DEFINITIONS
Active employees: means a UConn employee, who is at least 50% employed, in a position covered by UCPEA, AFSCME (NP-3 Storrs/Regionals), or Management/Confidential. Active employees include individuals on an approved leave of absence.

ELIGIBILITY
Employees must meet the following applicable parameters to receive an employee tuition waiver.

For UCPEA and Management/Confidential employees:

• For graduate coursework, the employee must be a matriculated student (full- or part-time) or pursuing work-related coursework. Matriculation and “work-related” qualifications do not apply to undergraduate tuition.
• The employee must be actively employed at least 50% as of the first day of classes for the semester seeking the waiver. The waiver will be pro-rated based on the percentage employed on the first day of classes.
• The employee’s coursework must be in the Fall or Spring semesters.
• Intersession (summer and winter) courses and laboratory courses are not eligible for tuition waivers.
• The tuition waiver waives only tuition or credit-fees that are equivalent to tuition. Students remain responsible for any non-tuition fees and charges, including the General University Fee.
• Students remain responsible for deadlines related to billing and registration through the Offices of the Bursar and Registrar, respectively.

For AFSCME (NP-3) employees:

• The employee must be a matriculated undergraduate student (part-time only) or pursuing work-related coursework. (The waiver does not cover graduate courses for AFSCME employees.)
• The employee must be actively employed at least 50% as of the first day of classes for the semester seeking the waiver.
• The employee must be a permanent bargaining unit member, and the employee’s most recent performance appraisal must be rated “good” or better.
• The employee’s coursework must be in the Fall or Spring semesters; AFSCME members are limited to two courses per semester; and the waiver only applies to undergraduate tuition.
• Intersession (summer and winter) courses and laboratory courses are not eligible for tuition waivers.
• The tuition waiver waives only tuition or credit-fees that are equivalent to tuition. Students remain responsible for any non-tuition fees and charges, including the General University Fee.
• Students remain responsible for deadlines related to billing and registration through the Offices of the Bursar and Registrar, respectively.

APPLYING FOR A WAIVER
Employees must apply for the employee tuition waiver by the tenth day of classes for the Fall and Spring semesters, respectively. Employees must apply each semester when seeking a waiver. The application portal is available on the applicable HR website.

Employees are eligible to register for coursework on the first day of classes for tuition-based courses. For credit-fee-based courses, employees are eligible to register on the second day of classes. Employees who enroll prior to the first or second day of the semester, respectively, will be ineligible for the waiver.

If the coursework occurs during the employee’s normal work schedule, the employee and supervisor must complete a Flexible Work Schedule Agreement Form prior to the employee attending the first class session(s) of each applicable semester.

Upon the separation of an employee, the waiver will cease upon the completion of the current semester.

Please Note: The Employee Tuition Waiver application for the spring 2024 semester will become available on Tuesday, January 16, the first day of classes. Please contact Human Resources at hr@uconn.edu to request Employee Tuition Waiver information from prior semesters.

The application is quick and easy, however it is critical that you review the procedural information provided as well as the information regarding eligibility and applicability and exclusions.

Waiver recipients may only register on the first or second day of classes.

Please note that a separate waiver request must be submitted each semester.

TAXABILITY
IRS rules governing employee tuition waivers regard such waivers as a potentially taxable employee fringe benefit. To the extent an employee tuition waiver is taxable under IRS rules, it will be treated as taxable income to the employee and will be included in the employee’s W-2 wages.

The value of an employee tuition waiver granted to a qualifying employee for a graduate level education may be taxable to the employee. In certain instances, a graduate level education may not meet the criteria set by the Internal Revenue Service to be treated as a nontaxable fringe benefit. Most notably, if the graduate education 1) qualifies the employee for a new trade or business or, 2) is unrelated to the employee’s current job function or, 3) is needed to meet the minimum education requirements for the employee’s position, then the graduate level education may be treated as a taxable fringe benefit in accordance with federal income tax laws. The graduate degrees that most often give rise to a taxable fringe benefit are: Masters in Accounting, Masters in Social Work, Masters in Business Administration, Masters in Nursing (if it qualifies the graduate for APRN licensure), Law Degrees (JD/LLM), and Masters in Educational Psychology with concentrations in Counseling Psychology or Counselor Education. For further information about the taxability of employee tuition waivers, please visit UConn’s Tax and Compliance Website. (Please note that tuition waivers granted to student employees who have been hired as Graduate Assistants are nontaxable.)

DEFINITIONS
Active Employee: means a UConn employee, who is at least 50% employed, in a position covered by the AAUP, UCPEA, the Law School Faculty, or Management/Confidential. Adjunct faculty, covered by the AAUP collective bargaining agreement, are ineligible for the benefit. Active employees include individuals on an approved leave of absence.

Dependent: means a matriculated student who is below the age of 24 years for the entire calendar year for which the waiver of tuition is sought and is eligible to be claimed on the employee’s federal tax return as a dependent. Illustrative example: application in November Year 1 for spring semester Year 2, and student is turning 24 in Calendar Year 2, student does not meet the definition of a dependent.

Child: means the employee’s biological child; the employee’s stepchild, who is the biological or adopted child of the employee’s spouse; the employee’s legally adopted child.

ELIGIBILITY
The University of Rhode Island and the University of Maine at Orono offer in-state tuition rates to applicable “dependent children” of UConn employees who are enrolled in an undergraduate degree program at either institution.

The following parameters must be met to receive the reciprocal tuition benefit:

• The student must be the “dependent child” of the employee.
• The student must be a matriculated undergraduate student (full- or part-time) at the applicable institution.
• The employee must be actively employed at least 50% as of the first day of classes each applicable semester.
• The student’s coursework must occur in the Fall or Spring semesters.

The following are additional provisions related to the reciprocal tuition benefit:

• The reciprocity agreement does not cover graduate tuition.
• Courses outside of the fall and spring semesters and non-tuition-based education abroad programs are not eligible for reciprocal tuition.
• Students remain responsible for costs associated with in-state tuition and any applicable fees, in accordance with policies established by the University of Rhode Island and the University of Maine at Orono, respectively.

Upon the separation or death of an employee, the tuition benefit will cease upon the completion of the current semester.

APPLYING FOR THE TUITION BENEFIT
Employees must apply each semester for reciprocal tuition through the Department of Human Resources at UConn. The deadlines for employees to apply for the reciprocal tuition program are June 1 for the Fall semester and November 15 for the Spring semester. Employees must apply each semester for each dependent child for whom a waiver is sought.

The following documentation will be accepted as proof of dependency: a copy of the full-length birth certificate for biological children; a copy of the full-length birth certificate and marriage certificate for stepchildren; a copy of court order for adopted children. In certain cases, a copy of a divorce decree may also be required.

TAXABILITY
The University offers dependent child reciprocal tuition benefits pursuant to the tax rules governing such benefits under Internal Revenue Code Sections 117(d), 132(h), 152, and corresponding Treasury Regulations. To the extent the terms “dependent” and “child” as defined in this policy are ambiguous, the tax authorities cited above shall control.

IRS rules governing dependent child reciprocal tuition benefits regard such benefits as a potentially taxable employee fringe benefit. To the extent a dependent child reciprocal tuition benefit is taxable under IRS rules, it will be treated as taxable income to the employee and will be included in the employee’s W-2 wages.

DEFINITION
Active Employee: means a UConn employee, who is at least 50% employed, in a position covered by the AAUP, the Law School Faculty, or Management/Confidential. Adjunct faculty, covered by the AAUP collective bargaining agreement, are ineligible for the benefit. Active employees include individuals on an approved leave of absence.

ELIGIBILITY
The following parameters must be met to receive the waiver:

• The student must be the legal spouse of the employee.
• The student must be a matriculated undergraduate student (full- or part-time) in a tuition-based program.
• The employee must be actively employed at least 50% as of the first day of class each semester.
• The student’s coursework must be in the Fall or Spring semesters. Fee-based intersession (summer and winter) courses are not eligible for tuition waivers.

The following are additional parameters related to the spousal tuition waiver:

• The waiver does not cover graduate tuition.
• Laboratory courses are not eligible for a tuition waiver.
• Education Abroad programs without tuition components (i.e., fee-based Education Abroad programs) are ineligible for waivers. For Education Abroad programs that do have a tuition component, a waiver will be applied to the tuition component not to exceed the UConn tuition rate.
• The tuition waiver waives only tuition, not program fees. Individuals remain responsible for any non-tuition fees and charges, including the General University Fee.
• Individuals remain responsible for deadlines related to billing and registration through the Offices of the Bursar and Registrar, respectively.
• Students are eligible to register for courses on the first day of classes, and students must obtain the primary instructor’s consent prior to registration.
• Upon the death or separation of the employee, the waiver will cease upon the completion of the current semester.

APPLYING FOR THE WAIVER
Employees must apply for the spousal tuition waiver by the tenth day of classes for the Fall and Spring semesters, respectively. Employees must apply each semester when seeking a waiver.

Students who enroll prior to the first day of the semester will be ineligible for the waiver.

The Department of Human Resources requires a marriage certificate as proof of matrimony, and Human Resources reserves the right to require additional documentation.

The form is quick and easy however it is critical that you review the procedural information as well as the information regarding eligibility and applicability and exclusions.

Please note that a separate waiver request must be submitted each semester.

TAXABILITY
IRS rules governing spousal tuition waivers regard such waivers as a potentially taxable employee fringe benefit. To the extent a spousal tuition waiver is taxable under IRS rules, it will be treated as taxable income to the employee and will be included in the employee’s W-2 wages.