Payment Plans
What is a payment plan?
A payment plan allows undergraduate students and authorized payers to pay during – rather than before the start of – a quarter. This means you have the flexibility to pay tuition and fees in smaller amounts, over time, rather than one lump sum before the first quarter’s billing due date.
The best part? You don't have to manually track your remaining payment amounts. The payment plan will automatically rebalance installments prior to each bill to reflect additional charges (rebalance up) or aid/funding (rebalance down) and let you know when your next payment is due.
Did we mention it’s free to sign up? Enjoy the benefits of this service with no additional charges. As long as you are paying the installments on time, you will avoid any late fees.
Am I eligible?
To qualify for the payment plan feature, you must meet the following criteria:
- A matriculated, undergraduate student*
- Enrolled in the current term
- US/Domestic checking or savings account for automatic payments
- No prior-term balances
*Coterm students on undergraduate billing are also included.
When can I sign up for a payment plan?
As long as you meet the eligibility criteria listed above, you will receive a payment plan offer email after the first bill of the quarter is posted. Please review the dates and deadlines below for additional information.
NOTE: Plan agreements cover the current quarter only. If you wish to participate in the plan for future quarters, you will need to sign up quarterly.
Payment Plan Important Dates
| Term | Dates to sign up for a 3-part payment plan | Due dates by quarter |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn | August 25 - September 19* | September 20, October 20, November 20 |
| Winter | November 25 - December 17* | December 18, January 20, February 20 |
| Spring | February 25 - March 19* | March 20, April 20, May 20 |
| Summer | Payment plans are not available in Summer quarter. |
*If you miss the sign up deadline for a 3-part payment plan, late fees will apply if you do not pay your full balance by the due date.
Eligible students who missed the first sign-up deadline may receive a 2-part payment plan offer after the first due date of the quarter. The 2-part payment plan will divide your balance between the second and third due dates of the quarter.
How do I set up my payment plan?
View the step-by-step instructions to set yourself up for a payment plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Yes, if you receive financial aid, you are eligible to enroll in the payment plan. If your financial aid will not cover your charges entirely, the payment plan will help split the payments throughout the term.
- Please contact Financial Aid during the payment plan sign-up period if you have questions regarding the anticipated aid that appears on your student financial account.
- If you have balances due in any prior terms, you are not eligible for a payment plan. (Payment plans cannot be used to consolidate or bring your financial account into good standing.)
- You will need to resolve prior-term debt in order to be eligible for a payment plan.
- You can edit the payment field to pay only the amount due for prior quarters.
- If you pay your prior-term balance and are still in a payment plan enrollment period, you should see the option to enroll the payment plan appear within 24-48 hours.
- No: payment plan deductions are taken automatically on the scheduled payment dates, unless you pay your entire balance in full.
- Making additional payment in advance will not substitute for future deductions. Rather, the additional payment will reduce the overall balance due so that the amount of each future automatic deduction will be smaller.
- Automatic deductions will result in an error if there are insufficient funds in your account or if incorrect payment information is supplied (such as wrong bank account number, incorrect routing number, etc.).
- The system will notify you via email of the error, and give you time to review and update your payment details, before finally reattempting the payment.
- If you fail to update your payment information and two consecutive payments are missed, the payment system will automatically notify you via email and cancel a current, active payment plan. This may affect eligibility for future payment plans.
- If your plans or circumstances change and you realize you no longer need a payment plan, please submit a help request to request cancellation.
- Cancellation timeline:
- Payment plans cannot be cancelled on a payment due date or withdrawal/deduction date.
- It can take up to three days for a request to process, so it’s important to submit this request as soon as you’re able. If it’s nearing a payment date, we cannot guarantee it will be processed due to timing.
- Payment plan due dates (or deduction/withdrawal dates) are aligned with the monthly billing due dates to try to simplify your bill payment process.
- If you want to take advantage of a payment plan, make sure you enroll during the published payment plan sign-up dates so you can avoid late fees.
- Any balances that remain unpaid or are not classified under a payment plan may result in the assessment of late fees.
- Payment plans are offered quarterly and you’ll be presented with another opportunity each term (Autumn, Winter, and Spring) — as long as you are eligible.
- If you miss the enrollment period for a three-part plan, you may be offered other options throughout the quarter.
- Stanford strives to provide easy and accommodating payment options for all students. Research and discovery efforts are currently underway to provide the best possible payment experience for all student audiences. Keep in mind the following options that are available now:
- Graduate students on assistantship can pay their bill over several months on a Payroll Deduction Plan.
- International students can make payment via Flywire.