International Students

Starting college is a big transition in a student's life. Moving to a different country to start college can be overwhelming. We are delighted that you have chosen Penn State as the higher education institution for your studies.

The information below will help you become familiar with your student account and prepare you to manage your student account at Penn State (the information below is also available throughout this website). 

If you have any questions regarding your student account, please use the Contact Us form in the website and we will respond promptly to your inquiries.

Please note that important information from the Office of the Bursar, as well as other departments, will be communicated to you via e-mail. Be sure to check your Penn State email regularly. 

Your first contact with the Office of the Bursar will be after you accept your offer to attend Penn State.

New Student Orientation (NSO) is a required activity for all first-year students. You’ll receive information about how to schedule your NSO program and the steps you’ll need to take to prepare for it.  More information is available at the NSO website. 

In addition to the enrollment fee, all degree-seeking undergraduate students must pay a General Deposit. If you will be residing in university housing, you will also have to pay a Housing Deposit.

The Housing Deposit is applied to the student's first Housing and Food charge, and the General Deposit is applied to the student's first tuition charge.

To access your Student Account, follow these steps: 

1. Log in to LionPATH with your Penn State credentials. 

2. Click on the “My Finances” tab 

3. Select “Manage My Account/Make A Payment’ to open the billing and payment portal.

An Authorized user is someone such as a parent, guardian, or family member you give permission to access your student account at Penn State to help manage your account. By law, Penn State representatives can only discuss student account details with the student and the designated authorized users in their student account. Authorized Users can: 

• See the student account activity.
• Make payments.
• Sign up for a payment plan.
• View the student's 1098-T tax form.

Students can grant Authorized User access to parents and family members through their student account. 

Please note this is in ADDITION to the delegated access you may have already granted via LionPATH for academic information. 

There are two options to add an Authorized User to the student account:

Option 1: Student adds an Authorized User from LionPATH:

1. Log in to LionPATH with your Penn State credentials.
2. Go to your Student Home Base and open the My Finances tab.
3. Click the "Manage My Account/Make a Payment" to open the billing and payment portal.
4. Go to My Account and open the "Authorized Users" section.
5. Select "Add Authorized User" and enter the person's name, email address, and relationship to you.
6. The authorized user will receive an email to complete registration and create a password. Please note, the link expires in 24 hours.
7. After logging in, they will be able to view your account and make payments according to the access you granted.

Option 2: Authorized User requests access:

1. Go to Penn State's online bill payment/parent/authorized user login page.
2. Choose "Create New Account" or the option for Authorized User/Parent Login (not current or former student).
3. Enter your name, email and create a password to request access.
4. Complete the verification email sent to that address.
5. Provide the student's Penn State ID and date of birth when prompted.
6. The student will receive an email at their @psu.edu address asking them to approve or deny access. 

Once approved, the authorized user will receive an email confirming they have been established as an authorized user and can log in to view the account. If the student does not approve, the account remains in pending status. 

We highly recommend that you open a personal bank (checking) account with a local U.S. bank. You will be able to make payments to your account by electronic check (eCheck), receive electronic refunds (eRefund), and receive international money transfers from your family to your local bank account.

If there is a credit balance on your account, it will be refunded to you. eRefund is the fastest and most convenient way to receive your student refund. If you have a personal checking account with a local U.S. bank, you can enroll in eRefund from your Student Account. 

1. Students: Log in to LionPATH with your Penn State credentials.

2. Go to your Student Home Base and open the My Finances tab.

3. Click "Manage My Account/Make a Payment" to open the billing and payment portal.

4. Navigate to the eRefunds tab.

5. Enter and confirm your U.S. bank account information (routing and account number).

6. Agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy and click "Submit". 

Once enrollment is complete, future eligible refunds will be sent to the enrolled bank account. 

Please also make sure your mailing address is up to date in LionPATH.

BILLING

You will receive notification via your Penn State e-mail account that your balance is available to view/pay on LionPATH. Any Authorized Users on your account will also be notified through email.

Billing begins in early August for fall semester, January for spring semester, and May for summer semester. However, this may vary slightly depending on when enrollment in classes occurs. Residence hall charges are included, if applicable. The payment due dates are shown on the billing and payment portal. The due date for the fall and spring semesters is after the regular add/drop period has ended. 

Payment Options 

Make international payments using Flywire 

Penn State has partnered with Flywire to offer a streamlined and cost-effective payment method to send international payments. Flywire offers excellent currency exchange rates, eliminates hidden bank fees, allows you to make payments in your home currency (in most cases), and includes payment tracking and 24/7 multilingual customer support. You can process the payment via Flywire from your student account. Click on “Make a Payment” and select “International Payment via Flywire” as the payment method. You will be directed to the Flywire website to complete the payment. Allow seven to ten business days for Penn State to receive and post the wire transfer payment to your account.

Make Payments from your personal U.S. Bank (Checking) Account

 If you have a personal U.S. bank (checking) account with a local bank, you can make online payments to your student account by electronic check (eCheck) with no additional fee. You will need the bank’s routing number and checking account number. Please obtain this information from your bank.  Important: the number on your ATM/debit card is NOT the same as your bank account number. A sample check showing the routing and account number information is available on the Payment Options page.   

Make a payment with a credit card (additional fees apply)

You can pay your account balance online by credit card. We do NOT accept credit card payments via mail, phone or in person. There is a service fee for each payment made by credit card.

Enroll in a Payment Plan (available every semester)

Payment Plans are available every semester. You will see the payment plan offers available when you log in to your student account. Students and Authorized Users enroll online with an eCheck or a credit card.  By enrolling in the plan, you agree to pay a $45 non-refundable fee and to sign up for auto pay deduction for the remaining installments. You also have the option to use international payments via Flywire for installment payments. Once enrolled, notifications are sent regarding subsequent installments in advance of their due dates.