Our Income Share Agreement

An Income Share Agreement, or ISA, is a way to pay your BloomTech tuition. A BloomTech ISA is a contract under which you agree to pay 14% of your post-BloomTech income for 48 months, but only once you're making $50,000 or more per year (or the equivalent of $4,166 per month). 

Your ISA is capped at a maximum repayment of $40,000, so you won't pay more than $42,950 including your $2,950 down payment under any circumstance (excluding late fees). 

This is our way of investing in you. We select learners we believe will be successful, and cover your tuition until you're in a financial position to pay us back.

Learners who select our ISA option are required to make a down payment of $2,950 to enroll at BloomTech. Learners have the option of paying this via ACH payment or credit card via Meratas (learners can pay their ISA down payment via credit card in Meratas’ student portal or by calling Meratas at (860) 935-6906, M-F, 7 am to 4 pm PST)*. ACH payments take 7-10 business days to clear, so we encourage learners on ISAs to apply well ahead of their desired BloomTech start date.

*service fees applies

Learners are required to keep their servicer account up-to-date with their income and job status on a monthly basis once their ISA enters repayment status. An ISA enters repayment status when a learner either graduates or withdraws/is withdrawn from their BloomTech program. 

Learners must inform their ISA servicer of their employment status no later than five days after starting work, regardless of whether or not they are in a position paying at least the minimum monthly income required to make monthly payments under the agreement. Learners must also inform their ISA servicer of their earned income every month, or as requested by BloomTech, thereafter. 

Each year, there is a tax reconciliation process performed to verify the learners' reported income. This is to ensure that learners are not over- or underpaying what they owe per their financing agreement. 

‍Learners must submit to BloomTech and/or their servicer the following documentation evidencing their earned income: 

- Before their first monthly payment and every time their earned income increases or decreases, a pay stub, a letter from their employer, independent-contractor agreement, or other evidence of their monthly income. 

- By April 30th each year, a year-end pay stub, form W-2, form 1099, schedule K-1, or other official documentation showing their sources of earned income and the dates of their employment for the previous calendar year. 

- If BloomTech requests it, a completed and signed IRS form 4506-T (or any successor form) designating BloomTech as the recipient of their tax return information for returns covering any months for which they are required to make a monthly payment, dated no earlier than 30 days before the date they provide it BloomTech.

Meratas is a third party provider who services all newly originated ISAs on behalf of BloomTech in the United States.  

Servicers handle parts of the financing process like origination and payment processing. They will perform things like identity verification, bank account verification, and learners will be able to make their payments through their online portal. 

For questions about payments or using the servicing platform, learners can contact the Meratas’s support teams ‍
‍
Meratas
Email: help@meratas.com
‍Portal: message within your Meratas portal
Phone: (860) 935-6906, Monday through Friday, 7 am to 4 pm PST

Payments are due on the 1st of every month. 

Learners will have a one-month grace period before their first payment is due. The first month for which they are required to make a monthly payment is the second full month in which their earned income exceeds the minimum. Here are two examples: 

‍A learner graduates from BloomTech on May 15th and on June 5th they start a job for which they are paid at least $4,166 a month. In June they are paid $4,166 or more. The first month for which they must make a monthly payment is August. 

‍A learner graduates from BloomTech on May 15th and on June 20th they start a job for which they are paid at least $4,166 a month. However, in June they are paid less than $4,166. The first month for which they must make a monthly payment is September.

The 14% monthly income payment requirement is based on your "Earned Income," which means all you are paid or that you earn. Earned income is your gross income earned or received in exchange for performing services, whether as an employee, independent contractor, paid intern, business owner or partner, before taxes or any other withholdings (including contributions to retirement plans and savings plans). 

For example, the US Internal Revenue Service for the 2019 reporting year defines income to include on an annual basis (a) the sum of Line 1 (Wages, salaries, tips, etc.) of IRS Form 1040, Line 1 of IRS Schedule C (Form 1040) (Gross receipts or sales) , as reported or required to be reported on U.S. federal income Tax returns. All of those are examples of “earned income.”

Earned Income does not include:
- Income earned by your children or spouse (if any)
- Any money you inherit
- Any amounts paid to you under the Social Security disability insurance program (title II of the Social Security Act) or the Supplemental Security Income program (title XVI of the Social Security Act)
- Any amounts paid to you under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966.

Learners are not required to make a monthly payment if their earned income for the previous month is less than $4,166.

"Deferment" means it is agreed you don't have to pay your ISA in a given month because you are not making $4,166 or more (the monthly equivalent of a $50,000 annual salary) in that month. Learners are required to keep their servicer account up-to-date with their income and job status on a monthly basis once their ISA enters repayment status.

Once a learner signs their income share agreement, it is a live contract. Per the terms of the contract, there is a window of time during which payments may be owed.

‍The contract enters the Repayment Period and becomes active upon the earlier of:
- The date of withdrawal from the BloomTech program (if the ISA has partially or fully vested);
- The date for completing the program specified in the learner's enrollment agreement;
- Earning at least $50,000 annualized ($4,166 per month) after the date specified in the enrollment agreement on which they are responsible for the entire amount of tuition funding allocated to their program (accepting a position after fully vesting the ISA).

Once in Repayment, the maximum term of the contract is 95 months. 

Your ISA obligation will be deemed paid in full once (1) you have paid the maximum amount of $40,000 (excluding down payment and late or failed payment fees), (2) you have made 48 monthly payments, or (3) you have not been required to make a monthly payment for a total of 48 months from when you are first required to make monthly payments, whichever is the earliest to occur. The maximum term of this agreement is 95 months.

The total amount paid by learners with ISAs is dependent on your post-BloomTech income.  

If your total earned income is less than $4,166 per month (the monthly equivalent of $50,000 annually), you do not pay BloomTech anything more than your deposit. If your total earned income is at least $4,166 per month, the most you will pay is $42,950 ($2,950 deposit + $40,000 ISA cap).

Because ISA payments are based on income and the maximum number of monthly payments is 48, any learner who elects to use an ISA might pay less than the maximum amount. 

Once you have (1) paid the maximum amount of $40,000 - excluding down payment and late or failed payment fees, (2) complete your 48th monthly payment, or (3) defer payment for 48 total months, whichever comes first, you are free of obligation under the ISA.

Below is a chart illustrating the total amount you will pay in various earning scenarios.  

Yes, you can see a template of the agreement we use with Meratas here ($40,000 cap ISA). Meratas services all ISAs for new BloomTech learners.

Yes. Technology is a part of nearly every professional field. In fact, technical skills—including the ones learners gain in BloomTech programs—dominate the list of most-in-demand qualifications for jobs overall. That means that our graduates can apply skills gained at BloomTech to a wide range of careers, not only roles that traditionally fall in the tech industry.

The Income Share Agreement requires you to submit your tax returns to Meratas. That said, we’re only interested in your personal income. While Meratas will need to see your joint tax return in order to verify your portion of the income, your spouse’s income will be deducted from the joint total and does not qualify for repayment.  

You must notify BloomTech no later than thirty (30) days if you change your tax filing status from single filing to joint filing (or vice-versa), so BloomTech knows whether to exclude earnings of your spouse when calculating your earned income.

We reduce the total obligation for people who leave BloomTech, based on the number of sprints started. The amount of your BloomTech tuition that has vested at the time you withdraw is dependent on the number of sprints you started in your BloomTech program. Tuition vesting schedules also may vary by state, so please see your Enrollment Agreement for the most up-to-date information.  

Regardless of your state of residency, you will owe no tuition and your ISA will be canceled if you withdraw within the first sprint of your BloomTech program.

Yes, during the admissions process you have the ability to choose from various options on how you would like to pay your tuition. If you have already selected the ISA and would like to switch, please email admissions@bloomtech.com to request a different payment type. Please ensure BloomTech receives your payment by the enrollment deadline, which is the last day you can switch payment type.

Income Share Agreements are available to people who live in the US (excluding California residents) who are US Citizens or US Permanent Residents. ISAs are not available to individuals who already have an obligation to pay under an ISA with another institution. Other people can still attend BloomTech by paying the tuition upfront or financing their tuition with an Outcomes Based Loan (BloomTech’s OBL has the same residency requirements as BloomTech’s ISAs but is available to CA residents). 

*International learners have the option to pay upfront tuition only. You can view our other tuition options here. 

No. A BloomTech ISA requires that you do not have a prior ISA or sign another ISAs while your BloomTech ISA is active. The program is designed to make sure you get a job, not go on to more school.

The BloomTech ISA has built-in protection for financial hardship. Should you lose your job or should your income drop below $4,166 per month, your payments will automatically be paused after you’ve reported the change. That said, we understand that unique and unforeseeable financial emergencies sometimes occur. 

In this situation please contact your ISA program manager (Meratas at help@meratas.com) to discuss available options rather than letting your account go into default. While we cannot guarantee your situation will qualify for deferment, we want you to know that we want the best for you and your family, and will do what we can to help in times of extreme financial hardship.

Our learners in California currently have the following tuition options: 

Full upfront tuition of $21,950 (to be paid in 3 equal installments) 
With our 110% Tuition Refund Guarantee, if you graduate from BloomTech and are not earning, or have received offers for, at least $50,000 per year (or $4,166 per month for 3 consecutive months) after 365 days in compliance with the TRG requirements, you will get your entire tuition refunded!

Outcomes Based Loan (OBL): Pay $0 upfront, take out a loan for the full upfront tuition. 
With our 110% Tuition Refund Guarantee, if you graduate from BloomTech and are not earning, or have received offers for, at least $50,000 per year (or $4,166 per month for 3 consecutive months) after 365 days in compliance with the TRG requirements, you will get your entire loan refunded, including fees and interest.

BloomTech is approved as a private post-secondary school in the state of California by the Bureau of Private Post-Secondary Education (BPPE). The BPPE requires learners who are California residents to pay into the Student Tuition Recovery Fund (STRF). Learners must pay $2.50 for every thousand dollars of tuition rounded to the nearest thousand dollars ($55 for Backend, DS, & Web and $15 for Web3). The STRF is for CA learners to recover or mitigate any economic loss in the event a school closes while the learner is enrolled or within 120 days of being enrolled. BloomTech collects the funds and gives 100% of the STRF fees collected to the BPPE. For more information regarding the STRF please visit the bureau’s website at: https://www.bppe.ca.gov/students/strf.shtml (BPPE).

No, learners paying for BloomTech through an ISA do not have access to the Tuition Refund Guarantee.