If a third party such as an employer, government agency, or other sponsoring agency, will be paying all or a portion of the student’s educational expenses directly to Northwest University (NU) on the student’s behalf, and the third party requires an invoice or itemized statement from Student Financial Services (SFS) the following steps must occur.
- An Education Authorization from the third party must be received by SFS on or before the last day payment is due for the semester or the add/drop period—whichever is earlier.
- The Northwest University Third Party Billing Form must be completed and submitted to Student Financial Services.
Examples of Third Party Payment Sponsors at Northwest University: Boeing, Verizon, UPS, Dept. of Health and Human Services, all Active Duty Military, etc.
Once the above items have been received the University will submit an invoice to the third party listed on the forms above.
Please be aware the amount received from the third party will, in most cases, impact the amount of other financial aid you are eligible to receive.
Third Party/Billing Authorization
An authorization documents a sponsor’s commitment to pay designated educational expenses and begins the University’s invoice process.
A third party authorization may be a voucher, letter of credit, training plan, or tuition assistance form, and must be signed by an officer of the organization. ANY restrictions or contingencies on the authorization are unacceptable. For instance, if the agency requires grade or transcript review before paying, the University will not authorize third party billing. In such cases, the student must pay the full amount owed by the required payment due date given to you by your Student Financial Services Counselor and then must seek reimbursement from the organization/company.
It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that authorizations are received by Student Financial Services on or before the last day payment is due for the semester or the add/drop period for each term—whichever is earlier, (in some cases, each course*) to avoid late fees. Late fees will be assessed if forms are received after the add/drop period.
The authorization must be printed on company letterhead and must contain the following:
- Student's full name (first and last) and NU student id number
- If applicable, voucher id, or other billing codes
- Amount of the sponsorship
- Fees and charges that will be paid by the third party, such as tuition, housing, travel fees, program fees
- ID and title of courses that will be covered by the third party
- Term or duration of program, exact start and end dates of the covered period (If the third party wishes to continue payment after the end date, a new authorization must be submitted)
- Name, billing email, and telephone number of the contact person at the company/organization that is responsible for payment
- Any special billing instructions that specify what they will pay, the period of coverage, and billing information.
*Boeing Learning Together Program (LTP) — Students enrolled as Graduate or in the Northwest Partnership Program will need to submit a voucher by the end of each add/drop period for each course enrolled.
U.S. Government Agency, Army, Air Force, etc. — Please contact your branch education counselor. Then, once you have your Voucher / Tuition Assistance Form, please forward it to SFS.
You can email your vouchers/authorizations to Cristhian Alvarado in Student Financial Services at cristhian.alvarado@northwestu.edu.
Timing of University Invoice
Third party billing statements, invoices, and itemized statements are prepared after the add/drop period to limit changes that might impact the amount due for tuition and fees. Billing statements can be emailed, mailed, or faxed directly to the sponsoring agency.
Third Party Payment Delayed or Not Received
Sponsors are expected to remit payment within 30 days of the billing due date of the invoice. If for any reason Northwest University does not receive payment from your sponsor/organization/company for the invoiced charges, within 60 days of the billing date, you will be responsible for the balance on your account including late fees.
Reimbursement to Student, Not Northwest University
Due to Federal regulations, third party payments are subject to the same federal reporting requirements as other financial aid. You will need to provide the following:
- Complete the Third Party Billing Application. Be sure to answer the question: Do they reimburse you directly or send funds to NU?
- Name of your third party or employer and the tuition reimbursement program.
- How much do they reimburse per course, term, year, or academic year? How much will you be receiving?
- Is there is a limit to how much will be reimbursed?
Tuition and Fees Due
Tuition and fees are due by the payment due date given by your Student Financial Services Counselor to avoid late fees or administrative removal from the semester. The third party billing payment is due 30 days from the date of invoicing. If payment from the third party is not received within 60 days of the invoice date, late fees will not be reversed from your account and you will be responsible for the past due balance in full including late fees.
You must pay your portion of the bill (net balance owed) by the due date; if you do not, your account will be assessed late payment fees and, in some cases, you can be administratively unenrolled from classes.
If your third party payment has not yet been received when it is time for you to register for the next term, it may be advisable to pay your account in full and then be reimbursed by your employer. A balance on your account will block registration for future terms.
Late Fees
A late fee of 1.5% of the owing balance will be automatically assessed at the end of each month. Late fees will only be reversed IF:
- All required documents were submitted to SFS before the last day of the add drop period.
- The third party payment was received within 60 days from the billing date.
- You had paid your portion of the net balance owed.
You will be unable to register for future quarters or obtain official academic transcripts or diplomas until your outstanding balance is paid in full.
If unpaid, the owing balance may be referred to a collection agency. You will be responsible for those additional fees of up to 40% or more added to your outstanding balance.
Student Responsibility
- If you are applying for or receiving financial aid you must report any third party payment to SFS. Third party payments are subject to the same federal reporting requirements as other financial aid and may affect aid offered.
- The Third Party cannot be invoiced any items that are not posted to your student account.
- SFS does not submit grades or transcripts. You are responsible for providing any additional information required by the sponsoring agency.
- It is your responsibility to notify SFS if there are changes to the terms of your contract.
- SFS only bills for students whose billing agreement includes the current term information.
- Some sponsors only pay approved courses and fees. It is your responsibility to determine what charges your sponsor plans to pay and know the requirements for you to receive their funds.
- You are responsible for paying your portion of the bill by the due date to avoid late payment fees.
When Payment is Received
Third party payments are processed through the Accounting and SFS offices as soon as they are received in the order they are received. After the payment is processed it will be posted to your student account (Eagle). You can check if the third party payment has been posted to your account by logging into your Eagle account at https://eagle.northwestu.edu/my-account/.
If you do not see the third party payment posted on your account and there has been adequate time for processing, we may not have received the funds. Please contact your sponsor to ask about the status of your payment. If it has been sent, please allow time for us to receive and process the payment.
If you have additional questions or need further information, please contact Cristhian Alvarado in Student Financial Services, by email cristhian.alvarado@northwestu.edu or by phone 425-889-6174.