Billing and Payments

Balance & Date Due

Your monthly Qwest bill includes recurring monthly charges for services billed one month in advance, such as calling plans, local calling services and custom calling features. It also includes usage charges that are billed after they are used, such as pay-per-use calling features and long-distance calls.

Previous Balance

There are a few reasons why you may see a Previous Balance: You sent a payment and it was not received by the bill due date. In this case, you may want to confirm your payment has been received and pay the new charges by the bill due date. You paid an amount less than the Total Amount Due on a prior bill. The unpaid balance will carry forward to the next month. You will need to pay the Total Amount Due to avoid potential late fees.

The Total Amount Due shown on your bill is the amount that must be paid by the bill due date. This includes new charges for the month as well as any previous balance. If your payment is not received by the due date, you may see a Previous Balance Due. If this is the case, just pay the new charges.

The Due Date for New Charges is shown at the top of your bill. Your payment must be received by this date to avoid late fees and potential disruption in your service. Your bill due date is determined by where you live and is not based on a calendar month, (i.e., your billing cycle may be from the 10th of one month to the 10th of the next month.

[back to top]

Taxes, Fees and Surcharges

Federal, state and local governments assess a variety of taxes and surcharges. Qwest collects required taxes as part of your phone bill and sends the appropriate amounts to the taxing agency.

Federal Charges

The most common federal charges include:

Federal Access Charge
The Federal Access Charge is authorized by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for providing access to and maintaining the local phone network.

Federal Excise Tax
The Federal Excise Tax is assessed by the federal government for telephone services.

Federal Universal Service Fund
The Federal Universal Service Fund Charge supports the telecommunications needs of consumers living in high-cost service areas, low-income households, schools, libraries and rural healthcare providers. The charge is set by the FCC and is adjusted on your Qwest bill quarterly as the costs charged by the fund change.

State and Local Charges

State and local charges vary depending on where you live. Some of the more common charges, which may or may not appear on your bill, include:

Sales Tax
Taxes assessed by state, county or city governments on telephone services.

911 or E911 Charge
A dedicated tax that provides funds for the communications systems that support emergency and quick response police, fire and ambulance services with identification of phone number and location.

Special District Sales Tax
These taxes are assessed outside the scope of states, counties or cities and are used for transit districts, stadium districts and other special purpose tax districts.

State Universal Service Fund Surcharge
This charge helps to keep basic exchange rates affordable to all customers who live in the state. The funds collected are remitted to the state utility commission.

Telecommunications Relay Service Fund
This surcharge helps to fund relay centers that assist hearing and speech impaired individuals make and receive phone calls.

Telephone Assistance Program
These are dedicated monies used to provide telephone subsidies to low-income, elderly or disabled customers who could not afford phone service otherwise.

[back to top]

Service Changes

The first bill you receive after changing your service (i.e., adding, removing or changing a service/feature) may include additional items such as one-time charges or credits that will not appear on subsequent bills.

When reviewing your bill, here’s a few things to keep in mind:

Charges are billed in advance Many recurring monthly charges are billed one month in advance, such as calling plans, local calling services and custom calling features.
Discounts/Credits You may receive a discount or credit as a result of a service change you’ve made. Where this amount is found on the bill will vary depending on the change made. You may find these in the Account Summary, Service Additions and Changes or Detail sections of your bill.
Partial charges Partial monthly charges will occur if services are either added or removed during a billing cycle prior to the bill date. Services billed in advance are prorated, based on your due date, when they are added or removed during a billing cycle. The actual amount prorated is determined by the number of days the services were used during the current billing cycle. This amount could be a credit, a charge or both depending on whether you added or removed a service and when you did so.
One-time charges One-time charges may include activation fees for new services or features. They may also include shipping and handling charges, or the cost of equipment or accessories (e.g., wireless phone, caller ID unit).