A charge from FACTS Management on your bank or credit card statement is a tuition-related payment processed on behalf of a private or parochial school your child attends or has applied to. FACTS, a division of Nelnet, handles tuition billing for more than 11,500 K-12 schools, so when a school uses the service, the debit appears under the FACTS name rather than the school’s.1Nelnet. FACTS – A Nelnet Company The charge is almost always one of a handful of specific things.
What the Charge Is Likely To Be
The most common FACTS debit is a scheduled tuition installment. When a family enrolls in a payment plan, annual tuition is split into monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or annual drafts pulled automatically from the bank account or card on file.
Beyond regular tuition, several other charges routinely show up under the FACTS name:
- An enrollment fee, processed within 14 days of signing up for a payment plan. The amount is set by the school. Some charge $25 for one- or two-payment plans and $55 for plans with three or more payments; others list fees between $45 and $90 depending on frequency. The enrollment fee is nonrefundable.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs3SS. Peter and Paul Martyrs School. FACTS Tuition Payments Instructions4Germantown Friends School. FACTS Brochure 2023-24
- A returned-payment fee of $30 per failed attempt when a scheduled draft bounces. The school may add its own separate fee on top.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs5Blessed Sacrament School. FACTS Tuition Payment Plan Information 2024-2025
- A credit or debit card convenience fee if you paid by card. The standard domestic credit card rate runs about 2.95% to 3.05% of the transaction, and ACH (electronic check) payments may carry a flat $2.50 fee. Schools can adjust the rate.6St. Mary School Riverside. FACTS Tuition Payments
- A Peace of Mind fee of $22.50, which covers remaining tuition (up to $30,000) if the plan owner or their legal spouse dies during the school year. Some schools make it optional, some make it mandatory, and some don’t offer it. The fee is nonrefundable.7Westbury Evangelical Academy. Peace of Mind Benefit
- A financial aid application fee, typically $35 to $45, charged by credit card when a family submits a FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment application. It is nonrefundable.8North Hills Christian School. FACTS Financial Aid Information9FCA STL. FACTS Grant and Aid Payment Plans
- Incidental billing. Many schools push non-tuition charges through FACTS too, including field trips, lunch orders, after-care, and lab fees. Each one appears as its own debit with its own due date and any late fees set by the school.10IHM Grade School. FACTS Processing and Incidental Billing
How To Identify Your Specific Charge
The fastest way to see what a charge was for is to log in to the parent portal at online.factsmgt.com. Payment history, current balances, and upcoming scheduled drafts are all there.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs The portal will show whether the debit was a tuition installment, a returned-payment fee, an enrollment fee, or an incidental item billed by the school.
If the portal doesn’t answer the question, FACTS runs a toll-free support line at 866-441-4637.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs Representatives can explain what a line item is and confirm its status. Keep in mind that FACTS processes payments for the school, and the school controls the tuition amount, late fees, refund policies, and whether a charge can be waived. When the question is “why was I charged this much?” rather than “what is this line item?”, the school’s business office is the right call.
Changing, Delaying, or Canceling a Payment
Any change to a scheduled payment (the amount, the date, or the bank account or card on file) has to be submitted at least two business days before the next automatic draft.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs You can update banking information yourself in the portal or by calling FACTS. Changes to the payment amount or the schedule itself require the school’s approval first.
Some schools let parents delay up to three payments by up to five business days through the portal’s “Schedule” tab. If you don’t see that option on your account, the school hasn’t enabled it, and you’ll need to call the school to request a postponement.11FACTS Management. Caregiver FAQs
To cancel a payment plan outright, contact the school rather than FACTS. The school initiates the termination. Canceling the FACTS agreement does not erase the underlying tuition balance owed to the school, and the school may demand immediate payment of whatever is left. The enrollment fee paid at setup stays nonrefundable regardless of when the plan ends.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs
When a Payment Bounces
What happens after a failed draft depends on the payment frequency. On monthly plans, FACTS automatically reschedules the attempt 15 days later and will retry up to three times before marking the account “Unresolved.” On weekly or biweekly plans there is no automatic retry, so you have to log in and pay manually or contact the school.11FACTS Management. Caregiver FAQs
Every failed attempt triggers the $30 FACTS returned-payment fee.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs Schools commonly stack their own charges on top. One school’s published policy adds a $25 NSF fee per occurrence plus escalating $25 late fees at 30, 60, and 90 days past due.12Holy Child Academy. Tuition Payment and Collection Policy Because each school sets its own late-fee schedule, the total penalty for a missed draft varies widely. Once an account is marked “Unresolved,” you have to work with the school to bring it current.
Does FACTS Report to Credit Bureaus?
FACTS does not report delinquent accounts to credit bureaus.2FACTS Management. Parent FAQs A school with an unpaid balance can still choose to send the debt to a collection agency on its own, and that could reach your credit report through a different channel.