SoFi offers a new way to easily make regular contributions to your existing college savings 529 plan(s) and/or repayments of your student loan(s). Through SoFi's LEAF website (and/or the benefits website provided by your employer) you can designate an amount of your after-tax compensation from your employer payroll that you wish to have automatically a) deposited into one or more 529 college savings plans, and/or b) paid to one or more student loan servicers. Some employers will offer one or both LEAF services to you their employee. And some employers may offer a 529 savings or student loan match.
Yes, SoFi's LEAF platform supports contributions to all "529" college savings plans and supports student loan repayments to all loan servicers.
Yes, you can contribute to more than one college savings plan and/or student loan servicer each pay period and there is no limit to the number of additional plans or loans.
Yes, the minimum amount transferred per pay period per plan, or per month per loan, is $25.00 and the maximum total contribution you can make in any single pay period to any single plan or loan servicer is $1,000.
Yes, you may change the plan and/or loan payment amount or even suspend the service at any time, though changes may not be immediately effective. Change requests may take one to two payroll cycles before they are effective.
Yes, you need to have established a plan before making contributions via SoFi's LEAF platform. Alternatively, in the case of a grandchild whose parents have opened a plan, you should consult with the parents. You’ll need the plan name, the designated recipient’s name as it appears on the plan, and the plan number (and in a few cases the fund number).
If you don’t have a 529 plan, we encourage you to complete setting up your account and payroll contribution. We will provide you with helpful resources to help you choose a plan. When it comes time for paying for college, most 529 savings plans allow you to use the funds for any accredited school in the U.S – not just those in the state whose plan you select. Forty-nine states and DC offer at least one plan and many states offer resident tax advantages such as annual state income tax deductions for contributions made in that year. That’s why a good place to start is with your own state’s plan.
No. SoFi's LEAF platform is not a savings plan but we support payroll-based contributions to all 529 college savings plans which are offered by 49 states and the District of Columbia.
There are no set-up or regularly recurring fees to you in order to use SoFi's LEAF platform; the fees are paid by your employer. For a few additional services beyond the typical use of the service, SoFi's banking partner, CBW Bank, does charge a fee. For example, if for some reason you wish for us to print and mail via USPS a paper copy of your transaction history, there is a small fee. Those additional service fees are described in a chart in the CBW Bank Account Holder Agreement link in the footer of each web page.
You can use SoFi's LEAF platform as another means of making additional contributions. Or you can substitute the ACH or check process so that deductions are not made directly from your bank account.
We encourage you to continue making automated repayments from your checking account for several reasons including the possibility that your loan servicer offers an interest rate discount for automated repayments. Think of us not as your primary means of loan repayment but as a great way to make an extra payment in order to save on interest and pay off your student loans faster.
Yes. You should consult with the owner of the plan. You will need the plan name, the designated recipient’s name as it appears on the plan, and the plan number (and in a few cases the fund number).
No, not at this time.
Bank Secrecy Act regulations require us to verify your identity using your social security number and date of birth. Before verifying your identity, this information is stored encrypted and, after verifying your identity, we do not store this information.
SoFi's LEAF platform uses bank level security to encrypt your communications with us. In addition, your payroll deductions are transferred from your employer payroll to your designated 529 college savings plan(s) and/or student loan repayment servicer(s) through CBW Bank, Weir, Kansas, Member FDIC. As a result, the funds are FDIC insured throughout the transfer.
Typically, the payroll contribution process takes from two to ten business days based on the day of the week the post-tax payroll withholding was received from your employer, which in rare instances may be several days after your pay date. For example, if your employer’s payroll was run on a Thursday, the bank might receive the funds on Monday and the transfer to the 529 plan and/or loan servicer would be initiated on Wednesday. Some plans and servicers have their own internal processing requirements which may add a little time until you see the deposit posted to your account.
Our customer service will contact you if for some reason a transfer could not be made successfully. This situation can occur at the beginning of use of the service due to an incorrectly identified plan administrator, incorrect plan or loan number, or when name of the recipient doesn’t match the name on the plan.
If, after ten business days have passed your contribution or repayment does not appear on your plan or loan statement, please contact us so that we can help locate the transfer. You can reach us via phone at (800) 645-5323 or e-mail at [email protected].
We encourage you to check your plan and or loan statement periodically to make sure your contributions are being received into your plan and/or loan servicer, just as with any other financial transaction.
In that case, there will be no more payroll contributions provided by that employer. You will still have a direct relationship with your 529 plan or student loan servicer and, in the case of student loan repayments, you'll need to make sure you are making at least the minimum payment(s) by the due date.
Yes. SoFi is a pioneer and a market leader in student loan refinancing. Please visit us at https://www.sofi.com/refinance-student-loan/ to learn more about how we can help lower your rates. SoFi can help you save on your student loans by choosing between a range of rates and terms. No prepayment penalties and no hidden fees.
Due to federal banking regulations, we perform ID verification on users of SoFi's LEAF platform. Our ID verification process requires a U.S. address and social security number. Unfortunately, at this time, we do not support ID verification for international addresses.
Enabled by Congress in 1996, college savings 529 plans are created and operated principally by states as tax-advantaged investment vehicles for future higher education expenses. The number refers to a section of IRS tax code. When it comes time to pay for college, most saving plans allow you to use the invested funds and gains tax free for tuition at any accredited school in the U.S. Forty-nine states and DC offer at least one plan and many states offer state resident tax advantages.
There are two types of 529 plans: prepaid tuition plans and savings plans. Prepaid Tuition Plans allow for the pre-purchase of tuition based on today's rates and then pay out at the future cost when the beneficiary is in college.
Savings Plans, which are the most popular, are like many other investments and typically include mutual finds. Most 529 savings plans offer a variety of investment options and many allow you to chose a simple strategy that automatically adjusts the balance of investments (stocks vs bonds) based on the age of the beneficiary.
Earnings are not subject to federal tax and generally not subject to state tax when used for the qualified education expenses of the designated beneficiary, such as tuition, fees, books, as well as room and board. In addition, many states offer residents an annual state income tax deduction for contributions made into the state’s plan.
SoFi's LEAF platform does not promote any particular 529 plan or provide financial advice. We provide helpful resources that we think offer great education and guidance. You will find these resources below in the "Learn More" section of the page footer.
529 Plans are generally used to save for college savings but recent tax law changes allow funds saved to be used for K-12 expenses as well. You will need to check with your plan to see if this is an option, as this varies from state to state.
If the plan beneficiary chooses not to go to college, you can change the beneficiary to another family member. If you withdraw the assets for non-qualified expenses, the earnings portion, though not the contributions, would be subject to tax plus a penalty.
What is the SoFi LEAF Payroll Service?
Are all college savings 529 plans and student loans supported?
Can I contribute to more than one plan or loan servicer each pay period?
Are there minimum and maximum amounts I can contribute?
What if I change my mind? Can I make changes to my contributions?
Do I need to have a 529 plan established in order to participate in the college savings service?
What if I am already making regular contributions to my 529 plan (via ACH or check)?
Can I make contributions to a niece, nephew, or grandchild's 529 plan?
Can I make contributions to a savings account other than a 529 college savings plan?
Why do you need my social security number?
How are my college savings plan contributions and student loan repayments protected?
What if I don’t see a contribution on my plan or loan statement?
What happens if I'm no longer employed by the organization that offered the payroll service?