Benefits & Total Rewards / NYSHIP

Coverage for your partner.
A clearer path.

Domestic partner documents & proofs

Understand eligibility, gather the right documents, and prepare for domestic partner health insurance coverage.

18+

Age

Both partners must be at least 18 years old.

01

Marital status

Both partners must be unmarried.

02

Relationship

You must not be related in a way that would bar marriage in New York State.

03

Shared home

You must live together and have shared the same residence for at least six months.

04

Commitment

You must have an exclusive mutual commitment to each other’s welfare, established for at least six months and expected to continue indefinitely.

05

Shared finances

You must be financially interdependent and share responsibility for basic financial obligations.

Category A / Shared financial responsibility

Two different proofs.

Provide two accepted forms of proof of your joint responsibility for basic financial obligations.

Proof 1 / Established partnership

At least six months old on the date you submit the form.

Proof 2 / Continuing partnership

Dated within six months of submission. It must be a different form of proof from the older document.

View all 14 accepted financial proofs

• A mortgage or lease held jointly.
• Shared ownership of your home.
• Joint wills, or naming either partner as executor and/or primary beneficiary.
• Naming your domestic partner as a life insurance or retirement beneficiary.
• Naming either partner as durable power of attorney. Health care proxy forms do not qualify.
• A shared loan obligation; a creditor’s affidavit may document a personal loan.
• A brokerage investment account owned jointly.
• A shared homeowners’ or renters’ insurance policy.
• Joint ownership or lease of a vehicle.
• Shared responsibility for child care costs, such as tuition or guardianship.
• A joint household budget used to receive government benefits.
• Authorized-user status on your partner’s bank, credit card or charge card account.
• One partner designated to receive government benefits as representative payee for the other.
• Joint bank, credit card or charge card statements, or a financial institution’s letter confirming the account’s effective date.

A newer statement from the same account is not enough.

If your older proof is a joint bank account statement, a newer statement from that same account cannot serve as your second financial proof.

Not accepted for financial responsibility

A vehicle insurance policy naming your partner only as a driver, or a phone bill naming your partner only as a user, does not qualify.

Category B / Proof of cohabitation

A shared residential address.

Provide at least one accepted form of proof that you and your partner live together.

Document age

Every cohabitation document must be at least six months old when you submit the form.

Names & address

Use one document showing both names, or two separate documents showing each partner at the same residential address.

View all 10 accepted cohabitation proofs

• A bank statement mailed to your residential address.
• A paycheck stub.
• A driver’s license or vehicle registration showing your residential address.
• An insurance benefits statement mailed to your residential address.
• A joint membership statement mailed to your residential address, such as a church or organization membership.
• A joint mortgage or lease.
• Shared ownership of your home.
• A tax return showing your residential address.
• A telephone or utility bill mailed to your residential address.
• Domestic partnership registration in a New York State municipality that provides this procedure.

Use a residential address.

A P.O. Box does not qualify as proof of cohabitation.

Check the date on every document.

All cohabitation proofs must be at least six months old when you submit the form.

1. 01
   Age

   You and your partner are each at least 18 years old.

2. 02
   Relationship

   You are not related in a way that would prevent marriage in New York State.

3. 03
   Your marital status

   You are not legally married to anyone. If divorced, include your divorce decree; if widowed, include your spouse’s death certificate. Legal separation does not end a marriage.

4. 04
   Your partner’s marital status

   Your partner is not legally married to anyone. If divorced, include their divorce decree; if widowed, include their spouse’s death certificate. Legal separation does not end a marriage.

5. 05
   Prior NYSHIP coverage

   Neither of you has had a domestic partner enrolled in NYSHIP within the last year.

6. 06
   Shared residence

   You have lived at the same residence for at least the last six months and have included the required cohabitation proofs.

7. 07
   Mutual commitment

   For at least the last six months, you have had an exclusive commitment to share responsibility for each other’s welfare and financial obligations. You expect it to last indefinitely and have included the required financial proofs.

8. 08
   Reporting changes

   As the enrollee, you understand that you must file PS-425.4 within 30 days if your partnership ends or you can no longer document one or more eligibility requirements.

Application / April 2026

Enroll a domestic partner

Read the PS-425 instructions for the application and full supporting-document requirements.

Open PS-425 application (PDF)   ↗

Change in eligibility / January 2026

Report the end of a partnership

File PS-425.4 within 30 days after the partnership ends or you can no longer provide the required proof of eligibility.

Open PS-425.4 termination form (PDF)   ↗

hrs_benefits@stonybrook.edu   ↗