Payments received by the University that cannot be processed or cashed by the bank are considered "Returned Checks". A payment may be classified as such for a variety of reasons, including: insufficient funds, an incorrect account number, use of a non-transaction account, stop payment, etc. 

University Policy for Returned Checks or Electronic Payments

When a check or electronic payment, hereinafter referred to as a check, is returned to the University, a $25 service charge is assessed. The debtor has ten days from the date of the notice to make full payment by:

• Cash
• Cashier's Check
• Credit Card
• Money Order
• 529 Plan Check

(EFT, eCheck and Personal Checks cannot be used to resolve the balance on the What I Owe website.)

Failure to comply by the given deadline will result in refusal by the University to accept future personal checks. If the returned check was used to confirm registration or clear a financial hold, the student's registration will be canceled and additional charges may be incurred in addition to the $25 service charge.

No Personal Check Restriction

The University will not accept a personal check from an individual who:

• previously had their registration canceled because of a returned check
• wrote a dishonored check to clear a financial hold
• was not responsive to requests for payment after writing a dishonored check
• habitually writes bad checks, even if restitution is promptly made

Once an individual is restricted from writing a personal check, the restriction remains in place for a minimum of one year from the date the returned check balance is paid. After the year has passed, the debtor may submit a formal appeal to the Returned Check section of Accounting and Financial Management for review to see if an exception will be made and the restriction may be lifted.

Redepositing Returned Checks

The University does not redeposit payments that have been returned by the bank for any reason. A new method of payment must be submitted in place of the returned check by the deadline given.

Reissued Checks

The Returned Checks section does not handle the reissuance of checks sent by the University. If a University check or payment needs to be reissued, please contact the Payment Information department.   

Donor Checks

When a donor check received by the University is returned, the original check will be retained in the Student Accounts Receivable Office or Development Office for reference. The Development Office or receiving department will make further contact with the donor for resolution. No service charge is incurred for these returned checks. 

Outside Scholarship Checks

When a scholarship check awarded to a student from an external source is returned as unable to process by the bank, the University charges back the original provider that issued the check. Enrollment Management will contact the student so they can work with their scholarship provider to resolve and reissue the check if appropriate. If no resolution with the provider occurs, the scholarship award will be removed from the student’s award package, and in cases where the fund disbursed, the student may be billed for the disbursed scholarship amount. In these cases, the student will be contacted directly about their cancelled scholarship with details for repayment.

Investment Checks or Credit Card Promotional Checks

The University of Texas at Austin does not accept investment checks from investment management companies or promotional checks received from credit card companies. Our e-check system is not equipped to handle such checks, as they are usually not tied to a particular bank account. These checks are processed differently than conventional checks. If a payment is attempted using one of these checks, the payment will be treated as a returned check and will incur a $25 service charge.