To complete the NCSU health insurance waiver, log in to the Student Blue portal, enter your existing policy information, and submit before the semester deadline. Do this every semester you are enrolled, or the university charges the Student Blue premium to your student account automatically. For 2025–2026, that premium is $1,312 per semester for undergraduates, and it is non-refundable once the deadline passes.1North Carolina State University. Undergraduate Students – Tuition and Fee Rates
Whether the Waiver Applies to You
The UNC Board of Governors requires students across all sixteen system campuses to carry health coverage. If you are billed the premium, you either buy the Student Blue plan or prove you already have qualifying insurance.2NC State University Campus Health. Insurance 101
The premium hits your account only if all three of these are true. For undergraduates: you are in a degree-seeking program, taking six or more on-campus credit hours, and eligible to pay the Student Health Fee. For graduate students the threshold is lower: degree-seeking, one or more on-campus credit hours, and eligible for the Student Health Fee.3NC State University Campus Health. UNC System Student Health Insurance Plan
If any one of those is missing, no premium appears and no waiver is needed.
Deadlines and Semester Requirement
The waiver is not a one-time task. You have to submit it every semester you are enrolled. Waive in fall, forget in spring, and the premium is back on your account.3NC State University Campus Health. UNC System Student Health Insurance Plan
For Spring 2026, the window opened November 1, 2025, and closes January 31, 2026.4Student Services Center. Spring Health Insurance Requirement Fall deadlines are posted on the Student Services site during the summer; the Fall 2025 deadline was September 10, 2025.5North Carolina State University. Health Insurance Requirement
Miss the deadline and there is no appeal. The premium becomes non-refundable for that semester.
What Your Insurance Has to Cover
Your existing plan must be “creditable,” which in practice means it gives you real access to non-emergency medical care where you actually live during the school year. Routine doctor visits, specialists, and lab work should be available in-network in the Raleigh area.
The most common reason a waiver gets denied: a plan based in another state whose in-network primary care is hours from campus. Emergency-only or urgent-care-only coverage outside the home network fails for the same reason. Before you submit, call the number on your insurance card and ask specifically whether there are in-network providers near NC State.
Information to Gather Before You Log In
Entering the wrong policy number is one of the fastest ways to get an automatic denial, and resubmitting eats into your deadline window. Pull the following from your insurance card and policy documents first:
- Member ID number
- Group number
- Full legal name of the insurance carrier
- Member services phone number (verification may call to confirm coverage)
- Primary subscriber’s name, date of birth, and relationship to you, if you are on a parent’s or spouse’s plan
- Policyholder’s employer name, if the coverage is through a workplace group plan
Confirm the policy will stay active through the whole semester. A plan that lapses mid-term will not satisfy the requirement, and you would be enrolled in Student Blue after the fact.
Submitting Through the Student Blue Portal
The waiver is submitted online through the Student Blue portal, the official insurance management site for NC State students.5North Carolina State University. Health Insurance Requirement Sign in with your university credentials, open the waiver application, and enter the policy information into the designated fields.
Review every field before submitting. The confirmation screen displays a unique confirmation number. Save it or take a screenshot. If your account still shows the premium weeks later, that confirmation number is your proof that you submitted on time.
After Submission
The system contacts your insurance carrier to verify the policy is active and meets coverage standards. If it passes, the university approves the waiver and emails your NC State address, and a credit is posted against the premium line on your student account, zeroing it out.5North Carolina State University. Health Insurance Requirement
If it is denied, the usual causes are a data entry error or a plan without adequate local provider access. You can correct and resubmit as long as the deadline has not passed.
International Students on F-1 or J-1 Visas
Beginning January 1, 2026, international students holding F-1 or J-1 visa status are required to enroll in the university-sponsored plan and generally cannot opt out.3NC State University Campus Health. UNC System Student Health Insurance Plan Limited exceptions exist. The standard waiver process above does not apply to most F-1 and J-1 students; contact Student Blue directly to ask whether your situation qualifies for one of the narrow exceptions.
Graduate Assistants on the GSSP Plan
Graduate students who receive health insurance through the Graduate School Supplemental Plan (the RA-TA plan) follow a different track. The Graduate School handles the waiver from the standard Student Blue plan on your behalf, and once you have waived out of the RA-TA plan itself, you stay in waiver status without resubmitting each semester.6NC State University. Do I Have to Enroll in the RA-TA Health Insurance Plan Through GSSP if I Have Other Coverage Watch for the transition between funding sources: students moving off an assistantship often see a premium charge reappear because the standard semester-by-semester waiver rule kicks back in.