Payment Options
The University of Cincinnati wants to make the payment of your bill as convenient and easy as possible. We offer several methods of payment including electronic check, credit card, personal check or money order, college savings plan, financial aid and tuition remission.
A non-refundable $30 service fee will be charged to a students account for payments returned for any reason. If a student has multiple returned payments, they could be required to make all future payments with certified funds such as a cashiers check or money order.
Online: eCheck/ACH or Credit Card
To pay your bills by electronic check or credit card, the university partners with Higher One to provide secure online payments via Transact 24 hour a day. This is our preferred method of payment as payments made via Transact will post to a students bill within minutes of confirmation.
To make a payment online, log in to the Catalyst Student Portal
- Click on the "My Finances" tile
- In the "Account Summary" click "MAKE A PAYMENT"
- You will be transferred to Transact securely hosted by our payment partner, Higher One.
Once the payer is transferred to Transact payers will be offered eCheck/ACH or credit card as a method of payment. The eCheck/ACH payment method is free when you utilize your bank account and bank routing number.
There is a non-refundable convenience fee to pay by credit card. Effective July 5th, 2023, the convenience fee is 2.85% (previously 2.75%) when using a U.S. credit card and 4.25% when using an international credit card. The minimum service fee for card transactions over $20 and less than $106 will be $3.00
*Please note, debit cards should not be used. Instead payers should select the eCheck/ACH option and enter the bank account and routing number of the bank account which is not the same as the debit card number.
Parents, grandparents, a spouse, etc. who want to pay a student's bill will first need to be given parent/guest access to Catalyst. The UC student will initiate this process in Catalyst.
To make a payment online login to the Catalyst Parent Portal
- Click the "Delegated Access" tile
- Select "Financial" on the left side of the page
- Click "Pay Bill"
- You will be transferred to Transact securely hosted by our payment partner, Higher One
Once the payer is transferred to Transact payers will be offered 2 methods of payment, eCheck/ACH or credit card. This payment method is free when you utilize your bank account and bank routing number.
There is a non-refundable convenience fee to pay by credit card. The convenience fee is 2.75% when using a U.S. credit card and 4.25% when using an international credit card. Please note, debit cards are processed as credit cards and will be charged the convenience fee or be rejected from processing by your financial institution.
If you have delegated access for multiple students, you will follow the same steps mentioned above. Once in Transact, you can alternate between students by clicking "View a different student" to the right of the displayed students name in the "Overview."
By Mail
To pay your bills by mail via check or money order (DO NOT MAIL CASH) make checks and money orders payable to the "University of Cincinnati". Include the student’s name and UC ID on the check or money order. Students will receive an email notification once the payment is received and posted.
For the U.S. Postal Service mail your payment to:
University of Cincinnati
PO Box 932605
Cleveland, OH 44193
For other courier services such as FedEx or UPS send your payment to:
University of Cincinnati
Box 932605
4100 West 150th Street
Cleveland, OH 44135
College Savings Plan
Students and those with delegated access have the option to select “New 529 Savings Plan” as the payment method in Transact.
Students: Log in to the Catalyst Student Portal
- Click on the "My Finances" tile
- In the "Account Summary" click "MAKE A PAYMENT"
- You will be transferred to Transact securely hosted by our payment partner, Higher One.
Parents/Delegates: Log in to the Catalyst Parent Portal
- Click the "Delegated Access" tile
- Select "Financial" on the left side of the page
- Click "Pay Bill"
- You will be transferred to Transact securely hosted by our payment partner, Higher One
Once the payer is transferred to Transact payers will be offered "529 Savings Plan" as a method of payment.
Those who do not have delegated access can also send a payment directly from their provider to U.C. When a payer logs into a college savings account and selects to make a withdrawal, they would select to have the funds sent directly to the school via electronic payment. The payer would then select the University of Cincinnati from the school drop-down.
Please note, there is a $10 service fee for all 529 electronic payments that will be deducted from your 529 plan account in addition to the requested withdrawal amount.
While electronic payment is our preferred method to receive funds, there is still the option to have a check mailed from your provider.
If having a check mailed, please direct your account administrator to make checks payable to the "University of Cincinnati". They will also need to include the student’s name and UC ID (M#) on the check. We recommend contacting your College Savings account administrator at least 4 weeks before the fee payment deadline to ensure that the funds are received by the due date.
For the U.S. Postal Service they should mail payment to:
University of Cincinnati
PO Box 932605
Cleveland, OH 44193
The University of Cincinnati does not invoice college savings plans, including Florida Prepaid. Your educational savings plan provider will accept a copy of your term bill when you submit your request.
Financial Aid
With the exception of Federal Work-Study, your financial aid funds will apply directly to your online bill. Pending aid disburses 10 days before the start of your classes. You can view your scheduled disbursement date by clicking the “My Finances” tile in Catalyst followed by “Manage Financial Aid” on the left side of the page. Then click “View Financial Aid” and select the academic year. A disbursement schedule for each semester is listed. Next to each semester is a hyperlink that reads “View Scheduled Disbursement Date.”
Outstanding Financial Aid Checklist items on your to-do list can delay the disbursment of your financial aid.
Tuition Remission
Tuition remission is available for eligible faculty, staff and dependents according to the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees Rules and Regulations.
The tuition remission program for faculty and staff pays the instructional fee and various other fees for eligible employees who take courses at the University of Cincinnati.
The tuition remission program for dependents (spouse/domestic partner/unmarried dependent children) pays the instructional fee and the Non-Resident Surcharge (if applicable) only for eligible dependents who take courses at the University of Cincinnati. General fees, co-op fees, books, room and board, late fees, application fees, confirmation fees, etc., are not covered by tuition remission.
Details regarding UC's Tuition Remission Policy, including the necessary application and certification forms and be found at Human Resource's Tuition Remission Site.