As many of you know, I’m a big fan of Upromise.  Sign up for free, register your debit cards, credit cards, and grocery bonus cards, and you can earn cash rewards for your kids’ college.  Upromise encourages you to invest the rewards in 529 plans, but, I don’t use 529 plans to save for my kids’ college.  Instead, I like to withdraw my money from Upromise, once a year, and use the money to fund my kids’ Education Savings Accounts (ESAs).

From the Upromise site -

Can I withdraw company contributions from my Upromise account without transferring them to a savings plan, and if so, how?

You can withdraw your Upromise contributions at any time during your membership. To withdraw company contributions from your Upromise account, submit a letter in writing to Upromise requesting a withdrawal from your Upromise account. The letter must state your full name and exact amount that you would like to withdraw, up to total amount available in your account, pending contributions are not eligible for withdrawal.

For the protection of our members, we require that your letter either be notarized or contain a Signature Guarantee if the withdrawal request is in excess of $200. A Signature Guarantee is a guarantee you can obtain from a financial institution, such as your bank, that your signature is yours and that it is genuine.

Withdrawal letters should be sent to:

Upromise
ATTN: Customer Care
P.O. Box 55555
Boston, MA 02205-5555

Download Withdrawal Request Form (Direct Link Removed)

Checks are sent once per calendar quarter, so you should typically receive your check within 12 weeks of your request being received.

As you can see, Upromise makes it easy to get to your money, and then you can do whatever you want with it.  (They’ve even created a Withdrawal Request Form.  Print it out and mail it it in.  In about 12 weeks, you’ll have your check!)  Of course, you could leave your money in the Upromise account and invest it in a 529 plan.  Whatever you decide to do, it’s good to know that you can get to your rewards money, if you want.

Right now, I have more than $50 in my account.  I’m going to mail my letter Friday morning.  I’ll let you know when my check arrives.