CA Dream Act

For more information about the CA Dream Act Application visit :

What is the California Dream Act?

The California Dream Act allows undocumented students, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients (valid or expired), U Visa holders and students under Temporary Protected Status (TPS), who qualify for a non-resident exemption under Assembly Bill 540 (AB 540), Senate Bill 2000 (SB 2000) and Senate Bill 68 (SB 68), to receive certain types of financial aid such as:

private scholarships funded through public universities
state administered financial aid
university grants
community college fee waivers
Cal Grants.

In addition, the California Dream Act, allows eligible students to pay in-state tuition at any public college in California.

What is the difference between the CA Dream Act and FAFSA?

Students should only complete one of the applications

(not both), according to the citizenship requirements below:

You are eligible to complete the FAFSA at https://www.californiacolleges.edu/#/ if you are a:

• U.S Citizen

• Permanent Resident

• Eligible non-citizen

• T Visa holder

You are eligible to complete the CADAA at https://www.californiacolleges.edu/#/ if you are:

• Undocumented

• Have a valid or expired DACA

• U Visa holders

• Have Temporary Protected Status (TPS)2

• Meet the non-resident exemption requirements under AB 540, SB 2000, SB 68

Note: If you have further questions, including how to ensure you are completing the correct financial aid application, you can visit the Immigrants Rising website and review the document titled, “FAFSA VS CA Dream Act: Apply to the Correct Financial Aid,” at https://immigrantsrising.org/resource/fafsa-vs-ca-dream-act-apply-to-the-correct-financial-aid-in-ca/

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