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Deposits, refunds, late fees and blocks for overdue fees

Hold caution deposits and give them back when a child leaves, with unpaid fees cleared first. Late fees are added each night by your slabs. The transfer certificate, library borrowing and hall tickets can wait while fees are long overdue.
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The problem it solves

  • Caution deposits taken years ago are not traceable when the child leaves.
  • Late fees are worked out by hand, so each family is charged differently.
  • A transfer certificate goes out while the family still owes two terms.
  • Families are not told that a service has stopped, and find out at the library desk or the bus.

How it works

  1. Mark a fee head Refundable, such as the Caution Deposit. You charge and collect it like any fee, and the school holds it on a deposits account.
  2. Write a late fee rule with slabs: a fixed amount, a percent of the due or an amount per day late.
  3. Every night the system raises each overdue due's fine to what the rule says for that day. The fine is paid first when the family pays.
  4. Set block rules per service with grace days. A student is blocked once a due is unpaid past its block date plus the grace days.
  5. Parents are told when a service stops and when it is back. A fee manager can let one student through until a date, with a reason.
  6. When a child leaves, Settle on Leaving prepares the refund. Deposits are released, unpaid dues cleared from them and the rest paid out.

Everything it does

Deposits and credit

  • Deposits Held on the student: paid on refundable heads, less what was given back
  • A deposit is never fined and is not income; it stays on the deposits account until released
  • Fee Credit: money paid in excess, or from a fee cancelled after it was paid, such as a cancelled trip
  • Parents see Credit with the school and Refundable deposit held

Refunds

  • Deposit to Release, optionally only for chosen deposit heads
  • Clear Unpaid Dues First and Pay Out the Rest: both on to start with
  • Payment mode and reference for the money paid out; a reason is required
  • Results on the refund: Deposit Released, Dues Cleared (with their receipts), Paid Out, Approved By
  • You cannot release more than is held; a draft refund can be cancelled
  • Refund Voucher on the letterhead, with places for the receiver's and the authorised signatory's signatures

Late fee rules

  • Fine Head, On Heads (empty: every head except fines and deposits), Most per Due (0: no limit)
  • Slabs: From Day, To Day (0: no end), Kind (Fixed Amount, Percent of the Due, Per Day Late), Amount
  • One rule per structure, else the Entity's Default Late Fee Rule; with neither, no late fee
  • A fine only goes up; waiving it is done by a fee manager with a reason
  • A sponsor's share is never fined
  • Late fee rules can come in from a spreadsheet during set-up

Block rules

  • Services: Hall Ticket, Results / Report Card, TC / Certificates, Transport, Mess / Food, Activities, Library Borrowing; one rule per service
  • Grace Days per rule: 15 to start with; Only For Heads to count only some fees
  • Block Date of each instalment: due date plus the structure's Block After (days), 30 to start with
  • Enforced today: library borrowing is refused. A transfer certificate cannot be issued while fees, a deposit or credit are open unless Issue Despite Dues is ticked. Hall tickets are withheld by the exam's own overdue setting
  • With SmartMy Transit and the mess on the same account, blocked students are left out of new bus runs and meals
  • Results / Report Card and Activities rules can be recorded and overridden, but nothing withholds them by itself yet
  • Block Overrides: one student, one service or Everything, until a date, with a reason and who allowed it

Fee clearance

  • A yellow Fee clearance note on the student lists unpaid fees, a deposit to refund and credit to refund
  • The same lines appear on the transfer certificate request

Who uses it

Accountant (fee Manager)Writes late fee and block rules, gives overrides, waives fines, makes refunds and settles leavers.
PrincipalDecides overrides and approves refunds as a level of the chain, if you add one.
Office staffSees the fee clearance before a transfer certificate is issued.
LibrarianSees a new loan refused while the library block applies.
ParentSees late fees on each due, and is told when a service stops and when it is back.

Where you use it

  • Web: Fees > Collect > Refunds; Fees > Fees Setup > Block Overrides; Fees > Configuration (Late Fee Rules, Block Rules, Fee Heads)
  • Web: Settle on Leaving and the Fee clearance note on the student's Fees tab
  • Parent portal and the Campus app: late fees, waived amounts, credit and deposits held (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
  • The Campus app, staff view: the library desk refuses a loan for a blocked student
  • Not in the app: refunds and rules are made on the web

What you control

Settings

  • Default Late Fee Rule: none, so no late fees until you set one
  • Grace Days per block rule: 15
  • Block After (days) per fee structure: 30
  • Clear Unpaid Dues First and Pay Out the Rest on a refund: on
  • Refundable and Concession Allowed on each fee head

Approvals

  • Fee refund: pressing Refund goes through the chain; fee managers by default, and you can add levels such as the principal
  • The parent or student the refund is for never decides it

Notifications

  • Services Stopped for Fees: to the father, mother and guardian when a block starts, with the services and amount; push, WhatsApp, SMS, email, in-app
  • Services Back after Fees: to the same people when the fees are paid or an override lets the student through
  • Fee Refund Paid: to the father, mother and guardian when a refund is carried out
  • Fee Overdue: reminders 1, 7 and 15 days after a missed due date, to start with
  • Each parent can switch off a channel, such as SMS, for themselves; the event itself cannot be switched off, and in-app notices always arrive

Works with

SmartMy TransitStudents stopped by the Transport block rule are left out of new runs; an override lets them ride.

Questions

Can late fees grow the longer a fee stays unpaid?

Yes. Use slabs. For example 100 from day 1 to day 15, then 10 a day from day 16, at most 1,000 per due. The fine is updated every night.

Will old arrears from our previous system be fined?

Dues in a fee plan are fined from the first night a rule applies. Opening dues brought in without a plan follow only the Entity's default rule. Collect arrears first, or waive those fines.

Can we stop a transfer certificate until fees are paid?

Yes. A transfer certificate cannot be issued while fees, a deposit or a credit are open, unless someone ticks Issue Despite Dues. The open items are listed on the request.

Can we hold report cards for unpaid fees?

A rule for Results / Report Card can be recorded, but report cards are not withheld by it yet. Hall tickets can be withheld through the exam's overdue fee setting.

How does a deposit come back when a child leaves?

Press Settle on Leaving on the student. The refund releases every deposit held, clears the unpaid dues from it and pays out the rest, with a voucher to sign.

Related features

FEESFee counter and receiptsYour cashier picks a student, ticks the dues and takes cash, cheque, UPI, card or a bank transfer. The receipt prints with a QR code that anyone can scan to check it, and a bounced cheque opens the dues again.FEESFee structures, instalments and concessionsWrite each class's fees for the year once, with term-wise or monthly plans, and every student gets the right dues. Sibling, staff-child and scholarship concessions, waivers and advance credit sit on the same fee ledger.CERTIFICATES, LIBRARY, PARENT CONTACTBonafide, conduct and transfer certificatesFamilies ask for a bonafide, conduct or transfer certificate on the portal or the Campus app. They pay its fee, if any, and download it signed. Every certificate carries a QR code that anyone can scan to check it is genuine.CERTIFICATES, LIBRARY, PARENT CONTACTLibraryKeep the catalogue and every copy with its accession number. Issue and take back books at the desk or on a phone, and late fines go to the student's fee account. Parents see the books their child has out and what is overdue.FEESCashier closing, fee reports and Tally exportEach cashier closes the day against the system's figures, and every receipt is posted to the accounts. Collection, demand, defaulters, concession and deposit reports show where the fees stand, and receipts, cancellations and refunds go to Tally Prime.ACROSS SMARTMY SCHOOLApproval chainsHomework, circulars, leave, certificates, fee structures, concessions, refunds and revaluations go to the right people in the right order. You set the chains up without code. Every decision is kept with who made it, when and why.

See your own school year run in it.

Tell us how many students you have, which classes you run and how you collect fees today. We will show you SmartMy School set up that way.
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