Accounts Payable and Travel Accounting Update & Reminders

Sent to the AFS-Update mailing list on May 26, 2022

Disbursement Voucher Tips: Honoria (Reason Code E)

Honoraria are handled differently than other types of payments. An honorarium is a voluntary payment or award granted to an individual in recognition of a special service or distinguished achievement for which propriety precludes setting a fixed price and payment is not required. Below are some important considerations to keep in mind when paying honoraria.

Who can be Paid an Honorarium?

• Honoraria are paid to persons of scholarly or professional standing in conjunction with an academic activity at UCI. Both employees of the University of California and individuals who are not university employees.
• The amount of the honorarium offered should be specified, after receiving approval and before the event, in the correspondence with the individual who will receive the honorarium. A copy of the correspondence is required back-up documentation.
• Request to pay third party from the individual requires advance written or email notification, prior to service rendered. This is required documentation. If not available, the individual will be paid the honorarium and be asked to work with PaymentWorks to update their profile.
• Department dean approval is required for payments up to $5,000.00. The Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor and Associate Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor approve up to $10,000. Chancellor’s approval is required for over $10,000.00.
• A Non-California State Tax of 7%, and/or a Non-Resident Federal Tax of 30% will be assessed on honorarium payments that exceed $1,500.00.
• Requests for pre-approval for honoraria for UC academic appointees must be submitted to the Office of Academic Personnel in accordance with instructions in APP 9-10. Payments are not via Disbursement Voucher.

What is Not Considered an Honorarium?

• Performance fee payments to individuals or groups for professional services not directly related to academic functions.
• If parties enter into a formal agreement on price, the transaction constitutes an agreement or contract, is not an honorarium.
  • Honoraria correspondence does not include terms and conditions or result in the receipt of an invoice for payment.
  • Agreements/contracts are subject to procurement policies and procedures.

Foreign Travelers: What Documentation is Required?

When paying honoraria or travel expenses for foreign visitors coming into the United States, the following documentation must be submitted with the rest of the backup documentation using the Image Scanning tab of the KFS eDoc:

• Copy of traveler’s passport photo page
• Copy of the traveler’s visa
• Copy of the stamped visa status in the passport
• Completed and signed Certification of Academic Activity (T182-27) form (only for those on B1, B2, WB, or WT visas)

For payments to a foreign bank account, you will also need a completed and typed Wire Transfer Request form. For more information, please visit our website.

How Long do I Have to Submit a Travel Reimbursement?

UC policy requires that travel reimbursements be submitted to the UCI Accounts Payable Office within 45 days after the end of a trip. You can read more about this requirement on page 39 (section V.I.1) of the UC G-28 Travel Regulations. Late reimbursements may require exceptional approval if the following applies:

• Six months delinquent submission requires department exceptional approval in the KFS Travel Reimbursement eDoc Route Log.
• One year and over delinquent submission for employees: The travel reimbursement request will be a manual process and payment will be processed via the payroll department. The reimbursement will be taxed and reportable to the employee.
• One year and over delinquent submission for non-employees: You will need to onboard the non-employee in PaymentWorks. Use the assigned vendor number in the Travel Reimbursement eDoc to pay the non-employee. They will receive a 1099 from UCI and a copy will be sent to the IRS as reportable income.

Reimbursement Tip: Using past air credits?  Make sure to provide proof of payment for past air credits for reimbursement.

Fiscal Close Deadlines for TA Cash Advances, TEM, DV

This is a reminder that fiscal year end is coming up soon! Please keep the deadlines below in mind over the next few weeks:

• Travel Accounting’s deadline to clear Travel Authorizations (TAs) with cash advances is 4 p.m. on Friday, June 17.
• TEM and DV documents, with the correct supporting documents in Scanned Images and with appropriate approvers in the Route Log, must be in Travel Accounting’s Action List by 4 p.m. on Friday, June 17 to ensure the transactions will be recorded as expenses for 2021-22.

See our Fiscal Year-End Close website for more information. 

Questions About Policies, DVs, Corporate Credit Cards, or CTS Cards?  Contact Travel Accounting by sending us an email to travel-accounting@uci.edu or visit our website for more useful information at https://www.accounting.uci.edu/travel/. Missed our last reminder? Read it here.

Accounts Payable Reminders: Fiscal Year End is Near!

Fiscal year-end close is quickly approaching. Keeping in mind the following information will help get your invoices processed as quickly as possible.

• All invoices (except for Facilities Management, Design & Construction) are processed and approved according to the workflow built into KFS – you do not need to send an email approval. Invoices that are $10K and above automatically route to the fiscal officer for review and approval prior to being paid.
• Sub-award Purchase Order’s (PO) must have two lines:
  • Line 1 - for $25,000, which is UCI’s federal negotiated rate.
  • Line 2  - for the remaining amount.
• Invoices for product or services provided prior to June 30, 2022, must have a valid purchase order. The purchase order must be:
  • Open
  • Approved
  • Have available funds (enough funds to pay all open invoices through June 30, 2022).
  • Amended and FINAL prior to June 1, 2022, for High Value/High Risk, Contract or Recurring Payment PO’s.

Vendor Onboarding: Don’t Delay Onboarding Payees

Payees must be onboarded through PaymentWorks to be paid on a Purchase Order (PO), Disbursement Voucher (DV) or TEM (Travel, Entertainment, Move/Relocation) document. Please submit onboarding requests now to avoid delays of payments or risk missing fiscal year-end close deadlines.

Important Note: Please notify Accounts Payable once your PO has been approved and finalized so we can process your invoices prior to June 30.

Need Help? Send all invoices and payment inquiries to accounts-payable@uci.edu. 

Business Hours Accounts Payable is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Our team is in the office on Wednesdays at 120 Theory, Suite 200, in the UCI Research Park.