Post Payment Issues
The following are common issues that occur after a check has been printed for payment:
Cancel payments
A check that has been issued and mailed needs to be cancelled. A "cancel payment" is an action taken to void the check with Rice's bank. When this occurs, Rice is charged a transaction fee per cancelled check. Once this has been requested with the bank, the check will not be honored.
NOTE: Our procedure is to wait 40 days from the check date to cancel a domestic check, and 60 days to cancel a check sent to an international address. This allows USPS time to forward and/or return mail.
To request a "cancel payment" action on a check, email Disbursements at disbmt@rice.edu, with the following information:
- the check number
- the payee's name
- the amount of the check
- the reason for requesting a "cancel payment"
- if re-issuing, where (the address) the re-issued check should be sent
Any time a "cancel payment" is requested, the check must be voided within the financial system (Banner). We will automatically void any check for which a "cancel payment" has been issued.
Supplier Refunds / credit memos
Suppliers have the need either to refund money or issue a credit memo to a department. It is preferred for the supplier to issue a refund check made payable to Rice University that is mailed directly to the department. Once a department has received a refund check, the following steps should be followed:
- A deposit voucher form (available from the Cashier's Office ) should be completed indicating the correct fund/org/account codes to which the refund should be deposited. The refund should be deposited into the fund/org/account from which the original expense was paid.
- The deposit voucher form, the check and a copy of the check should be sent to the Cashier's Office (MS55) for deposit. Copies of the deposit voucher form and the check should be kept within the department until the refund is recorded in the Banner financial system.
If a supplier issues a credit memo, it should be sent directly to payment@rice.edu.
Once a credit memo is entered into Banner, it is forwarded to the Disbursements area. The Disbursements area "holds" the credit memo until the credit is applied against incoming invoices from the same vendor. At that point, the credit memo is filed with the payment that it is applied against.
It is important for departments to use any outstanding credit memos with the vendor as soon as possible. Expenses associated with credit memos that remain outstanding for more than three years will be charged back to the department that was originally credited.
Note: If a refund check is received from a supplier for a credit memo that has already been processed, the check should be forwarded to the Cashier's Office (MS55) for deposit to the correct account. The credit invoice will be cancelled in Banner once Disbursements receives a copy from the Cashier's Office. In these situations, please include a copy for Disbursements to cancel the credit invoice.