FAQ's | Bursar's Office | SIU

• How can a parent or other third party view my account?
• What are "Fees"?
• What forms of payment are accepted?
• What is the address for mailing in payments?
• What are the costs for tuition and fees?
• What are the consequences of a returned payment?
• How do I get the STS fee and Student Insurance fee refunded to me?
• Where can I get my checks cashed?
• When can I access my bill?
• What if my bill is incorrect?
• If my bill is incorrect, should I wait for a corrected bill on salukinet?
• What happens if I can't make payment in full by the due date?
• How do I obtain a refund of an overpayment to my student account?
• How do I receive a refund (associated with tuition, fees, and/or financial aid)?
• What is Debit Dawg?
• What is a hold?
• What is "Illinois Tuition Subsidy"?
• Is it possible to receive a refund and still owe a balance on my student account?
• Why doesn't my 1098-T match what I paid/received ?
• Why has my College Illinois plan not paid into my account yet?
• I am a sponsored student. Where do I turn in my Sponsor/Third Party authorization form (financial guarantee)?

Don't see your question here, contact us.

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How can a parent or other third party view my account?

Your parent or other third party will need to have proxy access to your account to view your information. Granting proxy access is done through the Proxy User Management task on Salukinet, and instructions can be found on Salukitech’s website here: https://salukinet.siu.edu/task/all/proxy

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What are "Fees"?
These are mandatory fees paid by all students as a condition of enrollment regardless of whether the student utilizes the service. Please refer to the tuition and fee schedule on the Registrar's Office webpage. For more information, see Board of Trustee Policy on tuition, fees and charges. Return to top

What forms of payment are accepted?
We accept cash, checks, eChecks (electronic withdrawal from a checking or savings account,) credit/debit cards (additional service fee applies), and/or money orders as a form of payment for all charges that appear on your account. Make checks payable to SIUC, and please include your student ID number in the memo line. More information on  Payment Options is available online.  Return to top

What is the address for mailing in payments?
Payments should be mailed to:
SIUC Bursar
1263 Lincoln Dr.
Carbondale, IL 62901-4704

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What are the costs for tuition and fees?
The costs for tuition and fees for the current academic year are assessed by the Registration office, and can be found under the Registrar's Office ;webpage. The online calculator can be used to estimate your on-campus tuition and fees. Return to top

What are the consequences of a returned payment?
The amount of the returned payment will be charged back to the student's account. Additionally, a 2-week registration hold will be placed on the student account to ensure any future payments are not returned. In some instances, registration could be cancelled until payment is made by certified funds. For checks processed through our Nelnet online payment system, there is a $30.00 check penalty on all returned payments; for payments directly to the Bursar's Office, the penalty is $25.00. Return to top

How do I get the STS fee and Student Insurance fee refunded to me?
If a credit is desired, you must request it within the first two weeks of classes for the Spring/Fall semesters, or the first week of the Summer semester. For the student insurance refund, visit the  Student Health website for additional information and to apply online for the refund, or call (618) 453-4413. For the Student to Student Grant Fee (STS) you may download the request form or contact the  Registrar's Office at (618) 453-2968 for more information. Return to top

When can I access my billing statement (E-bill?)
Bills are available on Salukinet around the  15th and payment is generally due the  10th of the following month. For more information on electronic bills,  Click Here

To further assist you, click here for a look at the  billing calendar.  Return to top

What if my statement is incorrect?

The Bursar's Office cannot change, adjust, remove or add charges/credits to your statement. However, we can answer questions about your statement and assist in resolving errors. If you think you have been charged or credited incorrectly, you should contact the office responsible for originating the charge/credit. If you are unsure of who to contact or require additional assistance, please call us at (618)453-2221 or email us at bursar@siu.edu.  Return to top

If my statement is incorrect, should I wait for a corrected bill on Salukinet? 
No! We produce only one statement per month, and waiting for the new statement will only compound any problems. Once you contact the office responsible for correcting the problem, and receive their assurance that a correction will or will not be made, you may make your payment accordingly. You may also view your account activity through Salukinet using Current Account Detail task. Return to top

What happens if I can't make payment in full by the due date?

If you are unable to make payment in full, a 1.5% late payment charge will be assessed on the unpaid balance on the next statement date. Students will not be able to register if their past-due balance is greater than $1500.00. In addition, a $25.00 collection charge will be assessed to unpaid accounts of students who are no longer enrolled. No transcripts or diplomas will be released until the past-due balance is paid in full. If you live in University Housing,please contact them regarding payment penalties at (618) 453-2301. Return to top

How do I obtain a refund of an overpayment to my student account?

Immediate cash refunds are not given for withdrawals, reduction in credit hour loads, or overpayments. However, the refund process will begin at the time a credit balance becomes effective. Refunds are processed by the Bursar's Office once a week from an automated listing reflecting those accounts with a credit balance. The current refund policy will allow any funds due to the student from either a 'loan', 'grant', or 'self-paid' transaction or a combination thereof to be combined and a single refund issued to the student. If the refund is due to 'self-paid' overpayment or the removal of tuition and/or fees, there is a 10-day hold before the processing is completed. Students with short-term loans will have their refunds reduced by their outstanding amount. Students may have their refund directly deposited into their bank account. Payments made by a credit card may be refunded as a "credit back" transaction to the credit card used for payment.  Return to top

How do I receive a refund (associated with tuition, fees, and/or financial aid)? 

Refunds are issued electronically via ACH Direct Deposit to your checking or savings account. To enroll in or update direct deposit, students log into SalukiNet and click the Direct Deposit task under the Bursar Refunds task.

You may verify that a refund has been generated and the amount by logging into your SalukiNet account.

Failure to register for Direct Deposit may result in a delay in the receipt of your refund, as it will be sent as a check to your mailing address.

*It is the student's responsibility to update all banking information and address information. Incorrect or missing banking or address information will delay or prevent the receipt of of your refund.

What is Debit Dawg?

You can add personal funds to your Debit Dawg account, which is associated with your student ID. Debit Dawg is separate from your Bursar account, and you cannot use your Debit Dawg funds to pay your Bursar balance. You can use Debit Dawg with your student ID card at the Student Center and local establishments that advertise they accept Debit Dawg.  It cannot be used at an ATM. For more information on Debit Dawg click here:    studentcenter.siu.edu/services/debit-dawg/ or contact the Debit Dawg office at 618-536-3351.  Return to top

What is a hold?

You may see a hold on your account for Admissions, Health Service, Bursar, etc.  For a list of holds and their meanings click https://registrar.siu.edu/luminis/holdshelp.php

If you have a bursar hold, a bursar hold is a financial hold that may prevent you from enrolling for classes. If your past-due balance is greater than $1,500.00, a BR hold will prevent you from registering for classes.
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What is "Illinois Tuition Subsidy"?

The tuition and fees that you pay cover only a part of the total cost of instruction at state universities. Each year money received by universities from the state covers some of the costs of higher education, thus allowing us to charge you less than the actual cost for various classes and programs. We are providing you the following information, as mandated by law, so that you may see in more detail how tax dollars lower your actual out-of-pocket expense for education. 
For example, For fiscal year 2022, the General Assembly and the Governor authorized the aggregate amount of $1.21 billion to be appropriated from the General Revenue Fund and the Education Assistance Fund for operation of the State’s public universities. For fiscal year 2022, due to data not yet being available, estimations were made for some metrics (see Table 2 here). Each resident undergraduate full-time public university student was estimated to receive an average tuition subsidy of $4,855 from the State of Illinois, which was applied to offset the full cost of instruction.
**It should be noted that this is not a scholarship nor is it an amount that will be credited to your account. It is provided to inform you of how much of your tuition dollars are supplemented by public tax dollars. If you have any questions concerning this information, please visit the Illinois Board of Higher Education's website. Return to top

Is it possible to receive a refund and still owe a balance on my student account?

Based on the Federal Title IV regulations from the Department of Education beginning Fall 2009, it is possible to receive a refund and still owe money to Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Title IV financial aid can only pay up to $200.00 towards a balance from the previous academic/financial aid year. Any remaining excess aid for the current year must be refunded to you, even if you owe a balance. To allow us to use your Title IV financial aid to pay towards your past due balance, please contact our office.

 Students must either accept or decline the following two questions:

(1.)In accordance with Federal Title IV regulations, do you authorize SIU to use federal grants or loans to pay for outstanding non-institutional charges (other than tuition, fees, room & board) including miscellaneous charges and fines?

• If you accept, current semester charges billed at the time of the financial aid disbursement are eligible for payment by the Title IV financial aid. If you decline, Title IV financial aid will pay only current tuition, related fees, room and board. Other current semester charges such as library, parking fines, health service charges, etc. will remain unpaid.

(2.)In accordance with Federal Title IV regulations, do you authorize SIU to use federal grants or loans to pay for outstanding prior year charges?

• If you accept and allow SIUC to apply Title IV financial aid to prior year charges, the amount is limited to $200 and you are responsible to pay any balance above $200. If you decline, you are responsible for any previous academic year charges.

*As a reminder, you may still owe a balance to SIUC even if you have received a refund. Please go to SalukiNet to check to see if you owe a balance. Keep in mind that you will not be able to register if your account is past due with a balance greater than $1,500.00 at the time of registration. Return to top

Why doesn't my 1098-T match what I paid/received?

This is the most common misunderstanding each year. For 1098-T purposes, SIUC reports qualified transactions in the calendar year when amounts were billed and not when amounts were paid, received or posted. For example, students were billed in mid-December for classes being taken during the Spring semester 2014, so those amounts are included on the 2013 1098-T even though the actual payment may have been made or applied or posted during 2014.   

Amounts of qualified tuition and required fees reported on your 1098-T are defined by the IRS as "tuition and fees required for enrollment or attendance at an eligible educational institution". The IRS does not consider student health fees, transportation fees, insurance fees, or room and board* as qualified tuition and related fees, therefore, these are excluded from amounts reported on the 1098-T.

Amounts of scholarships reported on your 1098-T are for determining eligibility for the American Opportunity Credit and lifetime learning credit only, NOT for determining taxability of such scholarships. Your scholarships may or may not be taxable, refer to IRS Publication 970 www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf for details on determining the taxability of different types of scholarships. Return to top

Why has my College Illinois plan not paid into my account yet?

You must complete an authorization form for each semester that you intend to use your College Illinois plan. The form may be obtained in the Financial Aid Office or you may print the form from the Financial Aid Office website: fao.siu.edu/forms.  Return to top

I am a sponsored student. Where do I turn in my Sponsor/Third Party authorization form (financial guarantee)?

Your authorization form should be turned into Kathy Abney in the Financial Aid Office at kabney@siu.edu or using MOVEIt: https://fao.siu.edu/secure-document-upload/.   Return to top

For further questions,  contact us.