Statutory Authority: O.C.G.A. §§ 20-3-250.5(b)(2); 20-3-250.6(a)(12) 

The institution must have a clear refund policy to ensure students' access to reasonable refunds for tuition and fees paid for programmatic offerings for uncompleted programs. 

  1. An institution that is accredited by a United States-based accrediting association recognized by the United States Secretary of Education may use its own refund policy:
    1. The institution specific refund policy must be submitted annually to GNPEC. 
    2. GNPEC reserves the right to require any institution to adopt the GNPEC policy if sufficient student complaints occur relative to an existing accredited institution's refund policy and the GNPEC policy is more lenient toward the student. 
  2. Unaccredited institutions (12.1 above does not apply) are required to adhere to the following guidelines: 
    1. The refund policy must be included as part of the institutional enrollment agreement and catalog.   
    2. The refund policy must include steps for requesting refunds, and it must require submission in writing.  
    3. Tuition and fees must be refunded at a prorated amount, based on the percentage of paid segment completed, should the student withdraw before 50% completion of the course/program.  
    4. The institution must use a withdrawal form to document the withdrawal process. In the case of an administrative withdrawal, the institution must document that it has notified the student that they have been withdrawn from the course/program and issue any refund owed to the student based on the refund schedule described above. 
    5. The institution must refund students within 45 days of withdrawal.  
    6. Non-Refundable Fees for Unaccredited Institutions: 
      1. A nonrefundable Application Fee of up to $150 is permitted if it is listed as nonrefundable in the enrollment agreement and catalog. No other administrative fees may be listed as nonrefundable.   
      2. Nonrefundable fees for goods and/or services provided by third-party vendors purchased on behalf of the student are permitted if the institution is not able to reuse the equipment or cancel the service.