Requirements To Establish New Mexico Residency

To become a legal resident of New Mexico for tuition purposes each of the following requirements must be satisfied:

If you are over 18 years of age, you may become a legal resident of New Mexico for tuition purposes by meeting each of the following requirements as defined by the New Mexico Higher Education Department.

1. Twelve month durational requirement.

A person must physically reside in New Mexico for the twelve consecutive months immediately preceding the term for which the resident classification is requested.

2. Financial independence requirement.

Only persons who are financially independent may establish residency apart from parents or guardians. A student cannot be approved for residency who is financially dependent upon his or her parents or legal guardians who are nonresidents of New Mexico. Dependency is always determined by the status of the student on their parent’s or guardians previous year federal income tax form. If the student is shown to be dependent, they will not be considered financially independent or eligible for residency during the current year.

3. Written declaration of intent requirement.

   The student or person must sign a written declaration of intent to relinquish residency in any other state and to establish it in New Mexico, this is also known as the Application for In-State Residency.

4. Overt acts requirement.

Overt acts are required as evidence support of the written declaration of intent to establish permanent residency in New Mexico. Any act considered inconsistent with being a New Mexico resident will cause the request for resident classification to be denied. 

The required overt acts are evidence of any two of the following:

• If the applicant is financially dependent, a copy of the parent or guardians’ previous year income tax showing the applicant as a dependent and the parent address as New Mexico; or

• A New Mexico high school transcript issued in the past year confirming attendance at a New Mexico public or private high school completing as least 2 semesters (12) months; or

• A transcript from an online high school showing a New Mexico address confirming attendance with the completion of 2 semesters twelve (12) months; or

• A New Mexico driver’s license or ID card with an original date of issue or a renewal date issued prior to the application date for admission; or

• Proof of payment of New Mexico state income tax for the previous year; or

• Evidence of employment within the state of New Mexico; or

• New Mexico vehicle registration; or

• Voter registration in New Mexico; or

• A bank account established in New Mexico prior to the application date for admission; or

• Proof of residential property ownership in New Mexico; or

• A rental agreement within New Mexico; or

• Utility bills showing the applicant name and a New Mexico address; or

• Other evidence which would reasonably support the individual’s intent to establish and maintain New Mexico residency.

Inconsistent acts:

A person that demonstrates an inconsistent act, such as residing primarily out of state or maintaining a valid out of state driver’s license, may be denied residency irrespective of other overt acts that would establish their residency. An officer of the public postsecondary institution shall exercise professional judgement to determine if an inconsistent act should cause the residency petition to be denied. As such, other relevant factors may be considered in addition to the items listed in this Section.

Student Exchange Programs

Participating students may not begin to establish residency (i.e., 12-month durational requirement) until discontinuing from such a program.

• Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE).  Institutions must apply to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) to participate in the WUE program where students in western states may enroll in many two-year and four-year college programs at a reduced tuition level, which is 150 percent of the institution's regular resident tuition.

• Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP).  Residents of Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming are eligible to enroll in available graduate programs outside of their home state at resident tuition rates. Students need not meet financial aid criteria. To be included in WRGP, programs must meet the criteria of distinctiveness and quality. Programs are nominated by their institutions, peer reviewed by other graduate institutions in the west, and approved biannually by the student exchange program advisory council, a policy body that represents all participating states.

Petition for In-State Tuition:

The Higher Education Department recognizes that there may be circumstances in which a student would not be able to fulfill the requirements of an overt act as listed in this section, such as: 1) individual is physically disabled and does not have a driver’s license, or 2) individual is a convicted felon and therefore cannot vote, etc. In instances such as these, the institution will afford the student an opportunity to provide other documentary evidence or reasonable explanation which demonstrates that permanent residency in New Mexico has been established by the student.

A person's residency classification for tuition purposes shall be determined at time of admission and must be completed by the census date of that first enrollment in a given public postsecondary educational institution.  A person not meeting the residency requirements shall be classified as a nonresident for purposes of tuition charges. The student's classification at time of admission remains in effect unless the individual is re-admitted to the institution or until the individual petitions to become a New Mexico resident.

 Once determined a nonresident at the time of census date, a student can petition to be classified as a New Mexico resident by completing the "petition for resident tuition classification" form from the appropriate educational institution.  The form should be completed and returned to the institution, along with appropriate documentation listed in this brochure. A change in residency classification is never automatic and it is always the student’s responsibility to initiate the process. You will not be entitled to any refund of tuition if you become a resident during a semester, summer session, or other term. Detailed information concerning residency requirements is available from the Registrar on NMHED at https://hed.nm.gov/financial-aid/residency-requirements