# How to stop chasing families for late tuition Source: https://www.futurenerds.dev/guides/collect-tuition Last updated: 2026-10-14 To stop chasing families for late tuition, send clear invoices on the same day each month, set one due date, send reminders on a fixed schedule, offer at least two ways to pay, and write a late-payment policy families sign at enrollment. FutureNerds sends overdue reminders automatically. ## Why tuition arrives late Most late payments at a small school come from a short list of causes: - The family didn't see the invoice, or didn't know when it was due. - The invoice raised a question, such as a charge they didn't recognize, and they waited for an answer. - The only way to pay was inconvenient, such as a check dropped at the office. - Nobody reminded them until the office sent a personal email weeks later. - The family is short of money and hasn't said so. The first four are fixed by how you bill. The last one needs a conversation. ## Write the policy before the first invoice Put your tuition rules in writing and have every family sign them in the enrollment agreement. The policy should answer: - When invoices go out, and the due date each period. - Which payment methods you accept. - Whether you charge a late fee, how much, and from what day. - How a family asks for a payment plan, and by when. - What happens when a balance is 30 and 60 days overdue, such as a meeting with the director, then a pause on re-enrollment. Use real numbers and real dates. Write "payments are due on the 5th", and leave out phrases like "early in the month". ## Make the invoice easy to pay Put the amount due and the due date at the top. List each charge on its own line, with a reason next to every credit and a sentence explaining any change from last month. End with the payment options and one billing contact. [Invoices families understand](/blog/clear-invoices) walks through each line. Send invoices on the same day every period, with the same subject line, so families know when to look. ## Remind on a schedule Set the schedule once and send the same reminders to every family. | When | What the family gets | | --- | --- | | A few days before the due date | A short note with the amount, the due date and a link or instructions to pay | | The day after the due date | A note that the invoice is overdue, with the same payment details | | One week overdue | A second note naming the late fee from your policy, if you charge one | | Two weeks overdue | A note asking the family to contact the office, and a call from the director | ## Offer more than one way to pay Accept at least two methods, such as card and bank transfer. For bank transfers, ask families to send proof of payment or the reference number, so the office can match the money to the invoice. Offering an annual pay-in-full option, with a small discount, cuts the number of invoices for the families who can take it. ## Talk to the family early When a family misses two due dates in a row, call or meet them before sending another reminder. Ask what's going on. If they need a payment plan, write down the amounts and dates, and both of you sign it. Keep these conversations between the director and the family. Guides shouldn't hear about balances. ## How to collect tuition on time 1. Write a tuition policy with the due date, payment methods, late fee and payment plan rules. 2. Put the policy in the enrollment agreement and have every family sign it. 3. Choose one invoice day and one due date for every billing period. 4. Lay out each invoice with the amount due and due date at the top and every charge on its own line. 5. Accept at least two payment methods, and say how to use each one on the invoice. 6. Send reminders before and after the due date on a fixed schedule. 7. Call any family that misses two due dates in a row, and put any payment plan in writing. 8. Each month, read the questions families sent about invoices and fix the line that caused them. ## Doing this in FutureNerds FutureNerds handles tuition billing on the web, iPhone, iPad and Android. - **Price list.** Set tuition, fees, club fees, meals and field trips, charged weekly, monthly, quarterly, by semester, annually or once. Billing follows your school sessions, so months outside the session, such as a summer break, aren't charged. - **Discounts.** Set sibling discounts for families with 2 or more children, an annual pay-in-full discount, and per-child scholarships. - **Invoice statuses.** Each invoice is draft, sent, paid, overdue, cancelled or under review. - **Paying.** Families pay by card through Stripe, or choose "Transfer funds manually" and upload proof. An uploaded proof marks the invoice "Review Needed" until the office confirms or rejects it. - **Reminders.** FutureNerds sends overdue reminders on days 1, 8 and 15 after the due date. - **Office tools.** Record offline payments, issue credit notes and refunds, download PDFs, and export invoices and payments as a QuickBooks-format CSV. Automatic invoicing is optional and starts off. When a school turns it on, a daily job creates draft invoices that an admin reviews and sends. FutureNerds is free for your first 10 students, then $0.50 per child per month with no setup fee, and standard Stripe fees plus 1% apply if you collect family payments through it ([pricing](/pricing)). See [billing and invoicing](/product/billing-and-invoicing). ## Related pages - [Billing and invoicing](/product/billing-and-invoicing) - [Admissions and applications](/product/admissions-and-applications) - [Starting a Montessori school](/guides/start-a-montessori-school) - [Invoices families understand](/blog/clear-invoices) - [Setting next year's tuition at a small school](/blog/setting-tuition) - [Budgeting for a year of Montessori tuition](/blog/tuition-budget) ## Questions and answers ### When should tuition be due? Pick one date each period that falls a few days after most families are paid, such as the 5th of the month, and keep it the same all year. Send the invoice about a week before. ### Should a Montessori school charge a late fee? That's your school's choice. If you charge one, put the amount and the start date in the signed tuition policy and apply it the same way to every family. ### Does FutureNerds send payment reminders? Yes. FutureNerds sends overdue reminders on days 1, 8 and 15 after an invoice's due date. ### Can families pay by bank transfer in FutureNerds? Yes. A family chooses "Transfer funds manually", pays by their bank, and uploads proof. The office confirms the payment in FutureNerds. ### Can I send invoices without taking card payments online? Yes. FutureNerds sends invoices without Stripe, and you record offline payments as they arrive. Card payments need a connected Stripe account.