Eligibility Guidelines

For Students

Residence Hall Permits

  • Available to ISU students with a housing contract.
  • Eligibility is based on the housing contract and available spaces in specific lots.
  • Permit may be revoked if no longer under a housing contract and/or part of the university.

Commuter Permits

  • Available to ISU students who live off-campus.
  • Permits can be purchased for the following lots:
    • Lot 29, 68, 119
    • Lot 93 is also available based on eligibility

Stadium Permits

  • Available to all ISU students
  • Allows overnight parking

For Faculty and Staff

General and Reserved Permits for Employees

  • Employees paid by ISU (including affiliated organizations and ISU students) must purchase an ISU permit to park a personal vehicle on campus.
  • University funds cannot be used to pay for personal permits.
  • Employees provided with a university vehicle as part of their contract must personally purchase an ISU permit.
  • Important: ISU undergraduate students are NOT eligible for a faculty/staff permits.
  • Graduate students working 75% or more are eligible for General Staff permits and must contact the parking office for purchasing.

Permits for University Vehicles

  • Permits for university vehicles (not part of an employment contract) can be purchased with university funds.

For Departments

Additional Permits for Departments

  • Departments can use university funds to purchase departmental permits for staff/vendors who need temporary or short-term access to campus areas.
  • In rare cases where parking is limited, or access is needed for a longer time, departments may purchase general or reserved permits to improve efficiency.
  • To prevent misuse, departments should keep permits in administrative offices and check them out as needed.

Permits for Temporary Visitors/Volunteers

  • Departments may purchase permits for temporary visitors or volunteers who are not on the university payroll.

Permits Purchased from Federal Funds

  • Permits purchased with federally funded sponsored accounts must include a business justification to document the purpose of the permit for the sponsored project.

For Employees Working Off Campus

  • Employees working away from campus, without access to ISU parking, may use permits purchased by their department for temporary or short-term access to campus areas.

Permit Agreements

I have read and understood the following.

License Plate Recognition

  • ISU has 3 parking enforcement vehicles with cameras that read license plates.
  • These vehicles can cover the entire campus multiple times a day.
  • The cameras match license plates with information in the permit database to verify vehicles are parked in an authorized area.

Eligibility for Parking

  • Parking permit eligibility is based on your status as a student, faculty or staff member, university affiliate, or visitor.
  • View the permit eligibility guidelines above.

No Bailment Contract: Park at Your Own Risk

  • When you pay to park at ISU, you're renting a space, not paying for protection. You assume the risk of your vehicle and its contents being stolen or damaged.
  • ISU is not responsible for any loss or damage to your vehicle.

License Plates and Permits

Your License Plate is Your Permit

  • In most cases, your license plate is your virtual parking permit.

Responsibility

  • You must keep your license plate and vehicle information up to date with Parking Services.
  • Failure to update information will result in a fine.
  • How to update the vehicle associated with your permit:

Clear Display

  • Your license plate must be free of snow, dirt, or debris.
  • Failure to display it clearly will result in a fine.

Where You Can Park

  • You can only park in the lots allowed by your permit.

Rental and Loaner Vehicles

  • Do not add rental or loaner vehicles to your personal account.
  • Use the Loaner Vehicle Form  to update your permit temporarily.
  • If renting for longer than a week, note how long you believe it'll be for on the text box.

Multiple Vehicles

  • You can only park one vehicle on campus at a time with your permit.
  • If multiple vehicles are found using the same permit, the second vehicle will be ticketed.

Parking Rules and Permit Information

  • View the permit eligibility guidelines above.

Full Parking Rules

Permit Validity

Permit Refund Policy

Visitor Permits

Rental/Loaner Vehicles

  • If you add a rental or loaner vehicle to your account, email parking@iastate.edu or call 515-294-3388 to ensure it's linked correctly.

Financial Responsibility

  • You are responsible for any citations received while a vehicle is linked to your account.

Who is Not a Visitor

  • Students, faculty, staff, vendors, contractors, and other ISU affiliates are not considered visitors and cannot request a visitor permit for themselves or others.

Unauthorized Visitor Permits

  • It’s a violation if a student, faculty, staff, vendor, contractor, or other ISU affiliates have a visitor permit in their name.
  • Unauthorized possession of a visitor permit can result in a minimum $150 citation.

Nonrefundable Permits

  • All permits are nonrefundable.

Football Game Parking

  • Visitor permits are not valid in student residence lots on football game days, except for lots 112, 201, and 202.