Paying Your Bill

Paying your semester bill by the due date is an important step to avoid a late fee and ensure that you can enroll in courses in the future. You can view and pay your bill in LionPATH.

You will receive an email to your Penn State email account when your bill is available. Your bill will reflect any financial aid that you have been awarded and accepted. If you participate in a payment plan, you will be billed accordingly.

Bills are generated beginning in August for fall, January for spring, and May for summer. If you schedule courses earlier for an upcoming semester, you will not receive your bill earlier for that semester. Your space in the courses will be reserved, and you will receive your bill for those courses in August, January, or May, depending on the semester.

You will receive a new monthly billing statement whenever there is activity on your account, even if charges and credits are equal and result in a balance of $0.

If you do not pay your bill by the due date on your billing statement, a 1.5 percent late-payment fee will be added and an enrollment hold will be placed on your account. You will not be able to enroll in any additional courses until you pay your bill, and any future semester courses you may be enrolled in will be canceled.

You can always contact the Penn State World Campus Bursar Office for billing questions at 814-863-8300 or [email protected].

To view the detailed list of cost of attendance elements:

Bill Payment and Receipts

You will receive an email to your Penn State email account when your bill becomes available for you to view and pay in LionPATH. You can review tutorials to learn more about viewing and paying your bill.

Credit Card

Penn State accepts MasterCard, Discover, American Express, and VISA for bill payment in LionPATH. If you choose to pay with a credit card, a 2.25% service fee will be added. Penn State cannot accept credit card payments by mail, phone, or in person.

Electronic Check

The electronic check option allows you to pay your bill directly from a personal checking account drawn on a U.S. bank. There is no surcharge to pay by electronic check. To make an electronic check payment, you will need to provide the routing and account numbers for your checking account.

Pay by Mail

You may pay by sending a check or money order, made payable to Penn State, to:

The Pennsylvania State University  
Office of the Bursar  
103 Shields Building  
University Park, PA 16802-1200

Please include your Penn State ID on your check or money order. Your canceled check will serve as your receipt. Penn State does not accept post-dated checks. Please do not mail cash.

Your payment must be received by the due date indicated on your bill to avoid the 1.5% late payment fee. Please allow time for processing (5–7 business days) for payments sent by mail. In addition, returned checks will invoke a $25 Returned Item Fee.

Flywire for International Payments

Students who need to send international payments for their tuition can use Flywire, Penn State’s preferred international payment method. You can find more information on the Penn State Office of the Bursar website. 

The Penn State World Campus Bursar Office can provide an itemized receipt for your payment if you need one for any reason. To request an itemized receipt, please submit the itemized receipt request form. We will review and process your request within two business days.

Payment Plans and Programs

Penn State's Installment Payment Plan allows you to pay over a period of several months, with payments divided into equal portions of the semester's charges. The first payment is payable by the original due date of the tuition bill, and the remaining amount is payable over the subsequent months.

For the fall and spring semesters, you can pay over a period of four months, with each payment equal to one quarter of the semester's charges. For the summer semester, you can pay over a period of three months, with each payment equal to one third of the semester's charges.  

There is a $45 fee to use this plan, payable with the first payment.

For more information, visit the Penn State Office of the Bursar website.

World Campus offers an employer reimbursement and tuition deferment program to students whose employers offer tuition reimbursement. The program allows you to defer your tuition payments until completion of the semester with no finance or interest charges. This program should not be used by students who use authorizations to bill or third-party vouchers to pay their tuition.

To participate in this program, you will need to submit an online application. Find complete details and submit the application on our Employer Reimbursement and Tuition Deferment Program page.

Third-Party Payment and Financial Aid

Payment of your tuition and fees may be made by a third party — your company, for example. If your company is paying for your tuition and fees, our Penn State World Campus Bursar Office must receive an Authorization to Bill or voucher. An Authorization to Bill is a letter from your company on letterhead and must include your name, semester, company name, company address, and payment amount.

Please submit your Authorization to Bill or employer voucher using our payment document upload form. If you have questions, please call our office at 814-863-8300.

Once the Authorization to Bill or voucher is received, Penn State will adjust your tuition as showing expected payment, and the company will be billed. Your employer must then pay your tuition within 30 days. 

If you plan to use financial aid to pay your bill, you will need to accept any financial aid that you are awarded. After you accept your aid, it will be applied to your bill and your balance will be adjusted accordingly. Your bill will reflect any financial aid you have in anticipated status, as long as you have completed all items in your LionPATH To-Do List. To learn more about accepting your financial aid, you can view a tutorial on the LionPATH Support page in the Payment and Financial Aid section.

If you are due a refund of excess financial aid, you will receive it after your aid disburses. Plan to pay for everything you need to begin courses, including books and materials, without relying on your refund. To have your refund directly deposited into your bank account, enroll in eRefund in LionPATH. 

Changes in Course Registration and Your Bill

Your individual circumstances, including full-time or part-time status and financial aid, may affect adjustments to your bill for dropped courses. There are a few things to remember when considering dropping or adding a course:

  • If you drop or add courses before the regular drop/add deadline, and then pay your bill, your balance due will reflect your course drop or addition.
  • If you pay your bill earlier, and then drop or add courses, your bill will reflect those changes in the following month.
  • You will not be charged for courses that you drop before the regular drop deadline.
  • If you drop courses after the regular drop deadline, you will be charged for a portion of the course according to Penn State’s tuition adjustment schedule.

Drop deadlines differ depending on the start and end dates of your courses. Find additional details on our Adding and Dropping Courses webpage.

Additional Resources for Paying Your Bill

Form to upload a letter of credit, employer voucher, military Tuition Assistance, or SF-182
Eligibility, application, and approval requirements and the application form for this program
Form and instructions to request an itemized receipt