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Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018

Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018


Effective August 1, 2019, it is no longer mandatory to grant in-state tuition to students holding a competitive scholarship. UTRGV has modified its policy to comply with these amendments to the Veteran Benefits and Transitions Act 2018. Students utilizing the VA Educational Benefits under Texas Education Code Section 54.058 (k) and (I) will need to complete the Intent to Establish Residence in Texas form. 

Texas Education Code, Section 54.058 (k) and (l), reads as follows:

(k)  A person is entitled to pay tuition and fees at an institution of higher education at the rates provided for Texas residents without regard to the length of time the person has resided in this state if the person files with the institution at which the person intends to register a letter of intent to establish residence in this state and resides in this state while enrolled in the institution and the person:

  1. Is eligible for benefits under the federal Post-9/11 GI Bill® Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 (38 U.S.C. Section 3301 et seq.) or any other federal law authorizing educational benefits for veterans.  [GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.]
  1. Is the spouse of a person described by Subdivision (1); or (3) is a child of a person described by Subdivision.
  2. Who is 25 years of age or younger on the first day of the semester or other academic term for which the person is registering, except that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board by rule shall prescribe procedures by which a person who suffered from a severe illness or other debilitating condition that affected the person’s ability to use the benefit provided by this subsection before reaching that age may be granted additional time to use the benefit corresponding to the time the person was unable to use the benefit because of the illness or condition.

 (l)  In this section, "child" includes a stepchild.