing Students for a Stronger Economy Tomorrow (ASSET) is a bill signed into law in 2013. Under the ASSET bill, U.S. Citizens, Permanent Residents and students without lawful immigration status who meet admission requirements and the necessary qualifications outlined below are eligible for in-state tuition.

To be eligible to receive residency under ASSET you must:

Have been physically present for the 12 months immediately prior to the start of the semester.
Have attended a public or private high school in Colorado for at least three years immediately before graduating high school or obtaining a GED.
Be admitted to a Colorado college or university within 12 months of graduation from a Colorado high school or completion of a Colorado GED.
Transfer students who do not enroll in a Colorado institution of higher education within 12 months will be required to show they have completed 18 months of continuous physical presence.

Historic Tribes of Colorado

Senate Bill 21-029 was signed into law in 2021. Under the bill, institutions of higher education are required to offer in-state tuition classification to students who would not otherwise qualify for in-state tuition if the student is a member of an American Indian tribe with historic ties to Colorado.

To be eligible to qualify for must:

Have proof of tribal membership (i.e. Tribal Enrollment Card)
Tribal membership must also have historic ties to Colorado. Click HERE to view list of these tribes.

Non-Qualified Individuals

Students who do not qualify for residency status for in-state tuition are participants of the Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP) and non-immigrant visa holders. Mines also does not participate in the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program.

WICHE - WRGP

WICHE – WRGP

WICHE, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, promotes the sharing of higher education resources among the participating western states. The Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP) allows master's, graduate certificate, and Ph.D. students who are residents of the WICHE member states to enroll in qualifying programs here at Mines and be eligible for in-state tuition classification.

WRGP is considered a public benefit from their home state. Therefore, students participating in the program may not petition for residency in Colorado. A student may only claim domicile in one state. A student would need to surrender the WRGP benefit and also fulfill the other Colorado domicile indicators for one year before being eligible to be classified as a Colorado Resident.
If you believe you qualify under WRGP or have questions about the program please contact our Graduate Admissions Office, 303.273.3247 or email grad-admissions@mines.edu.

QUALIFYING PROGRAMS AT MINES

Applied Chemistry
Environmental Engineering Science
Geochemistry
Geological Engineering
Hydrology
Mineral and Energy Economics
Petroleum Engineering
Underground Construction & Tunnel Engineering

Non-Eligible International Visa Types

International students under any one of the following visa types are not eligible to petition for residency status:

- F-1, F-2, H-3, H-4 (if the visa holder is the spouse or child of an H-3), J-1 and J-2 (if the J-1 visa holder is a student or trainee), M-1, and M-2.

Only after permanent resident status has been officially approved, or a student is approved to be on a qualified visa, can they begin to establish 12 months of domicile and intent. Making them eligible to petition the following year.

For more information, please visit theColorado Department of Higher Education website.