Students who plan to work over summer on college campuses and take less than six credit hours must either take another course or work elsewhere.

The Internal Revenue Service in January amended the definition of half-time enrollment at public universities as pertinent to financial aid and on-campus employment. SIUC, in compliance with the IRS revenue procedure governing taxation and availability requirements for federal financial assistance, requires undergraduates maintain six credit hours, and graduate students maintain three credit hours each semester regardless of duration.

Pam Britton, director of Financial Aid, said the Financial Aid Office is busy communicating the new guideline to deans and academic advisers.

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The IRS granted a one-time exception to the guidelines for students who plan to be employed on campus and in their final semester or finishing a thesis or dissertation. At SIUC, students are encouraged to speak with their academic advisers and bring proof of graduation to the Student Employment Office on the third floor of Woody Hall to apply for the exception.

“We were glad to see the IRS granted this exception because SIU has been doing this for students for some time,” Britton said.

The revised federal guidelines require students be students first and employees second, said Kevin Bame, director of tax management and compliance for SIUC.

The revenue procedure also exempts students from FICA taxes, so long as they maintain half-time status with a university.

The revenue procedure is good news for everyone, Bame said. It puts everyone on a level playing field.

Prior to the existing federal regulation, the IRS loosely held universities to the informal “12/20” rule regarding the withholding of Federal Insurance Compensations Act taxes. Under the old plan, as long as a student maintained 12 credit hours and worked no more than 20 hours a week on campus they were exempt from the 7.65 percent FICA tax, which funds Social Security.

The schools felt that the 12/20 rule was not the spirit of the law, Bame said. It was always a pay-period by pay-period determination. We now have a rule that applies across the board.

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Bame said SIUC administrators and tax specialists approached the author of Revenue Procedure 98-16 and explained that the University had traditionally allowed undergraduates to enjoy federal work study, regular campus employment and financial aid while taking three credit hours over the summer.

[The administration] did go to bat for the students, but the IRS was not very flexible,” Bame said.

Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Education, in conjunction with the IRS revenue procedure, require students maintain the prescribed hours to get federal financial assistance and avoid FICA taxes regardless of the duration of the semester.