Department Administrator
Session #14
October 30, 2014
Agenda
• Internal Audit of Tri-Agency grants
– Internal audit report released Mar 2014
– Observation by Internal Auditor
– Management Action
• Tri-Agencies Monitoring Review – Updates
• Reminders
– Release of Funds
– Airfare eligibility
– Change of Status
• Next Session
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made by
Internal Auditor
Tri-council Claim
Certification form not
attached
Management Action
- Travel Claim Form will prompt
claimants to fill out Tri-council Form if
the claim is from Tri-council grant Changes implemented eff. Sept. 17,
2014
- Expense claim should be authorized
Rubber stamp (instead of
with original signature
grantee’s original signature) - If approver is not available in person,
form can be faxed/scanned back
was used
- Signature stamp is unacceptable
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made
by Internal Auditor
Management Action
Insufficient supporting - Appropriate supporting documentations should
be submitted with all expenses claimed
documentation
- Specific to Hospitality Charges:
Purpose,
#of attendees
names and affiliation of attendees
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made
by Internal Auditor
Insufficient
supporting
documentation
Management Action
- Specific to Travel charges:
Purpose of trip
Dates and destinations (person or location visited)
Conference Agenda
Prospectus/program indicating dates of conference
Details of any vehicle used
Original receipts (credit card slips are not valid receipts)
- such as hotel, meals, Car rental agreements
Original air travel ticket receipts
Boarding passes
Affiliation of Traveler to grant leader
Travel & Hospitality - discussion
• Due to increasing accountability and audits, it is essential that
claimants provide more details on expense claims.
• Remember that more info is better than no info.
• Treasury Operations will sort through info provided. It is difficult
when the information is missing to determine what happened and
make good judgement about expense eligibility and compliance.
• To re-word, your expense claim should tell the story of the trip
and add as many notes as required. This will eliminate the
guessing game.
• For hospitality expenses, always include names and the number of
attendants
• If at any time you are unclear about what to include with the claim,
please contact Treasury Operations.
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made by
Internal Auditor
Management Action
- As per Tri-council guidelines, Car
Rental Insurance cost is an eligible
Ineligible Expenses – Car
cost if the car rental cost is directly
Rental Insurance Costs
related to the research for which
the grant is awarded
- Gift is NOT eligible expense
Ineligible Expenses – Duplicate
- Please make sure expenses are
Meal Expenses and Gift
claimed only once
Direct Billing for Travel
• Budget Car receipts should be attached with travel claims and noted as
‘Previously Claimed’ on the claim even though it has been paid by A/P
• The original receipt should remain with A/P and copy should be included
with the travel claim
• It is possible that some types of expenses bypass the dept. and are paid
directly by UOG (rental cars and travel agencies). This results in no
authorization of the expense
• A new authorization form has been created which requires pre-approval
by the department and this form must be submitted to the Travel Agency
and they must attach the signed form to the invoice for payment by UofG.
– This form will ensure greater controls and address an observation
made by Internal Audit in their Tri-Agency Review
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made
by Internal Auditor
Management Action
-
Effective, Economical &
Essential Expenditures
-
-
One Claim – One Trip
Requirement
As per Tri-council, “funds must be used
effectively and economically and the expense
must be essential for the research…”
Airfare, hotel and meals etc and all other
expenses should fit under above Tri-council
Guide.
Upon completion of the trip, previously paid
expenses are to be entered on the final claim to
capture the entire trip’s cost and to meet Tricouncil requirement
Effective, Economical & Essential
Expenditures discussion
• If travelling before/after conference date, will need
to indicate the reason
• Eg. Attending the conference 3 days in advance
because of involvement with preconference
• By providing these extra details it will explain the
purpose and remove all the guess work of the
reviewer. This can be added in the Notes section
• A good note to remember:
– Tell a story about your trip. We are experiencing more
accountability and audit requirements so the more info
you provide on your claim, the better.
Personal purpose of extending stay on
travel claim
• Must ensure they are not claiming hotel, meals, car
rental etc.
• Please indicate in Special notes. This will keep
Treasury Operations informed of the story.
• Document the difference between UOG & personal
expenses
• If decide to change trip to different location will
need to justify. Tell the story and each case will be
reviewed separately.
Internal Audit Report
Travel & Hospitality
Observation made by
Internal Auditor
Management Action
Ineligible Expenses –
Expenditures after the end
date
- Expenditures must be incurred before
the end of the grant.
- It can be processed after end date
Use of Pre-paid Gift Cards
- Detailed receipts should be provided
to support actual use of a gift card
Internal Audit Report
Operating Expenses
Observation made
by Internal Auditor
Management Action
Not appropriately
authorized
- Grant leader or an approved delegate should
authorize the expense
- Management is currently reviewing options to
establish approval review process for SMCs,
Internal charges etc.
Insufficient
supporting
documentation
- All appropriate supporting documentations
(invoices, approvals, calculations etc.) should
be maintained.
Travel & Hospitality - Discussion
• Travel claim form must be approved with all
supporting documents including original
detailed receipts (invoices will indicate HST)
• Credit/debit slips are not invoices
• Any previously reported travel must be
included on the travel claim
• Please use special notes for additional
comments
Internal Audit Report
Operating Expenses
Observation
made by
Internal Auditor
Ineligible
Expenses
Management Action
- Transaction audited was for Office Supplies which
is ineligible expense
- For Expense eligibility please visit 2013 TriAgency Financial Administration Guide
http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ProfessorsProfesseurs/FinancialAdminGuideGuideAdminFinancier/index_eng.asp
Ineligible expense - discussion
• This all comes back to the story to determine if the
expense is eligible.
• So please include all documentation and any
additional notes that may be required!
• Please refer to Tri-Agency Financial Administrative
Guide or follow up with Research Financial Services
• Expenses need to be incurred before the grant end
date
• Please verify date of the expense to ensure it is
eligible
Tri-Agencies Monitoring Review
Updates
• Overall … it was a great review
• Tri-Agencies happy with the initiatives and
corrective action taken since our last review
Tri-Agencies Monitoring Review
Updates
• A number of strong controls have been
identified. The most notable are:
– Training
• Insider publication by Office of Research
• Powerpoint slides from our Department Administrator
sessions
– Ownership/Disposal of assets
• Proceeds from sales of equipment remain
Tri-Agencies Monitoring Review
Updates
• Controls that require some improvement:
– Delegation of Signing Authority
• Not appropriate to delegate to administrative staff
– Review of Expenditure for Compliance and Eligibility
• Specific reference to PCARDs and Internal Stores
– New or Emerging Ethics requirements
• Can not rely solely on the researcher
– CIHR Research Allowance accounts
• Awardee (student) must have full authorization of use of
account
• Ethics clearance before releasing next installment
Reminder – Steps to Release Funding
Ongoing Grants
Certification(s) in
Place
Office of Research
to Validate
Protocol(s)
RFS release funds
Communication to
RFS
Reminder – Steps to Release Funding
New Grants
Certification(s) in
Place
Office of Research
to Validate
Protocol(s)
RFS release funds
Completed Signing
Authority Form
Communication to
RFS
Reminder - Travel Cost - Airfare
Tri-Agencies Policy
• Air travel must be claimed at the lowest rate available, not to exceed full
economy fare.
http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ProfessorsProfesseurs/FinancialAdminGuide-GuideAdminFinancier/index_eng.asp
University of Guelph policy
• Air Travel Economy or similar fare is to be used whenever possible.
Travellers claiming for the cost of air travel in a class of travel higher than
economy must obtain the approval of their respective Dean or Vice
President. This approval must be provided for each occurrence.
https://www.uoguelph.ca/finance/travel-policy-procedure-fi-20
Reminder - Change in Status
• The institution must notify the Agency's Finance (NSERC and
SSHRC) or Program Delivery (CIHR only) Division as soon as a
grantee's eligibility changes at any time during tenure of the
grant. These changes could include:
– a change in position at the institution,
– a change from full-time to part-time status,
– a change to a term position during the course of the grant,
or
– taking a position outside of Canada (academic or other).
www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ProfessorsProfesseurs/FinancialAdminGuide-GuideAdminFinancier
Thank you
• Thank you to everyone that provided
information, documentation, etc. for either of
these audits/reviews over the last 12 months.
Next Session
• We will plan the next session for January
2015.
• Enjoy the Holiday Season!!