1. Bundle Your Expenses
   Group costs into a single “themedâ€� report (e.g., by trip, by month, or by purpose). Remember that you can allocate expenses to multiple funding sources within a single report, so there’s no need to submit separate reports for each. This eliminates redundant reviews, reducing administrative effort and speeding up reimbursements.Ìı

1. Use Pcard or eShop for Non-Travel Purchases
   ĞÓ°ÉÔ­´´â€™s eProcurement system, eShop, offers an extensive range of vendors with preferred pricing. Many goods and services can be purchased directly through eShop, simplifying the process and saving time.Ìı

Thank you for helping us be more efficient and for supporting the responsible use of university resources!ÌıÌı

If you have any questions, please reach out to the Financial Information Systems (FIS) team.Ìı

Follow university policies and guidelines and remember the following to avoid common reasons for returned reports …

• These policies are listed alphabetically on the University Secretariat webpage:
  • Travel and Related Expenses: Sets out the policy and procedures to be followed when traveling on behalf of the university.
  • Hospitality and Working Meal Expenses:Ìı Policy and procedures surrounding the expenditures of university funds on hospitality, entertainment and working meals.
• Choose the correct claim type (i.e. Request vs. Report) when beginning a claim in SAP Concur.
• Attach legible, digital copies of all required documentation to support your claim (e.g. itemized receipt, conference program).
• When attaching an itemized receipt as documentation for each expense line, make sure the receipt includes a detailed breakdown of purchase (i.e. description, quantities, taxes and any other charges). Remember! The slip from the credit card point of sale machineÌıis notÌıan itemized receipt.
• Choose the correctÌıIndex/FundÌıto charge expenses to (link to how-to)

Detailed instructions are available!

Use the following image to help determine which option to choose …

Detailed instructions are available!

Completed forms should be emailed to General.AR@carleton.ca.

A few highlights from the form

1. Enter the name of the department that has provided the good or service.
2. Fund / Org / Account are mandatory fields that must be filled in. Note that the Account must be a revenue account. Revenue accounts always begin with a 5.
3. Activity codes are optional.
4. Describe the good or service. This is important because it helps us in GAR determine if the taxes you’ve identified are correct. As an example, your description could be ‘three parking passes for lot 6’ or ‘five thousand letterhead envelopes’.
5. Taxes differ depending on the good/service and geographical location. If you are unsure about whether HST/GST applies, review the or contact us at General.AR@carleton.ca.

One very important thing to remember …

If the external party sends you a cheque for services rendered, the cheque MUST to be forwarded to 301 Pigiarvik, Receipt Accounting. This is because you have already received payment from GAR.

Where to find out more

If you’d like to find out more, email General.AR@carleton.ca.

Invoicing for some enterprise funds is handled by the Controller’s Office. If you have previously had invoices for your enterprise fund issued through the Controller’s Office or if you were instructed at the time of fund opening, then you should continue to contact your fund administrator for Accounts Receivable inquiries.

General Accounts Receivable, part of Financial Services, prepares invoices for goods provided or services performed by the university community for external parties.

General Accounts Receivable is usually referred to by its acronym, GAR.

Let’s use an example to illustrate what this means

ABC Company (i.e. an external party) contracts the School of Industrial Design (i.e. a ĞÓ°ÉÔ­´´ department) to build a panel display.

In order for the department to receive compensation, the Industrial Design administrator must request that GAR prepare an invoice for ABC Company.Ìı This willÌı ensure the university is meeting its sales tax obligations and will allow GAR to follow up if the invoice is unpaid.

Here’s how it works …

1. YOU initiate the request by filling out an invoice requisition form.
2. YOU email the completed form to General.AR@carleton.ca.
3. GAR reviews the completed form to ensure that it has been filled out correctly (read next week’s tip to find out more) and will create your invoice in FAST.Ìı The invoice will be e-mailed to the customer and the requestor (i.e. ABC Company and the School of Industrial Design administrator).
4. Once the invoice has been created, funds will be automatically transferred to the revenue that you specified on the invoice requisition form.Ìı This typically takes 2 to 3 business days.
5. GAR takes care of the collection and deposit of receivables (i.e. payment from ABC Company).

One very important thing to remember …

In this process you receive payment for your services directly from GAR (step 4 above). If the external party (e.g. ABC Company) sends you a cheque for services rendered, the cheque MUST to be forwarded to 301 Pigiarvik, Receipt Accounting. This is because you have already received payment from GAR.

Where to find out more

If you’d like to find out more, email General.AR@carleton.ca.

Invoicing for some enterprise funds is handled by the Controller’s Office. If you have previously had invoices for your enterprise fund issued through the Controller’s Office or if you were instructed at the time of fund opening, then you should continue to contact your fund administrator for Accounts Receivable inquiries.

The Travel and Related Expense policy has been in place since January 1997. It provides guidance on expenditures incurred for authorized travel and sets out conditions under which these expenditures will be reimbursed.Ìı As a public institution, the University’s policies must ensure that all expenditures are in accordance with applicable legislation, such as the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act (BPSAA) and Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), as well as funding agency requirements.

Following extensive consultation with internal and external stakeholders, theÌıTravel and Related Expenses policyÌıwas updated on July 1, 2024.

The need to revise this policy was due, in part, to a change in approach by one of the university’s main research funders, the Tri-Council. They have moved away from a prescriptive, rules-based approach to expense eligibility to a principles-based approach that relies heavily on an institution’s own policies. Most of our expense-related policies were drafted with administrative work in mind, so were inadequate when used to address research work. It was also necessary to include specific direction around travel that takes place during a Sabbatical or Research Leave to ensure it follows Canada Revenue Agency rules and does not attract additional tax implications for the traveller.

Summary of changes to the policy

• The purpose of the policy has been expanded to include the guiding principle that reimbursements of expenditures are on a fair and flexible basis that complies with all legal requirements.
• The policy also explicitly states that the university is not obligated to reimburse expenditures that have not been previously approved, for which there is no eligible funding, or if the claim has not been submitted on a timely basis (such as over a year later).
• The Roles and Responsibilities section now includes an explicit mention of an Expense Review Committee that will be responsible for adjudicating expense claims where the policy is silent or open to interpretation, as well as providing the pre-approval required for necessary dependent care costs that exceed the established limits in the policy.
• There are also a number of changes in this policy in an effort to provide new or improved guidance:
  • Airfare
    • More clarity is provided around air travel.
    • Standard fare is the lowest refundable base fare. Where the length of flight is 6 hours or more and to a destination outside of North America, a Premium Economy or Business Class fare will be permitted, if funding is available.
    • Approval of the fund holder must be sought if the traveller is not the fund holder or unit head.
  • Rail
    • Business class is now permitted on the entire Windsor to Quebec City corridor, or where it can be demonstrated that the higher rail fare does not exceed the lowest refundable base airfare.
  • Accommodation
    • More clarity is provided around class of hotel permitted, as well as for non-traditional accommodations, such as AirBnBs.
    • Accommodations within the National Capital Region are permitted if it relates to activities outside the day-to-day scope of the employee’s employment.
    • For private accommodations, a gift or payment of $40/day is permitted, without requiring a receipt.
  • Meals
    • Meals for the traveller will be reimbursed at the per diem rate only. Receipts are not required to be submitted.
    • ĞÓ°ÉÔ­´´ University uses per diem rates as prescribed by theÌı.Ìı While the National Joint Council may update their per diem rates throughout the year,ÌıĞÓ°ÉÔ­´´ updates rates once a year on July 1.ÌıWhile per diem rates are automated in SAP Concur,Ìıa searchable PDF is also available.
    • Where the traveller is acting as a host for a business or research related meal, it must comply with theÌıHospitality and Working Meals Policy.
    • Per diems cannot be claimed when meals are included in the price of another expense, such as a conference or flight, however travellers may request a per diem in place of a provided meal if they provide the reasons for incurring the additional expense (e.g. food intolerance).
  • Dependent Care
    • The policy now provides daily maximums ($80/day with receipt, $45/day without) for additional dependent care that must be incurred due to travel requirements.
    • Recognizing that these limitations may impose restrictions on employees required to travel, additional dependent care costs that exceed these limits may be pre-approved by the Expenditure Review Committee. This committee will include members from the Faculties, Equity and Inclusive Communities, and Financial Services.
  • Sabbatical or Research Leave
    • The policy now outlines the travel costs related to sabbatical or research leave that are eligible under the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), as well as those that are explicitly ineligible because of CRA and BPSAA rules. Ineligible expenses include living expenses, such as accommodation and meals, when a faculty member establishes a temporary base in a location other than their home. Given that CRA does not define the difference between living and travel expenses, the policy directs claimants to discuss with Research Post Award or Research Financial Services before travel during leave is booked.

For assistance, contact financial.systems@carleton.ca.

What does this mean for you?

• The functionality (i.e. the tasks you complete in the system) will not change.
• If you are already familiar with the system, you will not require additional training.
• The only notable change to navigation is the move from an expense/request menu bar to an expense/request drop-down menu.
  • Current menu bar

• • New drop-down menu

• All how-to sheets will be updated on December 11th.

New Feature

• Light (Morning Horizon) and dark (Evening Horizon) themes.

As always, contact Financial Systems with any questions.

The Financial Information Systems Team

Here’s why:

• The university needs to know if large purchases have been received before invoices are paid.
• By creating the receipt, you are authorizing Accounts Payable to issue payment.

It’s easy!Ìı The “Receipting Your Purchase Orderâ€� how-to sheet has step-by-step instructions.

More information:

• Making Payments, Tip #1: It’s easy to determine the status of your eShop requisition!
• Making Payments, Tip #2: Reducing rejected or delayed cheque requisitions.
• Making Payments, Tip #3: Paying honorariums.

When assessing whether a payment is considered an honorarium, remember that honorarium payments:

• Are nominal and not reflective of the market value of the services being performed.
• Are made to an individual (not a business!) for voluntary services for which fees are not legally or traditionally required.
• Are made on a one-time or non-routine basis to an individual as a “thank youâ€�.
• Do not involve an invoice or negotiation of the amount.
• Are not made to ĞÓ°ÉÔ­´´ employees, professional speakers, or consultants who perform the requested service for a living.

When completing the honorarium form in eShop, remember that:

• Each of the honorarium criteria listed in the “Honorarium Payments to Individualsâ€� section must be selected to confirm the validity of the payment as an honorarium.
• Supporting documentation must be attached. Examples include event advertisements, departmental memos, and event agendas.
• Supporting documentation should include the person’s legal name, home address, e-mail address, amount offered, and context of the event.
• The individual’s Social Insurance Number (SIN) should never be recorded in eShop or e-mails. The SIN can be provided by phone to Accounts Payable (extension 1524).

More information:

• ‘Honorarium Forms’ how-to sheet
• Making Payments, Tip #1: It’s easy to determine the status of your eShop requisition!
• Making Payments, Tip #2: Reducing rejected or delayed cheque requisitions.
• Making Payments, Tip #4: It’s easy to receipt a purchase order in eShop.