FAQs

The main difference between a student loan and an Income Share Agreement is that an Income Share Agreement has no debt. A student loan requires students to pay back a certain amount of money, and has a minimum amount that must be paid every month. Students make payments towards their student loan until the amount they owe is paid off. An Income Share Agreement simply requires students to pay back a small percentage of their income. Income Share Agreements put the students in control by automatically adapting their payment obligations to whatever they choose to do and protecting students during periods of unemployment and low income. An Income Share Agreement makes sure that students aren't penalized if they decide to take a lower paying job or take time off to travel or start a family. See our Guide to Paying for Schoolfor more information about the difference between an Income Share Agreement and a Student Loan. ​

The percentage of your income that you owe Bisota depends on how much money you receive from Bisota. Depending on which type of Income Share Agreement you choose, we charge either 1.15% or 0.85% for every $1,000 you receive in funding. For example, if you choose a Traditional Income Share Agreement and receive $5,000, you would owe us 4.25% of your income. If you receive $10,000 from Bisota you would owe us 8.5% of your income. Learn more about how your Income Share is calculated by clicking here.

No. You are only required to pay us a percentage of your income. That may add up to more or less than the money you receive from Bisota. Click here to learn more. ​

The Minimum Income Protection is the minimum amount of income needed for there to be a payment obligation that month. If you make less than the monthly minimum income, your payment for that month is automatically zero. The monthly minimum income is equal to 150% of the the federal poverty level. The federal poverty level changes every year, and varies depending on the size of your family, so we can't give you an exact amount. But the important thing is that you'll be protected.

Maybe, it depends on how much money you make. You may ultimately pay more with an Income Share Agreement than a student loan, but an Income Share Agreement still has significant advantages. For instance, the Income Share Agreement has no debt, so there's no fixed payment and no creditors to foreclose on you or garnish your wages. Income Share Agreements also have a flexible payment structure that protects you during periods of unemployment and low income. Click here to learn more about how the costs of a student loan compares to the costs of an Income Share Agreement.

Great question. There are a number of important differences. Please see our Guide to Paying for School for a detailed answer, and more information about your options for paying for school and/or a vocational training program.

It's up to you. You can pay with a credit card, or set it up so that the money automatically comes out of your account every month. You can also just send us a check every month (if you're old school). ​

Yes. In fact, we encourage it. You should take advantage of federal loan programs, but these programs are capped, and many students need money in addition to their federal student loans. Bisota can help pay for any remaining expenses. Whether you need money for tuition, school supplies, rent, or even groceries, Bisota is happy to provide you with financing so that you can concentrate on school and prepare for your future. ​

No. The percentage of your income that you owe never changes, so individual payments have no effect on other payments. Your payment is a locked-in percentage of your income, end of story. If you lose your job there are no payment obligations for that period of unemployment. Once you start working again you owe us the same percentage of income from your new job as you owed for your old job. If your new job pays less than your old job then your payments will be smaller. There's no payment for the unemployment period and no penalty for the subsequent lower payments. ​

Yes. We have a Payment Cap that prevents total repayment from exceeding a certain amount. The size of the Payment Cap depends on the Income Share Agreement you select and the amount of money you receive from Bisota.

Bisota will not accept more than 20% of any individual's income. So if you elect the Traditional Income Share Agreement, the maximum you can receive is $24,000. If you elect the Aggressive Income Share Agreement, the maximum you can receive is $17,500. Upon receiving the maximum amount a student would owe Bisota 20% of their income.

The proof is in the pudding. Income Share Agreements are still relatively new, but they're the fastest growing financial product for students. The reason for this growth is simple - they work better than student loans. Plus they have the support of economists and academics across the political spectrum. Click here to see what the experts have to say.

At most for 15 years, which is less than many federal student loans. Our Income Share Agreements also have Payment Caps and buy-out provisions, both of which end the Agreements early. Click here to learn more about Payment Caps and buy-out provisions.

Your payment obligations technically begin once you graduate from school or finish your job training program. But since payments are a fraction of your income, you won’t actually owe us any money until you get a job and start making money.

Bisota is the only company that calculates repayments using your post-tax income instead of your pre-tax income (it makes a HUGE difference). We also have the most comprehensive Income Share Agreements, which include built-in protections that make sure that payments are always affordable. And our Payment Cap limits the amount that you can pay back. We also spent a lot of time and effort making the process as simple and easy as possible, and the result is an Income Share Agreement with no principal, no interest, no fees, no penalties, no co-signor, no fine print, and no need for a credit history.