CUNY Employees Tuition Waiver

PROCEDURES FOR CUNY EMPLOYEES

TUITION FEE WAIVER:

PLEASE READ BEFORE COMPLETING THE TUITION FEE WAIVER FORM (OFSR 305)

As part of the "Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA)," which was signed into law on June 7, 2001, Section 127 of the Internal Revenue Code was extended permanently for both graduate and undergraduate courses, effective January 1, 2002.

NOTE: CUNY eligible employees are hereby advised that undergraduate and graduate level courses in which they enroll in using the CUNY Employee Tuition Fee Waiver Form OFSR 305, may be reportable as wages and subject to withholdings if educational assistance benefits exceed the $5,250* threshold are non job-related and do not meet the requirements of the "working condition fringe benefit" exclusion. To meet the requirements of "working condition fringe benefit" exclusion the course must: 1) maintain or improve skills that an employee is required to have for employment; and 2) be expressly required by the employer, or is legally required in order to retain an established employment relationship, status or rate of compensation. Moreover, the course must: 1) not be for the purpose of satisfying the minimum educational requirements to qualify for employment; and/or 2) not to qualify the employee for a promotion or transfer to a new trade or business.

* amount subject to change

PROCEDURES:

A. Obtain the CUNY Employee Tuition Fee Waiver (Form OFSR 305) from the HR Office of the College of Employment. Failure to submit a completed Form OFSR 305 to the HR Office of the college of employment may result in the inclusion of the value of your tuition assistance as wages.

B. Submit the completed Form OFSR 305 to the registrar at the College of Enrollment who will complete the registration certification portion of the waiver form and forward a copy of the waiver form to the HR Director at the College of Enrollment. In addition, a copy must be submitted to the Bursars at the College of Enrollment.

C. The HR Director at the College of Enrollment will forward the OFSR 305 form to the HR Director at the College of Employment.

D. You must submit to the College of Employment evidence of enrollment, including the Management Certification, bursar's receipt and the course description, in order to ascertain whether the course you are taking is taxable. The management representative designated by your college will use the University Accounting Office guidelines to determine whether the course you are taking is job related.

E. If the educational benefit exceeds the $5,250 threshold and the course is determined to be non-job related and does not meet the working condition fringe benefits exclusion within the Internal Revenue and University Accounting Office guidelines, the HR Director of the College of Employment will so advise the Payroll Office so that the actual dollar amount of the tuition fee that has been waived will then be reported as wages and be subject to tax withholding. The determination will be recorded on the reverse side of this form.

F. A copy of your certified Form OFSR 305 with a record of transmittal to Payroll will be kept on file at the HR office at your College of Employment. You may request to obtain a copy for your records.

Employees' Category & Service requirements:

Employee Category

Service Requirements

Course Type and Credit Limits

Summer Session

Instructional Staff

1 year - undergraduate /
none - graduate

Undergraduate - no limit / Graduate - 6 credits       

no

Classified Managerial

1 year - undergraduate /
none - graduate

Undergraduate - no limit / Graduate - 6 credits       

no

Adjunct Teaching Titles

10 consecutive semesters

1 course may be
undergraduate or graduate

no

Gittleson Titles 

6 months

Undergraduate - no limit / Graduate - 6 credits

yes - undergraduate only

Classified White Collar

1 year   

Undergraduate - no limit / Graduate - 3 credits

yes – undergraduate only

Classified Blue collar

1 year

Undergraduate - no limit / Graduate - 3 credits

yes - undergraduate only

Skilled Trades

1 year

Undergraduate only-no limit

yes

To complete a tuition fee waiver form, please ( CLICK HERE), after completion, please send the completed form to Helbert Castro.

Tuition Reimbursement for College Assistants/Tutors- DC 37 Members

Eligible DC 37 members can receive tuition reimbursement when they attend accredited college, university or registered institution. The Education Fund reimburses for courses on an undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate level. You may be reimbursed up to a maximum of $800 per calendar year. Beginning with classes taken in January 2009, you can choose to receive a single payment of $800 per calendar year. To be eligible, a member must:

• Be a College Assistant who works a minimum of 17 ½ hours per week are covered.
• Be employed at least 90 days prior to the first day of classes, and remain in a covered title for the term.
• Receive course credit towards a degree in a college or university accredited by the Middle States Association of College and Secondary Schools (life experience, independent study and dissertation credits are not reimbursable.)
• For college credit classes, receive a grade of "C" or better.

For additional information, pleace  click here or 212-815-1663 or X-1664.

Please visit the DC 37 web site for information about other educational benefits available to you.