How many years do I have to be resident in Scotland to claim lower fees.

your scottish by blood and birth so id assume you can

You have to be a resident for at least 5 years, so I've heard.

It went up from 3 years on 24th March. I have no idea how this affects postgrad, though, so I will summon those wiser than myself.
@PQ @Klix88 @Tiger Rag

your scottish by blood and birth so id assume you can

Unfortunately, I've not seen any detailed wording around EU students and the new postgrad loan. All I've seen so far is the statement that EU students *may* be entitled to the loan. Quite what the qualifying criteria are (or will be - it's always possible that they haven't been decided yet) I don't know.

OP isn't EU, as far as I know from what s/he has posted. It's all waaaay too complicated for me to think about, though!

In that case, the new five year residency requirement probably doesn't apply - I've only seen it linked to EU students.

Moving between countries in the UK, I'd honestly just phone SF and ask - or maybe post a question here in the Ask Student Finance section. The official rep here seems much more clued up than some telephone advisors.

You have to be a resident for at least 5 years, so I've heard.

There is no minimum amount of time you need to live in Scotland, you just need to be "ordinarily resident in Scotland on the first day of the first academic year (August 1st) of the course" to qualify for SAAS grants.

Ordinarily resident has been defined in the courts as 'habitual and normal residence in one place'. It basically means that you live in a country year after year by choice through a set period, apart from temporary or occasional absences such as holidays or business trips. Living here totally or mainly for the purpose of receiving full-time education does not count as being ordinarily resident.

If you have been living in Scotland for a few months prior to your course starting then I think you could reasonably claim to be an ordinary resident.

I only lived there for a year before I started studying and I was considered Scottish domiciled.



This. Though I think you have to have lived there for a full year, or this is what SAAS told me when I contacted them. (Though that was 4 years ago.) So if you move here a year before you start your studies for a reason other than education ie job, significant other (as I did), etc, you're considered Scottish domiciled.

This is interesting... thank you for telling me!

No worries! I was incredibly happy I'd moved to Scotland when I found out I'd be eligible for free tuition