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The short answer
Paying the school's own account against its invoice gives you a receipt in your child's name, a bank record that matches it and a clear answer if the school says it has not been paid. Sending through a relative is convenient but adds a step where money can be delayed, spent or misapplied, and it leaves you with only the relative's word; for US tax, the IRS tuition exclusion applies only to tuition paid directly to the school.
The difference, in records
Most disputes over school fees are not about fraud. They are about matching: the bursar cannot find a payment, a relative paid the wrong amount, or a receipt went to a cousin's phone and was never forwarded. Who pays decides who holds the evidence.
| Paying the school directly | Paying through a relative | |
|---|---|---|
| Bank record | Your transfer to the school's account | Your transfer to the relative; their transfer or cash to the school |
| Receipt | Issued by the school, in your child's name, sent to you | Issued to the relative, if one is asked for |
| If the school says it has not been paid | You produce your transfer reference | You rely on the relative to find theirs |
| If the amount is wrong | You see it straight away | You may hear about it when your child is sent home |
| US gift tax treatment of tuition | Can fall under the educational exclusion | Treated as a gift to the relative |
The US tax point
The IRS's Form 709 instructions say tuition paid to a qualifying domestic or foreign educational organisation is excluded from gift tax, but the payment must be made directly to the school and must be for tuition. Books, supplies, and room and board are not covered. Money you send to a sister in Ibadan so she can pay the fees is a gift to your sister, and counts towards the annual exclusion, which the IRS gives as $19,000 per recipient for 2026.
For most families paying one or two children's fees, the amounts are well inside the annual exclusion either way. It matters more for large or combined payments: a boarding school, several children, or university fees on top of monthly support to the same relative. This is information, not tax advice; a US tax adviser can apply it to your figures.
When a relative still makes sense
There are good reasons to route some money through family at home:
- Small extras paid in cash at school: PTA levies, excursion money, sports kit.
- Schools that insist on a parent or guardian appearing in person for some payments.
- Uniforms and books bought from a market rather than from the school.
- A relative who is the child's guardian day to day and needs to act quickly.
The answer is usually not one or the other. Pay the invoice's main items, especially tuition, directly; give the relative a defined, recorded allowance for the rest.
Doing each one well
Paying directly
- Get the invoice from the school itself, by email or the school portal, not a photo forwarded on WhatsApp.
- Check that the account name is the school's registered name.
- Put the child's full name and class in the transfer narration.
- Email the bursar your transfer reference the same day.
- Ask for the receipt to be sent to you as well as to the guardian.
Paying through a relative
- Send the exact invoice amount, separate from any personal support, in its own transfer marked "school fees".
- Ask the relative to pay the school by transfer, not cash, and send you the school's receipt.
- Agree in advance what happens to change or to a mid-term refund.
A worked example
Example only. Chuka in Philadelphia supports two nieces at a school in Owerri. Each term's invoice is ₦620,000 per girl, ₦1,240,000 together. He pays the school ₦1,240,000 directly against the invoice with both names in the narration, and the bursar emails the receipts. Separately he sends his brother ₦90,000 each term for uniforms, transport and small levies. When the school later queries one niece's payment, Chuka sends the transfer reference within minutes, and the matter closes.
If the school only takes payments in person
A few schools, often smaller ones, still ask for fees to be paid at the bursary or into a bank teller with the slip brought to school. If so, ask the bursar whether a transfer with the child's name in the narration will be accepted instead; many will agree when asked. If not, send the relative the exact amount in a separate transfer, ask them to pay into the school's account at the bank rather than handing cash to anyone, and to photograph the stamped teller and the school's receipt. That keeps a document trail even when you cannot pay the school yourself.
Whichever route you use, keep each term's invoice, payment record and receipt together. Three years of tidy records is what settles a dispute when a school changes bursars.
Where Pryme fits
Every payment from a Pryme account can produce a regular or verifiable receipt, the verifiable kind made with VerifyDoc.ai, which a bursar or relative can check is genuine. You can send naira to the school and the relative from one account. For timing, see a termly schedule for Lagos fees and bank wire or app for school fees; the Nigeria guide to proving you paid school fees covers receipts in detail.
Questions people ask
Is it safer to pay school fees to the school account?
It leaves a better record: your transfer to the school's account, and a receipt in your child's name. It also removes a step where money can be delayed or misapplied.
Can I pay a Nigerian school's fees from the US directly?
Yes. Pay the account on the school's invoice, put the child's name and class in the narration, and email the bursar your reference.
Is paying my niece's school fees a gift for US tax?
Tuition paid directly to the school can fall under the educational exclusion in the IRS Form 709 instructions. Money sent to a relative to pay it is a gift to that relative.
What should I do if the school says it did not receive the fees?
Send the bursar your transfer reference, date and amount. If you paid through a relative, ask them for theirs and the school's receipt.
Sources
- IRS: Instructions for Form 709 (2025) · accessed Oct 2026
- IRS: Frequently asked questions on gift taxes · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.