Effective Nov. 30, 2013, Visa will disallow any credit card processing company in Canada from charging a convenience fee on Visa transactions. This means that, as of Nov. 30, MasterCard will be the only credit card accepted at Memorial for student account payments.

Students continue to have a range of payment options, while retaining the flexibility of paying their student account fees with MasterCard, should they so choose.

Payment options at no cost or low cost to students include: online or telephone banking; payment by mail using cheque, money order, bank draft or wire transfer of funds; or payment in person by cash, cheque or debit card.

International students who do not have a Canadian bank account for online or telephone banking can use wire transfers, money orders or bank-certified cheques for payment of student accounts.

During the fall semester, Memorial has seen significant increases in payments made through electronic banking and debit cards, with a marked decrease in credit card payments.

In May 2013, it was announced that students choosing to pay their fees with a credit card would pay a 1.95 per cent fee to Moneris, Memorial’s clearinghouse for credit card payments. This fee may change at the discretion of Moneris; Memorial does not set this rate.

On one year's tuition (two semesters) of $2,550, the fee amounts to slightly less than $50.

By eliminating the fees paid to credit card companies, Memorial expects to save more than a half-million dollars each year.

Credit cards are not accepted for fees payment at the cashier’s/bursar’s office. Those choosing to pay with credit card must do so online through Memorial Self Service.

In 2012, Memorial’s Board of Regents decided to eliminate the use of credit cards for payment of student accounts as part of its effort to find administrative savings with minimal impact on academic programming and student activities. Service charges associated with credit card payments have increased significantly during the past number of years.

Memorial University will continue to accept MasterCard and Visa for other payments, such as application fees, residence application fees and residence deposits, parking fees, purchases at university bookstores, Computer Purchasing Centre and donations without charging a convenience fee.

Some 30 universities across the country have discontinued the use of credit cards to pay student fees, including Dalhousie University, McGill, the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia.