University online payments: frequently asked questions
On this page:
Security of the Essex web pages
This system enables credit/debit card payments to be made against
students' accounts using Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator
versions 4 or above. Our secure-server software encrypts all sensitive
information using industry-standard technology.
To protect your security, please ensure you close your browser after
completing the payment process.
What is a PRID?
This is your own unique University reference number - it takes the form of 5 letters, always in
CAPITALS, followed by 5 numbers, e.g. SMITH12345. It is displayed on all student registration cards
and all accommodation invoices. Undergraduates PRIDs will be assigned once they have chosen Essex as
their firm choice on UCAS Track and will be able to view their PRID in their applicant portal.
Postgraduates: PRIDs are allocated to all applicants who have accepted their place from April
onwards when the Accommodation online booking facility is available. Applicants receive their PRIDs
by email at the time the PRID is assigned.
Which cards do we accept?
We accept all VISA, Mastercard and American Express cards. We do not however accept Diners Club cards, due to the high rates of commission charged.
Please also be aware that some cards such as Electron are not capable of being used for online transactions - your bank will advise you if your card is subject to such restrictions.
Which selection do I make? Specified or Unspecified
The Specified Payment screen is intended for use by registered students,
so that you can review your outstanding invoices, and select which one to
pay. You will need to be registered, with an active user name and password.
The Unspecified Payment screen does not require you to be registered, or
have an active user name. Since all you need to know is your PRID and date
of birth, it is ideal for use by parents, or if you know the amount you wish
to pay.
Troubleshooting - "Specified Payments"
If you are using the "Specified Payment" screen, you need to be very
careful that the user name and password are entered correctly, i.e. in
capitals or lower case, depending on how you entered your password
originally.
If you enter either incorrectly, you will not be able to progress to the
next screen. You are allowed 3 attempts to enter your user name and password
correctly. If this happens, it is best to make the payment using the
"Unspecified Payment" screen, and report your problems to the IT Help
Desk. Please note that the above problem can arise within 2 days of being
registered, due to all the University computer systems being updated.
If you have more than one invoice, you may find it works better to pay
one at a time.
If there is no radio button in the 'paying in full?' column and there is no empty dialog box for 'amount you will pay',
there is a browser compatibility problem. Use another browser.
Troubleshooting - "Unspecified Payments"
If you are using the "Unspecified Payment" screen, and you are advised
that you have entered an incorrect PRID, please try again, making sure the
PRID is entered in capitals. If this is still rejected, it could be that our
records contain an incorrect date of birth. To check that, please either
e-mail income@essex.ac.uk.
Troubleshooting - Online payments
If your payment is declining, please contact your bank for further assistance. In some cases banks add further security restrictions on making payments online. It may be because it is a large amount.
From a Non-UK Bank - to obtain an immediate quote to make an international bank transfer, please see our information on Global Pay for Students.
Countries from which we cannot accept card payment
Unfortunately we cannot accept card payment from the following countries:
- the student or the payer is currently resident in any of the following sanctioned countries/regions.
- the payment is originating from any of the following sanctioned countries/regions:
- Afghanistan
- Belarus
- Cuba
- Crimea Region
- Donetsk Region
- Iran
- Luhansk Region
- North Korea
- Russia
- Syria
- Venezuela
- the student or payer are on the following sanctions list:
Declined Payments
If after entering your credit card details, and selecting the transmit
button, you are advised "Authorisation has failed", there are several
reasons why this may have happened:
- You may have entered the incorrect card number. Please note that on
most payment cards, the number to enter is the long number across the
middle of the card.
- Your card credit limit may have been exceeded - (some cards have a
daily limit, in which case try making a smaller payment).
- The post code you entered is different from the post code held by your
bank/credit card company.
- The postcode must be entered without any punctuation characters such as the hyphen (-) in it, even if that is correct in your country of origin.
- Not all cards are eligible for online transactions.
- The card is not accepted by the University (e.g. Diners Club).
If your card is declined you can try again, but for security reasons,
your bank will normally allow only three consecutive attempts, after which
the card may then be blocked for the rest of the day. The University is not
advised by the banks why individual transactions are declined - for your own
security, only the cardholder can be advised by their own bank why a card is
declined.
When is the data updated?
All payments made via the Online Payment System update the screens as
soon as the payment is authorised. Invoices paid using "Specified Payments"
will be cleared from the screen.
If you pay using the "Unspecified Payments" screen, the payment will
appear as a credit as soon as the payment is authorised. Staff in the
Income Team will match the payment to the appropriate invoice on the next
working day, and will be reflected on the Online Payment System the
subsequent working day.
All other transactions on a student's account (e.g. payments made at the
Income desk, new invoices added etc.) are updated overnight.
Foreign language support
To translate text from these pages from English into a range of other
languages, try Google's
language tools.
Feedback
We are always looking at how the web payment system could be improved -
as a user of this system, we would welcome any feedback you wish to make
concerning the web payment pages. If you have any comments or suggestions,
please email income@essex.ac.uk.
Contacts
If you have any questions about the payment of invoices, please contact
income@essex.ac.uk. If you have any
technical queries please contact the Web Development Team at wdt@essex.ac.uk.
[log in to the web payments system]