Do Louisiana Residents Get In-State Tuition in Texas? (Community College, 2026)
Yes — Louisiana and Texas run Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver, so Louisiana residents can pay the Texas in-state community college rate of about $3,300 a year instead of the $8,300 non-resident rate at Texas public community colleges. Check the current terms before you apply.
- You would pay
- $3,300/yr
- Resident pays
- $3,300/yr
- Non-resident rate
- $8,300/yr
- Saved over 2 yrs
- $10,000
Conditional: Limited to students living in counties along the shared border — check the county list first.
Tuition and mandatory fees only, compiled from published rates and rounded. Excludes housing, books and course differentials. Eligibility is decided by the institution, not by this page.
Open this pair in the checker to switch level, compare other states, or copy a link to the result.
Louisiana and Texas have a standing agreement, which puts this pair in a small minority. Most state pairs have nothing between them except the non-resident rate. Here, Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver brings community college tuition at Texas public community colleges to roughly $3,300 instead of $8,300.
Seen from Louisiana, this is one option among 50. Texas is the only state where Louisiana residents have a reduced community college rate, against $4,600 for in-state study at Louisiana Community and Technical College System.
Confirm the specific campus takes part. State-level membership is necessary and not sufficient, and several flagship universities either exclude their most competitive majors or sit out entirely.
Every route from Louisiana to Texas
| Route | What it gives you | Per year | Saving | Guaranteed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver | Texas statute lets designated public institutions waive non-resident tuition for students from specified counties in the four bordering states. It flows one way — into Texas — and it is a waiver granted by the institution, not a reciprocal exchange. | $3,300 | $5,000 | Conditional |
Where Louisiana residents pay less
Staying home, a Louisiana resident pays $4,600 a year for in-state community college tuition at Louisiana Community and Technical College System. The cheapest Texas option for you is $3,300 at Texas public community colleges, which is $1,300 a year less than Louisiana's own in-state rate at Louisiana Community and Technical College System.
Louisiana belongs to none of the four regional tuition compacts at community college level, but one state offers Louisiana residents a reduced rate through a state or campus agreement. It does take part in Academic Common Market at undergraduate and graduate level.
Louisiana's neighboring states, compared
What a Louisiana resident pays for community college tuition in each state that borders Louisiana, cheapest first:
- Texas$3,300/yr · Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver
- Arkansas$5,600/yr · non-resident
- Mississippi$6,900/yr · non-resident
Compare all 50 states from Louisiana in the checker. Each figure is one reference campus per state, not a state average.
Texas residency, in brief
Texas grants in-state tuition after 12 months of domicile before the term begins (Tex. Educ. Code § 54.052), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile. Moving to Texas to enroll does not by itself start the clock.
Texas residency requirements in full · how long every state requires
Step by step
- Read the current terms of Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver — bilateral agreements are renegotiated and can narrow to specific campuses or majors between academic years.
- Apply through the channel the agreement specifies; several are administered by the home state's higher-education agency, not by the receiving campus.
- Provide proof of Louisiana residency in the form the agreement requires.
- If you fall outside the agreement's scope, fall back to the residency route: 12 months of Texas domicile.
Official links
Related
Asked and answered
›Do Louisiana residents get in-state tuition in Texas?
Effectively yes, through Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver, but it is not residency. You pay the in-state rate of about $3,300 while remaining a Louisiana resident for every other purpose, and the benefit ends if you leave the approved program.
›How long does it take to get in-state tuition in Texas?
Texas requires 12 months of domicile before the term begins (Tex. Educ. Code § 54.052), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile.
›How much would community college study in Texas actually cost a Louisiana resident?
About $3,300 a year in tuition and mandatory fees under Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver, against $8,300 at the published non-resident rate and $3,300 for a Texas resident. Over 2 years that is roughly $10,000 saved. Figures are compiled 2025–26 published rates and exclude housing, books and course-specific differentials.
›Where can Louisiana residents get reduced community college tuition?
Only in Texas, through Texas Border-County Tuition Waiver, at about $3,300 a year.
›Is studying in Texas cheaper than staying in Louisiana?
On tuition, yes. The cheapest Texas option for a Louisiana resident is $3,300 a year, which is $1,300 below Louisiana's own in-state rate of $4,600 at Louisiana Community and Technical College System. Housing and travel are not included.
Sources
Every eligibility rule on this page is checked against the operating compact commission or the state's own residency authority. Last verified 2026-08-07.
Tuition figures on this page are compiled 2025–26 published rates (basis: published compiled), rounded to the nearest $100 and refreshed each June. Eligibility rules are checked against the cited compact commission or residency authority.
- Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board — residency for tuition purposes ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
- Louisiana Community and Technical College System — tuition and fees ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
How this page was made
Compiled and checked by Billy Reiner, editor of In-State Check. Last verified 2026-08-07.
- Compiled from published rate pages
- The in-state and non-resident figures are tuition and mandatory fees for one full-time year, read from Texas public community colleges’s own 2025–26 rate page and rounded to the nearest $100. Housing, books, travel and course-specific differentials are not included in them.
- Checked against the administering body
- Compact membership at this level was checked against the commission that runs the program (WICHE, MHEC, SREB and NEBHE). The residency test — the durational requirement, the domicile evidence and the dependent-student rule — was checked against Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Tex. Educ. Code § 54.052. Nothing here is taken from another comparison site.
Not advice. In-State Check is independent of every college, compact and state agency named here. Residency classification and award decisions are made by the institution you apply to. Found an error? Send the page URL and the source that contradicts it to [email protected], and the page is corrected and re-dated. Full methodology.