Department of Education Updates

In October 2015, the Federal Registrar and Department of Education amended ruling updates from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Below is a list of the amended rulings and required activation dates.

Provision Requirement Description

University Provision Activation

September 1, 2023 Updates 

No later than 60 days following the most recently completed award year, [the institution must] disclose conspicuously on its web site in a format to be published by the Department: The total consideration, monetary and non-monetary, paid or received by the parties under the terms of the contract; the number of students who had active financial accounts under the contract at any time during the most recently completed award year; and the mean and median of the actual costs incurred by those active account holders. The institution must also annually provide to the Secretary a URL link to the agreement and the foregoing contract data for publication in a centralized database accessible to the public.

The following information below represents the data as it pertains to the BMO Bank - UC Berkeley Student Checking account for the period of July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023. 

BMO UC Berkeley Student Checking Account Report August 2023

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September 1 (2018-2022) Updates 

No later than 60 days following the most recently completed award year, [the institution must] disclose conspicuously on its web site in a format to be published by the Department: The total consideration, monetary and non-monetary, paid or received by the parties under the terms of the contract; the number of students who had active financial accounts under the contract at any time during the most recently completed award year; and the mean and median of the actual costs incurred by those active account holders. The institution must also annually provide to the Secretary a URL link to the agreement and the foregoing contract data for publication in a centralized database accessible to the public.

For previous year's updates, please contact upp@berkeley.edu.

January 1, 2018 Updates

The institution must list and identify the major features and commonly assessed fees associated with all accounts offered under a T2 arrangement, as well as a URL for the terms and conditions of those accounts.

The following information below represents the major features and commonly assessed fees associated with the UC Berkeley Student Checking Account.

UC Berkeley Student Checking Account

Click table for larger image

The UC Berkeley Student Checking account is offered and provided by Bank of the West. For full details, please refer to the Addendum to the Deposit Account Disclosure and Schedule of Fees and Charges for UC Berkeley Student Checking or visit www.bankofthewest.com/UCBerkeley.

There is no cost to open a UC Berkeley Student Checking account and no fees to obtain an ATM or Visa Debit Card. A $5 fee/card will be charged to obtain a replacement (lost or stolen) ATM or Visa Debit Card.

September 1, 2017 Updates 

No later than September 1, 2017, and then 60 days following the most recently completed award year thereafter, [the institution must] disclose conspicuously on its web site in a format to be published by the Department: The total consideration, monetary and non-monetary, paid or received by the parties under the terms of the contract; the number of students who had active financial accounts under the contract at any time during the most recently completed award year; and the mean and median of the actual costs incurred by those active account holders. The institution must also annually provide to the Secretary a URL link to the agreement and the foregoing contract data for publication in a centralized database accessible to the public.

Please refer to the most up-to-date data provided in theSeptember 2019 Student Checking report posting. 

July 1, 2017 Updates

The institution must list and identify the major features and commonly assessed fees associated with all accounts offered under a T2 arrangement, as well as a URL for the terms and conditions of those accounts.

NOTE: On May 9, 2017, the Department of Education published in the Federal Register a Request for Information (RFI) to solicit ideas and information related to the major features and types of commonly assessed fees that postsecondary institutions (institutions) must disclose under Department regulations with regard to each of the institution's Tier 1 (T1) or Tier 2 (T2) arrangements. The Department announces the final format for these disclosures.

To allow institutions sufficient time to adopt the final format, if they elect to do so, the Department is allowing additional time––until January 1, 2018––for institutions to comply with the applicable disclosure requirements.

September 1, 2016 Updates

Require that contracts governing T1 and T2 arrangements are conspicuously and publicly disclosed.

View the UC Berkeley - Bank of the West, BNP Parabis agreement.

View the Bank of the West First Amendment (8.24.16).

View the Bank of the West Second Amendment (3.24.20).

View the Bank of the West Third Amendment (7.21.21).

View our BMO Bank of Montreal Fourth Amendment (10.10.23).

July 1, 2016 Updates

Mitigate fees incurred by student aid recipients by requiring reasonable access to surcharge-free automated teller machines (ATMs), and, for accounts offered under a T1 arrangement, by prohibiting both point-of-sale (POS) fees and overdraft fees charged to student account holders, and by providing students with the ability to conveniently access title IV, HEA program funds via domestic withdrawals and transfers in part and in full up to the account balance, without charge, at any time following the date that such title IV, HEA program funds are deposited or transferred to the financial account.

Sixteen (16) Bank of the West ATMs are conveniently located at the following campus locations: Haas School of Business, Student Services Wing–3rd Level (1); MLK Jr. Student Union Building–1st Level (3); The Den; Moffit Library; Qualcomm Cafe; Foothill; International House;Haas Pavilion (2); and Memorial Stadium (4). Please note - access to ATMs is dependent on each facility's hours of operation.

There is no surcharge to Bank of the West customers to access any Bank of the West ATM including the ATMs located on the UC Berkeley campus. Non-customers of Bank of the West will be charged a surcharge to use a Bank of the West ATM on the Berkeley campus. The non-customers’ own bank may charge an additional foreign ATM fee. Non-customers of Bank of the West are warned of the surcharge via an ATM screen message prior to completing the transaction and are given the opportunity to cancel the transaction before being charged the fee.

Require institutions that have T1 or T2 arrangements to establish a student choice process that: prohibits an institution from requiring students to open an account into which their credit balances must be deposited; requires an institution to provide a list of account options from which a student may choose to receive credit balance funds electronically, where each option is presented in a neutral manner and the student’s preexisting bank account is listed as the first and most prominent option with no account preselected; and ensures electronic payments made to a student’s preexisting account are initiated in a manner as timely as, and no more onerous than, payments made to an account made available pursuant to a T1 or T2 arrangement; UC Berkeley does not require that students open an account with any specific institution, including Bank of the West. Students may choose to receive credit balanc­e funds through any banking institution of their choice.

For more information on Title IV funding, please visit http://financialaid.berkeley.edu/resources

The institution must ensure that the account is not marketed or portrayed as a credit card;

Bank of the West does not offer products which are convertible to credit cards.

The institution must include the T2 arrangement on the student choice menu and disclose as part of that choice process the account;

In compliance with applicable federal regulations and state laws, Bank of the West provides applicable disclosures, schedule of fees and charges, applicable addenda and privacy notices to anyone opening an account to ensure they are informed of the terms and conditions of their account(s).

The institution needs to ensure that students incur no cost for opening the account or initially receiving an access device;



Bank of the West does not collect an account-opening fee for any of its checking or savings accounts.  

For additional information on minimum amount to open, monthly service charge and other applicable fees and charges, please refer to the Addendum to the Deposit Account Disclosure and Schedule of Fees and Charges for UC Berkeley Student Checking.

Requires institutions to establish and evaluate T1 and T2 arrangements in light of the best interests of students;

UC Berkeley will conduct an independent market comparison review of the Bank of the West-Bank at School program in comparison to select national and local banking institutions once every two years. 

Additionally, Bank of the West may impose other fees and charges for its deposit products, as described in Bank of the West’s disclosures and schedules of fees and charges. Bank of the West will notify University and account holders of any changes as may be required by applicable laws, rules and regulations. Bank of the West shall notify University of such changes prior to sending any change in terms notice to account holders if new fees or changes are to be assessed or of any increases of more than 50%.

Require that the institution or financial account provider obtain consent from the student to open an account under a T2 arrangement before (1) the institution or third-party servicer provides any personally identifiable information about that student to the financial account provider or its agents, other than directory information under 34 CFR 99.3 that is disclosed pursuant to 34 CFR 99.31(a)(11) and 99.37 and (2) the institution or account provider sends an access device to the student or validates an access device that is also used for institutional purposes, enabling the student to use the device to access a financial account; 

UC Berkeley is committed to protecting the privacy and accuracy of your confidential information to the extent possible. UC Berkeley will not disclose, without your consent, personal information collected about you, except for certain explicit circumstances in which state or federal law requires disclosure. UC Berkeley will not distribute or sell personal information to third-party organizations.

Prior to any account or service activation or entering into any agreement with Bank of the West, customers must present acceptable government issued identification and, for UC Berkeley Student Checking, a valid UC Berkeley student ID (i.e., student Cal 1 Card). 

As required by federal regulation, the Bank is required to ask for certain personally identifiable information in order to properly identify the customer prior to account opening.  This exchange of information is between Bank of the West and the potential customer choosing to open an account with Bank of the West. UC Berkeley will not provide such personally identifiable information of its students to Bank of the West.

Consent must be obtained in advance of any personally identifiable information being shared with Bank of the West, and prior to a customer receiving and validating an ATM or debit card (access device).