Section 121.57. Higher education grant domicile

(a) A student applicant who is under 18 years of age at the time he makes application for a State higher education grant or to renew a higher education grant shall have a supporting parent or guardian who has been a bona fide domiciliary of this Commonwealth for at least 12 months immediately preceding the date of receipt by the Agency of the higher education grant or renewal application.

(b) A student applicant who is 18 years of age or older at the time he makes application for a State higher education grant or to renew such award shall have been a bona fide domiciliary of this Commonwealth for at least 12 months immediately preceding the date of receipt by the Agency of the higher education grant or renewal application.

(c) Any period of time during which an applicant is enrolled as a student in an educational institution may not be counted as a part of the 12-month domicile requirement when the student came into the Commonwealth or remained in the Commonwealth for the purpose of attending a school or college.

(d) For the purposes of determining domicile, a guardian shall be a person or persons appointed by a court or any person or persons other than a parent with whom the applicant has lived and in whose continuous direct care and control the applicant has been for a period of not less than 2 years.

(e) In view of the fact that Commonwealth domiciliaries attending approved institutions of higher learning located outside the Commonwealth may exercise their right of franchise by absentee ballot, a student who registers to vote in a state other than the Commonwealth shall be deemed to have abandoned his domicile in this Commonwealth and shall be ineligible for consideration for a State higher education grant or renewal thereof or any further payments thereon unless and until such student registers to vote in the Commonwealth.

(f) Military status of persons and their dependents who reside in the civilian community rather than on a military installation shall not alone be grounds for determining an applicant ineligible.

(g) Persons and their dependents who leave this Commonwealth on military or foreign assignments, such as missionaries, United States military servicemen, and representatives of domestic companies or government agencies, will be presumed to maintain their domicile in this Commonwealth for purposes of satisfying the higher education grant domicile requirement.

(h) If an applicant’s parents or guardian moves from this Commonwealth after the date of receipt by the Agency of the applicant’s application for a higher education grant or to renew a higher education grant, but prior to the first day of classes of the academic year for which aid is requested, the applicant’s higher education grant eligibility shall terminate as of the date the parents or guardian moved from this Commonwealth. This restriction shall not apply if the applicant is 18 years of age or older on the date the applicant makes application for a higher education grant or to renew a higher education grant, provided that the applicant continues to maintain his domicile in this Commonwealth as determined by the Agency through such tests as it deems proper.

(i) If a higher education grant recipient’s parents or guardian move from this Commonwealth during the academic year, the recipient’s eligibility for a higher education grant shall terminate at the end of that academic year. This restriction shall not apply if the applicant is 18 years of age or older on the date the applition grant, provided that the applicant continues to maintain his domicile in this Commonwealth as determined by the Agency through such tests as it deems proper.

(j) A student receiving, on the ground of residency, the benefit of in-State fees at an institution of higher education located in another state shall for Agency higher education grant purposes be considered a domiciliary of that state.

(k) A student receiving a state scholarship or grant from another state shall, for higher education grant purposes, be considered a domiciliary of that state.

(l) The Agency will make the final decision in all matters pertaining to domicile.

The provisions of this § 121.57 adopted February 27, 1969; amended February 16, 1973, effective February 17, 1973, 3 Pa.B. 325; amended November 23, 1973, effective November 24, 1973, 3 Pa.B. 2722; amended December 27, 1974, effective December 28, 1974, 4 Pa.B. 2699; amended July 3, 1980, effective July 5, 1980, 10 Pa.B. 2874. Immediately preceding text appears at serial page (30611).

Notation

Cross References

This section cited in 22 Pa. Code § 121.151 (relating to application of existing Agency regulations).