Axe ’Em, Jacks!
SFA expects students to pay their accounts and loans when due. Failure to pay on time has consequences for students that may include late charges, registration/transcript holds, restricted access to institutional loans, or referral of the student account to an outside collection agency.
If your account is past due, Student Business Services will work with you. But if a solution cannot be worked out, the university follows the collection procedure outlined below:
- Late notices are mailed approximately 30 calendar days after the end of the term.
- Second notices are mailed approximately 30 calendar days after the date of the first letter.
- Uncollected accounts and loans may be referred to a collection agency approximately 90 to 120 calendar days after the end of the term.
As a last resort, accounts and loans are referred to outside collection agencies. You can avoid that action by working with Student Business Services to develop a mutually satisfactory repayment plan with reoccurring payments. However, if no response to our notifications is received or no cooperation is forthcoming, the university will proceed with formal collection action.
When your account is referred to an outside collection agency, the past due account will be reported to all national credit bureaus, and holds will be placed on your account. Please be aware that unlike consumer credit card debt, past due amounts owed to governmental agencies like SFA may stay on a credit report for an indefinite period — they do not "go away" after a few years. They may create difficulty later when you apply for a home mortgage or other types of credit.
Once your account is referred to an outside collection agency, you will be contacted by a representative of that agency. You then will make payments through that agency — not to the university. You also may be liable for collection fees in addition to your university account or loan balance.
Students, like any other debtor, have certain rights under federal law. Refer to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which outlines the duties and responsibilities of debtors, creditors and outside collection agencies.
At this time, the university has contracts with the following collection agencies:
Once your account is placed with an outside collection agency, it may not be recalled, and it will remain in collections until you pay the account in full.
For questions about your account, email Student Business Services at sbs@sfasu.edu.