TAP Tips

  • Review instructions each time you apply for TAP benefits. We usually make minor modifications (based on participant input) each semester.
  • Use the ‘one step’ process whenever possible. Submit your TAP application form with an invoice for non-GU benefit, and submit TAP form immediately after registering at GU.
  • Register as early as possible. This will allow you to get your invoice more quickly (and perhaps prior to the seasonal peak).
  • The Benefits Office does not have authority over GU admissions policies. Eligibility for TAP benefits does not guarantee admissions to GU. If you are attending GU, all normal admissions processes, academic advising procedures, etc apply.
  • Proof of parentage requires birth certificate that clearly indicates link between child and applicant. At times, this link requires marriage certificates (for stepchildren), adoption paperwork, etc. We cannot absolve the documentation requirement.
  • Participants must apply for benefits for each academic period of study.
  • Legible copies of invoices are acceptable, but faxes are not. Generally, the invoice must include the address for making payments and be on the school’s letterhead.
    Invoices cannot be altered, but you can highlight important information if you wish (i.e. correct payment mailing address).
  • The Benefits Office does not contact schools to request invoices, moreover, participants should not direct the school to send them to us directly.
  • Applying early is encouraged; however, applying too early can backfire. We cannot process fall applications until after the beginning of our fiscal year (July 1).
  • Participants subject to the 8 semester rule (children’s benefit, benefit for faculty and AAPs) should exercise care when using the benefit for an inexpensive semester (generally summer), as it will count 1/8 toward their total benefit, regardless of cost.
  • If the Benefits Office pays for the benefit, we count it toward the limits, even if the participant takes classes based on supervisor recommendation.
  • International academic institutions are OK, as long as the plan is administered, and billed, by a US school.
    TAP only covers study at accredited colleges. The class itself is not the determining factor, rather the school is. For example, we will pay for a physical education class at Harvard, but not pay for a physics class at USDA, even if that class is transferable to an accredited college.
  • Classes must be either part of a degree program or job related. Generally, an acceptance letter satisfies the degree program requirement.
  • Limits can become complex when someone begins study elsewhere, and transfers to GU, or vice versa. Generally speaking, we convert prior usage into current TAP values. This can sometimes result in the maximum applying when it did not prior to the conversion.
  • Limits can be triggered when an employee transfers from staff to AAP.
  • “Direct billing” has been discontinued.
  • CCPE can be expensive, and is always counted is dollars (they have no credit hours). The cost is disclosed when the student registers. Participants should use caution when taking CCPE classes if they are, or plan to enroll, in a degree-granting program (GU or elsewhere).
  • Make sure to re-apply for tax-free tuition benefits annually