Schooling Abroad: How Pay4Me Helped Me Pay My Sevis Fee From Nigeria

Marthalois is a visa consultant that helps people, particularly international students process their visas and other travel-related operations. Prior to becoming a visa consultant, Marthalois was once a student studying abroad and navigating the terrains of a new country. In this interview, we spoke to her about her journey using the Pay4Me app and how it helped fast-track her admission.

What was your first encounter with Pay4Me? How did you hear about the app?

When I received my i20 and admission letter from school, I was supposed to pay for my SEVIS fee. But because I didn't know many options to use, I was going high and low, looking for where to make this payment. I went online to search.

During my search, I saw some offices, not platforms actually, where I could make this payment. I also saw how much it would cost and other processing information.

For me, it wasn't the first time I was paying SEVIS fees. I've paid SEVIS fees before for my clients. And I used to know then in Nigeria, we could actually pay for the SEVIS fee without going through a hurdle. But it got to my turn, and I understood that the old payment method had been scrapped. Meaning we couldn't pay SEVIS fees directly to the Department of State in the US because of fraud and other issues.

Also, I found out some countries could pay, including Ghana, and I was like, okay "we Nigerians, our thing is always different" - laughs. So while I was searching on Google for how to pay SEVIS fees from Nigeria, I stumbled on the Pay4Me app. However, I didn’t use the app immediately because I had some fears.

What were these fears?

When I found the app and it said we could pay SEVIS fees to any foreign university, I was skeptical at first. Yeah, I was because News already had it that Nigerians were no longer allowed to pay SEVIS fees abroad. So how come this app is claiming to help us pay? Could this be another scam?

So what did you do to clear your fears?

I had to put a call across to the customer service personnel, who happened to be Paul. Paul replied to my chats and explained how the app works. While I made a series of inquiries about the app, he recommended I download it instead to better understand how it could help me pay my fees.

Did you download the app?

Actually, I didn't because I wasn't convinced yet. I decided to trace the office. I said, "me, I can't go and download any app and now put my money in somebody's hand that I don't even know. Money wey I no get"

Hahaha. I get it. I would do the same.

Laughs. So I had to trace the office. I traced the office, and when I got there, I saw real people. I was like, " these people are serious oo. At least now, if I no see my money, I go know how to waka and who to hold."

So were you convinced?

Yeah, I was. Actually, the truth is, I had to make that journey of getting down to the office because I wasn't the only one going to use the platform. I had other people I was going to help make payments like this one. Like I said earlier, I have clients that contact me to process educational and travel-related fees for them. And I can't risk losing their money. So if I was going to use the Pay4Me app, I needed to confirm its authenticity before recommending it to my clients.

So what was your biggest conviction about the app?

First, my biggest conviction was seeing real people when I got to the office. I saw Annette, Feyikemi, and Paul. They also took me around the office and introduced me to other members of the team. I even got to meet one of the app developers, and then I said, "I think I can trust these people." Afterward, I was helped to download the app right there at the office.

So did the transaction happen? Did you pay your SEVIS fee?

Yes, I did. They even gave me an express service. Express service means they would process my fee within 24 hours.

Did that happen? Was your transaction processed within 24 hours?

Yes. My transaction was processed fast. Like immediately. I didn't have to worry or call non-stop to track the transaction. Pay4Me kept to its promise.

Have you ever had a horrible experience with a cross-border payment platform?

Yes, but not a cross-border platform per se. It was a bank. There was this time I wanted to send money to someone in the US. It was an emergency case. This person needed to get medicines and I used a bank to initiate the transaction. Guess what? The transaction was not processed for more than two weeks. Two full weeks.

Wow, that’s bad.

Yes. We kept going back and forth with the bank till they decided to refund us. And even though they agreed to refund us, they had to deduct service fee from the money they didn’t process. A completely unsuccessful transaction, yet I was charged over $55. To date, I swore never to use the bank.

Lol, does that mean you would choose the Pay4Me app over banks?

Absolutely yes. If Pay4Me processes my transactions instantly, why do I have to use a bank? It’s not as if these banks don’t charge for transactions. I’ll choose a platform that offers instant payout without delays and unnecessary charges.

On a scale of 1—10 rate the Pay4Me App.

I’ll give the app a nine. They’re fast, reliable, and easy to use. More importantly, I can process fees abroad from Nigeria without leaving my house.

This story was brought to you by Pay4Me. Pay4Me is a cross-border payment platform that simplifies cross-border payments for international students by converting their local currencies in real-time for instant payouts to colleges, universities, and government agencies. To read more content like this one and process your educational fees, download our app here.