Steps for Reclassification

New students seeking to establish CA residency and/or applying for reclassification must have a combination of the following documents. Documents must be dated one year and one day prior to the Residency Determination Date for the term in which you are seeking residency status for tuition purposes.

Step 1: Download and Complete the CSU Residence Questionnaire

Step 2: Submit your completed CSU Residence Quiestionnaire and Supporting Documentation via the link below. 

A minimum of three forms of documentation is required. At least one document must be from list A, and the remaining documents may be selected from either List A or List B.

Options to meet the requirement:

• Option 1: One document from list A and two documents from List B
• Option 2: Two documents from list A and one document from List B
• Option 3: All three documents from list A (for example, CA driver's license, CA vehicle registration, and CA Voter Registration card)

List A

• CA 540 State Income Tax return and applicant listed
• California driver license or ID card
• Ownership of residential property as a primary residence in CA
• Continuous occupancy of rented or leased property in CA with applicant listed
• Receipt of CA state services (e.g. unemployment, disability, CalFresh)
• Vehicle registration in California
• Voter registration for California
• Payment of non-resident tuition at an out-of-state institution, if attended within the past year
• Permanent Military Address or Home of Record on Military Records

List B

• Federal Income Tax Return showing a CA address and applicant listed
• Utility bill (e.g. cell phone, gas, electrical) with a CA address (only one utility bill will be accepted)
• Active California bank account statements with a California address for the most recent month, and one from a year prior
• Current licensing from the state of California for professional practice
• California pay stubs, one showing most recent month, and one from a year prior
• Vehicle insurance with a CA address and applicant must be listed on policy
• Court documents (e.g. ward of the court, divorce degree, or child support)
• Selective Service Registration with a CA address

Adult students (who will be at least 19 years old on the Residence Determination Date) may establish their own residence for tuition purposes. Minor unmarried students (who will be under the age of 19 on the Residence Determination Date) derive their legal residence from the parent with whom they reside or last resided. 
 
A non-U.S. citizen may establish residence unless prohibited from establishing a domicile in the United States by the Immigration and Nationality Act. Some examples of non-U.S. citizens who may establish residence include permanent residents, refugees, students granted asylum or temporary protected status, and students who hold certain non-immigrant visas. 

For more information about an initial residency classification in California, see California Education Code Section 68017 and California Code of Regulations Title 5, Sections 41904 and 41905.

Continuing Students

For continuing students who believe they are eligible for reconsideration of their residency status for CSU tuition purposes, they must provide all items listed above as well as demonstrate financial independence.

Education Code section 68044 mandates that any student who has been claimed as a dependent on anyone's income tax return in the current year or within the past 3 years, who has accepted more than $750 in financial support in any form, or lived with a parent during the current year or the past 3 years shall not be considered financially independent and therefore, cannot meet the core requirement of demonstrated financial independence necessary to qualify for reclassification from nonresident to resident.

For more information, please see “Reclassification after Initial Residency Determination” at Continuing Students: Determination of Residency

Directions for Submitting Documentation

Please upload the CSU Residence Questionnaire and all supporting documents to the link below or deliver in person to:

CSU Bakersfield
Office of Undergraduate Admissions, 47SA
9001 Stockdale Highway
Bakersfield, CA 93311-1022

Please do not submit forms and/or documentation via email.

Submit Residency Forms & Documentation