Third party sponsorship

Sponsors can be government agencies, companies, First Nations/Métis/Inuit groups, or other organizations who are paying your student fees in whole, with limited exclusions. Sponsors are invoiced after the term fee deadline for charges they agree to pay as outlined in an individual sponsorship letter provided directly to the student for sponsorship application.

Information for Students

If your tuition and fees are being paid in whole by a third party with minimal exclusions, follow the steps below to apply for a Third Party Sponsorship. Note: Individuals, parents, and other relatives are not eligible to act as sponsors. RESP providers are not considered eligible sponsors. Learn more information on RESPs. If you are receiving an External Award or External scholarship, please refer to information on External Award Funding below.

  1. Get your sponsorship letter

    Sponsorship letters must include the following:

    • Be on company letterhead
    • Include the individual student name and UCalgary student ID number
    • Clearly state what term the sponsorship covers (EG: Fall 2022)
    • Outline in detail which fees will be covered or excluded in the sponsorship
    • You can use the Sponsorship Letter Template if your sponsor is not sure what to include.

    Note: conditional sponsorship letters may not be accepted. If your sponsor letter outlines conditions that must be met by you in order for the sponsor to pay term fees, your application may not be approved. IE: conditions such as good academic standing, requirements for documents to be completed or submitted to the sponsor, etc. 

    At the time of sponsorship application, the student should be considered by the sponsor as having met all sponsor conditions for the sponsored term. The sponsor letter should also not include conditions for payment beyond 30 days from the invoice date. IE: if the sponsor needs to pay annually, etc. A sponsor invoice must be paid within 30 days from the invoice date for the sponsor to remain in good standing.

  2. Upload your sponsor letter through a Service Request

    You must upload your sponsorship letter through  an application each term prior to the term fee deadline through a Student Service Request in the Student Centre. Instructions on submitting  a Service Request can be found here.  For the sponsorship to be approved, the application must include a sponsorship letter as outlined in step one.

    After the sponsorship application is approved, the student account will be adjusted to reflect the sponsorship prior to the term fee deadline. Sponsor details will be listed in a link in the student portal under Sponsorship. It is the student’s responsibility to review their account and sponsorship information and pay any fees not covered by the sponsor which are due on the term fee deadline. 

    If sponsors require transcripts or any other registration information, it will be your responsibility to provide and submit this information directly to your sponsor.

  3. Sponsor receives invoice

    After the term fee deadline, the sponsor will be emailed an invoice. Sponsorship applications must be submitted prior to the term fee deadline to avoid delays. Late submissions will be subject to delays in processing, invoicing, and sponsor payment. Any late interest or fee notices assessed to the account due to late submission will be the responsibility of the student. Request the sponsorship letter and submit the Third Party Sponsor application well in advance of the term fee deadline to avoid delays in processing.

    By entering into a sponsorship agreement, you are agreeing to allow UCalgary to share fee assessment information from your student account directly with your sponsor for the term. The following information will be shared with your sponsor: tuition and fee assessments.

    Note: If sponsors require transcripts or any other registration information, it will be your responsibility to provide and submit this information directly to your sponsor.

As a student engaging in a Third Party Sponsorship, you are responsible for the following:

  • Requesting a Sponsorship letter to submit to UCalgary within the Third Party Sponsor application by the term fee deadline. The student is responsible for any late interest or holds assessed due to late application.
  • Uploading your sponsor letter each term through a Third Party Sponsorship Application via Student Service Request.
  • Ensuring your sponsor pays UCalgary within 30 days of being invoiced.
  • Paying fees the sponsor has not chosen to pay in full by the term fee deadline. Any unpaid balance and late interest is the full responsibility of the student.
  • Providing any additional information the sponsor may request, such as proof of enrollment, transcripts, receipts, etc.
  • The student is responsible for unpaid fees if the sponsor does not pay within the 30 days of being invoiced. The student will be accountable for holds, late interest and collections activity due to sponsor non-payment.

If your sponsor doesn't pay the invoice, or if there is an outstanding balance on the term not being covered by the sponsor, your student file may be placed on hold and unpaid charges may accrue late interest. Information on financial holds can be found in the Academic Calendar. The hold will prevent you from adding new classes or requesting official transcripts, and may impact access to other services across campus.

If payment is not received from the sponsor within 30 days of the invoice being issued, the invoice may be cancelled, and you will be responsible for paying the balance due plus any late fees accrued on your account.

Information for Sponsors

  1. Sponsor provides individual sponsorship letter directly to student

    For a student to apply for Third Party Sponsorship, the sponsor must provide the student with an official Sponsorship Letter that includes the following:

    • Be printed on company / official letterhead
    • Include student name and individual UCalgary student ID number
    • State the term(s) the letter is covering up to one calendar year (student can only apply for one term at a time, but can use the same sponsor letter for each term application)
    • Outline, in detail, which fees will be covered by the sponsor
    • Please use the Sponsorship Letter Template, if you are unsure of what to include.

    Note: conditional sponsorship letters may not be accepted. If the sponsor letter outlines conditions that must be met by the student in order for the sponsor to pay term fees, the application may not be approved. IE: conditions such as good academic standing, requirements for documents to be completed or submitted to the sponsor, etc.

    At the time of sponsorship application, the student should be considered by the sponsor as having met all sponsor conditions for the sponsored term. The sponsor letter should also not include conditions for payment beyond 30 days from the invoice date. IE: if the sponsor needs to pay annually, etc. A sponsor invoice must be paid within 30 days from the invoice date for the sponsor to remain in good standing.

  2. Student uploads the sponsor letter through an application in their online Student Centre

    After the sponsorship letter is approved through the application, the student account will be adjusted to reflect the sponsorship. This account adjustment occurs prior to the term fee deadline as long as the student applies in advance of the application deadline.

    Sponsor details will be listed in a link visible to the student in their student portal under Sponsorship. It is the student’s responsibility to review their account and sponsorship information and pay any fees not covered by the sponsor which are due on the term fee deadline.

    Note: If sponsors require transcripts or any other registration information, it will be the student’s responsibility to provide and submit this information directly to the sponsor.

  3. Invoice issued to sponsor after the term fee deadline

    After the sponsorship application is approved, sponsors will be sent an invoice by email after the term fee deadline, as long as the student applied prior to the sponsorship deadline. 

    As part of the sponsorship application, the student is agreeing to the sharing of tuition and fee information with the sponsor only. If a sponsor should require additional information such as transcripts or course information, the student will be responsible to submit this information directly to the sponsor. 

    Note: sponsor letters submitted by the student after the sponsorship deadline may have processing delays that result in fee notices or late interest to the student account. The student will be responsible for these impacts.

Sponsors will have 30 days from the invoice date to pay fees directly to UCalgary.  After 60 days the invoice may be cancelled and the student account may have a fee hold stopping services and begin to accrue late interest.  

Payments made to UCalgary from an organization for a student without an approved Third Party Sponsorship application will be treated as an external agency payment, not a third party sponsorship. Late fees and interest applied after the published payment deadlines will become the student’s responsibility.

The following payment methods are available for Third Party sponsors:

  • The preferred method of payment is Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) directly to UCalgary Accounts Receivables. Refer to invoice for instructions on paying by EFT.
  • Cheque or Money Order - made payable directly to The University of Calgary

Mailing address:

Accounts Receivables
MacKimmie Tower, 9th Floor
2500 University Drive NW
Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4

Note: Payments made in American dollars (USD) will be converted using the exchange rate on the day of payment receipt. Overpayments and underpayments resulting from the conversion are applied to the student’s account.

As the sponsor, you are responsible for the following:

  • Providing the student with an individual sponsorship letter prior to the beginning of the term, according to the sponsor letter guidelines above.
  • Requesting any additional information required directly from the student, such as transcripts course information, or receipts.
  • Issuing payment directly to UCalgary within 30 days of the invoice. After 60 days, the invoice may be cancelled and the student account may have an account notice stopping services, and late interest may begin to accrue. The student will be fully responsible for all unpaid fees. This includes the impacts from owing fees, including administrative holds and late interest.
  • Keeping the sponsor account in “good standing.” If the sponsor’s account is not in good standing, this will impact the sponsor’s ability to sponsor students in current and future terms. To be in "good standing," a sponsor must be up to date on paying all outstanding invoices within 30 days of the invoice date. If any invoices are unpaid outside of the 30 day invoice date, the sponsor’s account will have a negative service indicator and any current or new sponsorship applications will be at risk for being approved. The student will see a note advising of the sponsorship being at risk within their sponsorship link in the student centre.
  • Issuing any related tax forms directly to the student. Refer to the following UCalgary website for more information on tax receipts.

External Awards

External Awards can be scholarships, awards or bursaries not administered by UCalgary, or other major providers like Alberta Student Aid.  If a third-party is issuing an award, scholarship, or bursary for a student in a set amount, this is considered an external award and not a Third Party Sponsorship. If a sponsor or any third-party vendor is reimbursing tuition and fees directly to the student, this is not eligible for sponsorship.

Invoices are not issued to providers of external awards, nor will a T4A be issued by UCalgary for external award payments to the student account. External Awards can be issued by employers, charities, unions, or any entity offering a one time or recurring payment for a student which does not cover the entire term fees for a student with some minimal exclusions.

UCalgary encourages providers of External Awards to issue funds to students directly. Students often have many other expenses related to education aside from tuition and general fees. Issuing funds directly to students allows them greater flexibility in addressing all their expenses, not just fees owed to UCalgary.  Paying these funds to UCalgary directly can cause delays and difficulties for students managing different funding sources. 

Note: Agencies sending cheques made out to students should not mail cheques to UCalgary, but should mail external award cheques directly to the student.

UCalgary can take payment for External awards through CIBC Student Pay, Convera Global Pay for Students or by cheque.

To pay through CIBC Student Pay, access CIBC Student Pay's University of Calgary page.

Please note: You do NOT need to be a client of CIBC to use this service.  External award agencies need to know the Student Account number, which is the student’s UCID followed by the first five letters of the student’s last name: IE: 00486321SMITH.

--

To pay through Convera Global Pay for Students, access Convera Global Pay’s University of Calgary Page page.

Please note: You do NOT need to be a client of Convera Global Pay to use this service. External award agencies need to know the Student Account number, which is the student’s UCID followed by the first five letters of the student’s last name: IE: 00486321SMITH.

--

Cheques or Money Orders must be made payable to The University of Calgary, and can be sent to the following mailing address:

Accounts Receivables
MacKimmie Tower, 9th Floor
2500 University Drive NW
Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4

If paying by cheque, please submit payment as soon as possible, preferably no later than 30 days prior to the start of the term to avoid payment posting delays to the student account. Payments made later than 30 days prior to term start may result in late interest and holds being assessed to the student’s account due to payment processing time.

Payment by cheque can take up to 4 weeks for processing to the student account, and requires supporting documentation referencing the student award, otherwise delays in applying payment to the student account may occur. Students are accountable for any holds or late interest incurred due to the processing time for external award payments.

Tax information for External Awards recipients:

Please refer to the following webpage for any tax impacts to students receiving External Award payments.