Section 312.170  Tuition and Fee Waiver Program Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for the Tuition and Fee Waiver Program, applicants must submit an application in accordance with Section 312.180 and must meet the following criteria: 

a)         Applicants must be youth for whom the Department is legally responsible, adopted youth, or youth in private guardianship, as defined in Section 312.20; and if applicants are youth in private guardianship or adopted youth, the following criteria also shall apply:

1)         Applicants who are youth in private guardianship must have been placed in private guardianship under a subsidized guardianship agreement with the Department.

2)         Applicants who are adopted youth must have been adopted under an adoption assistance agreement with the Department.

b)         Applicants must have earned a diploma from an accredited high school, or earned a high school equivalency certificate, or met State criteria for graduation from an accredited high school before the start of the academic year for which they are applying.

c)         Applicants must enroll at a college or university maintained by the State before reaching the age of 26.

1)         The age requirement shall be waived and the applicant's eligibility for tuition and fee waivers shall be extended if the Department determines that the applicant was unable to enroll in a college or university maintained by the State due to any of the following circumstances:

A)        The applicant was called into active duty with the United States Armed Forces; or

B)        The applicant was deployed for service in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps; or

C)        The applicant volunteered in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps.  [20 ILCS 505/8(b)]

2)         If the Department determines that an applicant was unable to enroll due to any of these circumstances, it shall extend the applicant's eligibility by the total number of months or years during which the applicant was called into active duty with the United States Armed Forces, was deployed for service in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, or volunteered in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps. The number of months an applicant served on active duty with the United States Armed Forces shall be rounded up to the next year to determine the maximum length of time to extend eligibility for the applicant.  [20 ILCS 505/8(b)]

d)         The applicant must apply for federal and State grant assistance by timely completion of a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online form available through the U.S. Department of Education.

(Source:  Added at 50 Ill. Reg. 9789, effective July 6, 2026)