Residency
What is RDS?
The Residency Determination Service (RDS) is an online application process that all students applying to a North Carolina public college or university (both 4-year and 2-year), and/or who are seeking to be eligible for a NC State grant as part of their financial aid package are REQUIRED to fill out. This form determines whether you receive in-state tuition. Students complete only one residency determination for all NC colleges and universities. Once completed, students will be given a Residency Certification Number (RCN) to be entered into their college applications. Students use their CFNC username and password to log into and begin RDS.
***RDS does not allow you to go back or change information once you have started the application. Make sure everything you enter is correct.
See step-by-step guides and additional info in English and Spanish here
RDS for Undocumented Students and Parents
Undocumented Students
Unfortunately, undocumented students are NOT eligible for in-state tuition in North Carolina, but you still must complete RDS to apply for college. When filling out the application, select that you do NOT claim residency in North Carolina. You will then be prompted to finish your residency and will be given an out-of-state Residency Certification Number (RCN) to enter into your college applications.
Students with Undocumented Parents
Students with undocumented parents are eligible for in-state tuition. Students leave the social security fields blank for the parent section. I strongly suggest students put parent Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN) into the alternate ID field where it asks for this information. Students should also indicate parent(s) tax filing status and where their parent(s) works. If you are selected as out-of-state, complete a Residency Reconsideration (see below). A Reconsideration usually requires uploading certain documents such as a transcript or utility bills to prove NC residency. If you need help with this process, reach out to Mr. White.
Residency Appeal
The RDS reconsideration process is for students who:
need to correct certain errors in the data submitted during the RDS online interview,
have had a change in personal circumstances since completing their current determination, or
did not submit the required documentation within the initial consideration deadlines, or
were requested by their campus to complete a reconsideration.
Students who request reconsideration will be required to complete the online interview again. Submitting a request for reconsideration does not guarantee the residency classification will change from non-resident to resident. Students are limited to three reconsideration requests every 90 days.
Unlike an initial consideration, students requesting reconsideration will be required to submit documentation identified during the interview along with the reconsideration request. As with any other RDS request, students have 25 calendar days to complete the submission process. If the reconsideration request and required documentation is not submitted within the time allotted, the student's request will be cancelled and their status will remain non-resident. As with the initial consideration, RDS will validate the answers provided in reconsideration with state and federal agencies.
Reconsideration Procedures
The following information provides the general process for completing a reconsideration request.Student logs in to RDS (accessed via CFNC, a campus admissions application, or on the RDS website) with their RDS username and password.
On the student's primary RCN screen, click the "Think your determination is incorrect or about to expire? Need to update your determination for your campus? Click Here" text.
Select the Reconsideration option
Indicate the specific reason for requesting reconsideration by selecting at least one of the approved reasons from the list provided. If the student has experienced multiple changes, the student may select more than one.
Student completes the RDS online interview based upon the current situation.
Once initiated, students have 25 calendar days to complete the reconsideration request in full and have the ability to start, stop, and come back to the online interview as needed. If the request is not submitted within 25 calendar days, the request will automatically be cancelled and the student's status will remain unchanged. Note that a request for reconsideration cannot be submitted until all required documentation is provided. Students should account for this in planning their submission.
Required documentation: If a student is required to submit documentation to support the RDS classification, a listing of required documents will appear on the student's RCN screen. Not all students will be required to submit documentation. The student has 25 calendar days from the date of their reconsideration for documentation to be RECEIVED by RDS. If the documentation is not submitted and received by RDS within 25 calendar days, the student's residency classification will change from "resident" to "non-resident." No extensions are permitted with documentation deadlines.
Uploading documents is the fastest and easiest way to submit documentation. If students choose to fax or mail documentation to RDS, the student should log back in to RDS and verify the documentation faxed or mailed is attached to their account. RDS is not responsible for missing faxed or mailed documents.
Student's choosing to fax or mail documents must use the cover sheet provided on the student's home screen. This cover sheet ties the student's documentation to the student's account when received by RDS.
The 25 calendar day deadline INCLUDES time for receiving and processing faxes or mailed documentation. Allow at least three days for RDS to receive and process faxes and at least seven to ten days for RDS to receive and process mail.
Do not mail original documents. Paper documents will not be returned and RDS is not responsible for missing mail.
Once the reconsideration request is submitted, RDS will validate the answers provided with state and federal agencies, review the request and any documentation, and make a determination. Status of the RDS review will be available on the student's home RCN page in RDS. The student will be notified of the reconsideration decision via email and also online in the student's RDS account.
It is the student's responsibility to notify their campus of any change in classification. Campuses have access to any change in classification and the effective date. This effective date is the exact date the student submits a completed reconsideration request. This date is critical for the school and student to determine which academic term a residency change (and any resulting change in tuition rate) should be applied. RDS does NOT set the campus deadline for determining the date in which a change in residency status applies; RDS only provides the date in which the reconsideration request was submitted in full.
Should the student receive the same residency classification through the RDS reconsideration process and disagree with the reconsideration determination, then the student has the option to request an RDS Appeal.