The University of Alabama

Initiating a tuition payment through Backpack immediately alerts the University that you are planning to pay the amount via 529. The University will then apply a temporary credit to your students account to reflect this so that your student can get on with the important parts of their education experience without the risk of late fees or being dropped.
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The reason we do this is that we understand that withdrawing from a 529 can involve a number of administrative steps that take time. We also know that any expedited payment methods offered by 529 plans often come with fees associated. This is our way of helping you make payments via 529 without that added stress or fees.

Creating a Backpack account allows you to withdraw funds from your 529 and pay your University online. Backpack will always be available to walk you through how to setup your account and make payments (simply start a chat with us below). If you prefer step through the setup yourself, you can read this step-by-step guide in our Help Center

Backpack has a complete library of step-by-step instructions on how you can connect your 529 plan to Backpack and make a payment. You can find it here and search for the 529 plan that is relevant for you.

Backpack sends your payment directly to the right place thanks to our partnership with your University, ensuring we always have the most up-to-date payment details for hassle-free transactions.

Third-party billing, also known as sponsored billing, is a process where a University bills an external organization - such as an employer, government agency, or scholarship provider - on behalf of a student for tuition and fees. Instead of the student paying upfront, the third party agrees to cover some or all of the charges, and the university manages the invoicing and payment directly with the sponsor. Personal sponsors or sponsors that pay based on the student’s grades are not eligible.

Authorization Letters can be submitted to the University by emailing ua@backpackpay.com.  If you have not submitted an authorization previously, you will need to be formally onboarded as a registered third-party sponsor for the University. We may require additional information to verify you, and set up online payments.

No. Third-party payments need to be made electronically. While we prefer that sponsors make payment using the payment links attached to our invoices, we are also able to receive ACH payments (where you manually initiate the ACH from your side). We prefer not to receive wire payments where possible.

If you have an issue with the submission portal please email ua@backpackpay.com.

Please contact the Bursar / Student Accounts team.

No. Authorization Letters must be submitted by the sponsor.

Backpack is a financial technology company that specializes in digitizing complex payment types for Universities. Our partnership with Backpack allows us to provide a modern, efficient and more secure payment experience for all stakeholders.