About Guaranteed Education Tuition (GET)
The 2022-23 enrollment period is closed, GET annual enrollment is open Nov 1 to May 31.
The GET program is Washington's 529 prepaid college tuition plan that helps families with young children save for future higher education expenses. The State of Washington guarantees that the value of your account will keep pace with the cost of college tuition, no matter how much it changes in the future. The earlier you start, the more time you have to save and the greater the opportunity for increased value of your GET account. GET account values are measured in "units," where 100 units equals the cost of one year of resident, undergraduate tuition and state-mandated fees at Washington’s highest priced public university. Individual units are valued at 1/100th of that cost. You can buy Lump Sum units in whole or partial amounts, from one to 800 units per student. Note: custom monthly payment plans were not available for the 2022-23 Enrollment period.
GET opened in 1998 as a way to help families save for their child's future higher education. Since then, more than 57,000 students have used over $1.2 billion in GET benefits to help pay for qualified higher education expenses at colleges, universities, and technical schools nationwide and around the world. Here are just some of the features that have made GET a popular program for Washington families:
State guarantee
Your GET account is guaranteed to keep pace with tuition and state-mandated fees at Washington’s highest priced public university. Your savings are not subject to the ups and downs of the stock market. The state guarantee is backed by the full faith and credit of the State of Washington. That means if future tuition increases ever require the program to pay out more money than it has available, the Legislature would be required by state law to provide funding to cover the shortfall. Washington's GET Program is one of only a few state prepaid college tuition plans in the country with a guarantee in state law (RCW 28B.95.050).
Choice of colleges nationwide
The value of each GET unit is tied to the cost of resident, undergraduate tuition and state-mandated fees at Washington's most expensive public university, but you can use your units to pay college costs practically anywhere in the country and even at schools around the world. Your GET account has the same monetary value whether your child attends a public university, a local community college or technical school, a private university, or a college in another state.
Tax-free savings and withdrawals
Because GET is a state 529 plan, the after-tax money you put in will grow tax-free. When your child is ready for college, the money you withdraw will remain tax-free, as long as you use it for qualified higher education expenses.
Flexibility and control
You can use your GET account not only for tuition, but also for room and board, books, computers, or other qualified expenses. If your child chooses not to go to college or receives a scholarship, you can transfer your account to another family member, hold onto your account for a change of plans, save it for graduate school, or even request a refund. And, unlike some other savings options, you, as the account owner, maintain complete control over the account and how the distributions are used.
Easy ways to save
You can buy units up front in one lump sum, set up monthly lump sum payments with automatic withdrawal (ACH), add funds when you have extra money to contribute, or choose a combination of methods. You decide how much and how often to save. If your needs or finances change, you can adjust your plan. You can open an account for anyone – your child, grandchild, friend or even yourself. The only requirement is that either the account owner or the student is a Washington resident when you enroll in the program. (Custom Monthly payment plans were not available for the 2022-23 Enrollment period. Visit the 2022 GET Program Adjustments page for important details.)
Enrollment Information
Open a GET account Nov 1 to May 31 annually.
- Review the 2022-2023 GET Enrollment Guide (as of November 1, 2022)
- Review the 2022-2023 GET Program Details Booklet (as of November 1, 2022)
- Find out how to get your college savings started
