Refunds
Why sign up for Direct Deposit with UW Whitewater?
You may have your financial aid or overpayment refunds deposited directly into your U.S. bank account:
- No lost or stolen checks
- Don't have to go to your bank
- Funds are available sooner
An overpayment of charges will result in a credit (negative) balance on the student account.
Refunds (negative balances) are generally processed on Tuesday and Thursdays with some exceptions. In the event of a catastrophic event, students will receive the services for with they have paid unless the University deems compensation is warranted for services not received. Refunds are either mailed by check or deposited electronically into the students bank checking account.
For a quicker initial refund, sign up for e-Refunding to get your money electronically deposited into the bank account of your choice. To sign up for e-Refunding, follow the e-Refunding instructions [PDF]. Once you have set up your refund/payment profile, your refund check will be deposited in approximately 2-3 business days after it has posted to your student account on WINS. The processing time varies by banking institution. Students will receive an email to their UWW email address. The funds will be available to you as soon as they are deposited. All future refunds will be direct deposited into the account you set up.
Benefits include: eliminating of mailing time, address issues and checking theft.
The University can direct deposit to any U.S. financial institution with electronic funds transfer capabilities. Most banks participate in the electronic funds transfer network. Contact your bank if you have any questions about the bank's ability to accept direct deposit.
If you do not have a bank account, you can expect your refund to be delayed. Any refunds that cannot be processed electronically will be processed as a paper check and mailed to your local address; when school is in session and to your home address; when school is not in session.
Title IV financial aid will be disbursed on or prior to the first day of classes if it is available. Title IV financial aid will be used to pay any remaining balance on students' accounts before refunds will be issued, if authorized. Federal regulations require that the University apply your Title IV financial aid funds to "allowable charges", which are tuition, mandatory segregated fees, course fees, and housing and meal charges contracted with the University. UW-Whitewater allows many departments to assess charges to your student account in order to consolidate billing. Some of these "non-allowable charges" might include parking permits, bookstore charges, health center services, graduation fees, library fines, activation fees, finance charges and other miscellaneous charges. The charges will be your responsibility to pay by the due date on your billing statement, as they would also not be charges eligible for any payment plan. If left unpaid, it could delay any excess aid that may be ready to refund to you. If left unpaid after the due date, it could lead to a past due balance, an assessment of additional finance charges and it would put you at risk of having your classes cancelled for non-payment.Refunds will be delayed if a past due balance exists on the student account. During the term any excess aid will be used to pay allowable charges in the same 28 day billing cycle.
To authorize payment of other charges, click on "Student Financial Account" tile, click on "Student Permissions" tile, click on "TITLEIV_MS", and follow the screens from there. You will get a confirmation you can print out if needed, and your aid should automatically pay charges upon disbursement.
Please note: pay plan activation fees and finance charges cannot be covered by Title IV funds, so students will need to cover these, if applicable, with other funds. If non-federal aid is present on the student's account, it can be used to cover these charges.
If you do not have a bank account, you can expect your refund to be delayed. Any refunds that cannot be processed electronically will be processed as a paper check and mailed to your local address; when school is in session and to your home address; when school is not in session.