MIT’s overpayment policy pertains to payments made by a student, their family, and/or sponsors. Overpayment refers to a payment to MIT that far exceeds the amount that is owed.
Overpayments made by certain third parties, certified by SFS, such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, are not subject to this policy. Overpayments/refunds as a result of federal loans and/or scholarships certified by SFS are also exempt.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology does not meet criteria to be considered a “Financial Institution” as defined in 31. U.S. Code § 5312. As a result, MIT is not allowed to accept payments for purposes other than educational expenses determined by the Institute. In addition, because we are not a financial institution, we are not able to transfer funds to a U.S. bank account on behalf of a student.
SFS can only accept funds on a per term basis to cover a student’s educational expenses while enrolled at MIT. MIT does not allow for pre-payment of future terms. Students are expected to pay as they are billed each term. The Institute will only accept payments to cover billed charges per term.
Students are responsible for notifying SFS of all sources of funding each semester. If a student receives any departmental, sponsorship, or other sources of funding that create an overpayment in excess of billed charges, beyond a nominal amount, MIT may return the overpayment to the original source, at the expense of the payer.
Due to federal anti-money laundering laws, MIT can only allow for a small overpayment beyond billed charges throughout the year. The Institute will only allow students to overpay billed charges up to $2,000 per academic year. The excess may remain on the account to offset minimal changes in billed charges, or may be refunded to a student to cover minor educational expenses. Overpayments exceeding $2,000 will be returned in their entirety to the payer via the original payment method at the expense of the payer.