Travel Cards (TCards) are for business use only!
Travel Cards issued by UMB are special VISA credit cards. They work similarly to your personal credit cards, except the charges are billed directly to the University and paid by the University Business Office. The U of A supports two types of cards:
Administrative TCard
Allows for the purchase of airfare, registration, and car rental booked with local contracted car rental companies for individuals traveling on behalf of the U of A. This can include employee, student, and guest travel as long as it is for a valid business trip and a Travel Authorization has been entered in BASIS for the individual.
TheAdministrative TCard is normally in the name of the individual within a department who is responsible for the processing of travel related tasks.
Charges incurred on the Administrative TCard are downloaded daily to the UPS sub-system of BASIS and approved by an individual within the department.
Traveler Travel Card
Employees who travel a minimum of 3 times per year with travel expenses of approximately $2,000 per year will be eligible for a Traveler TCard, if the employee AND their department elect.
The employee will have the option of charging all travel expenses to their TCard.Unlike the Administrative TCard though, ANY charge incurred will download as a receivable to the CARDHOLDER The cardholder is to ONLY incur charges on this TCard that directly relate to a trip that they are on!
NEVER charge items on the Traveler TCard that relate to someone else's travel unless this a GROUP Travel and the cardholder is the responsible party for group!!
Charges incurred against a Traveler TCard are offset by the filing of the cardholder's Travel Claim. Any amount still owed by the cardholder, will be billed to the cardholder by the Treasurer's Office. (Similar to a Travel Advance)
PERSONAL CHARGES NOT RELATED TO A BUSINESS TRIP ARE STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. THIS CARD IS ONLY TO BE USED FOR VALID U OF A TRAVEL WHERE THE TRIP TIES TO A TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION.
Improper use of the Travel Card will result in consequences ranging from suspension of card to termination of employment and possible criminal prosecution.
Any individual for which a Travel Card is going to be requested must first complete an online Procurement Authorization within the BASIS system. Once this Procurement Authorization has been submitted and approved by the Cost Center managers for the default cost center entered via TARGET, the Travel Office will verify that the proposed cardholder will either be making the airline reservations for the department OR has sufficient travel to warrant having a card. Information will then be given to UMB to setup a cardholder account.
For a Step by Step of how to enter a Procurement Authorization please see How to Submit a Procurement Authorization
Prospective Cardholders MUST attend a training session and sign a Cardholder Agreement Form before receiving their Travel Card.
Travel Cards are not transferable. If someone's card use is discontinued, the Travel Card MUST be sent to the 'administrator' of the Travel Card program and the Procurement Authorization in BASIS must be cancelled.
The following limits are the maximum amounts allowable for a Travel Card per month. When the Procurement Authorization is requested, these amounts may be lowered.
(The Travel Office may increase the monthly amount if the need warrants)
University Travel Cardholders are responsible for:
The employee whose name appears on the Travel Card is authorized and responsible for all charges on the card. It is the responsibility of every Cardholder to safeguard their card and card number against use by unauthorized individuals within or outside of the University.
Under no circumstances may the Travel Card be used for items of personal use or Non-University purposes.
Airfare, registration, and car rentals from local contracted agencies may be purchased for any traveler for which a valid Travel Authorization is entered in BASIS for the trip. These charges are approved online in BASIS and supporting documentation sent to the Travel Office.
REMEMBER: The only time the Traveler TCard is to be utilized is for travel for the CARDHOLDER, unless the Cardholder is also responsible for a Group Travel.
Detailed receipts, when applicable, are attached to the Travel Claim and sent to the Travel Office for processing against the Travel Claim.
The Travel Card MUST never be used to purchase items that are NOT associated with a valid Travel Authorization, even if the cardholder intends to reimburse the University.
The purchase of first class tickets is not allowable without express approval from the U of A Travel Office. Purchase of a first class ticket without prior approval by U of A Travel Office will result in immediate cancellation of the cardholder's TCard.
A cardholder who makes an unauthorized purchase with a Travel Card, or uses the Travel Card in an inappropriate manner, will be subject to loss of any authority to retain or use the Travel Card; disciplinary action up to and including termination; and possible criminal prosecution and restitution.
When purchasing Airline Tickets, the Travel Card may be used to purchase airfare through a Travel Agency or an internet site in good standing.
If you are ordering over the phone you should provide:
Most of the airline tickets that the U of A purchases are non-refundable purchases. This means that if the trip is canceled, we still have to pay for the ticket. In many instances though, a portion of the value of the ticket can be used on another trip.
If purchasing the ticket with an Administrative TCard you will still approve the charge on EIC along with entering the TA number that was approved for the trip. (Make sure the TA is still in an 'open' status). In the extended description document that the trip was canceled and that at some point in the future, a portion of the dollar value of this ticket will be used on another trip.
If airfare was purchased with a Traveler TCard and the trip was not taken, a Travel Claim must still be filed in order to offset the airfare charge, if the U of A is not going to receive a refund. This is the only way that the 'receivable' will be offset. Otherwise the cardholder will receive an invoice from the Treasurer's Office for the amount of the ticket.
This is also true for other prepaid items, such as Registrations.
Whether a purchase is made in person or via telephone, internet, fax, or mail, the Cardholder is responsible for obtaining purchase documentation from the merchant. The following types of purchases will REQUIRE receipt documentation.
Administrative TCard
Airfare: The following information MUST be clearly identified on the documentation:
Registration
Local Car Rental Agencies
Traveler TCard
These documents MUST be given to the administrative person in your department responsible for approving the electronic charges sent from UMB and filing your Travel Claim for expenses related to trip.
When charges are approved, on the Administrative TCard the document number assigned to the charge, Example: T49494, should be written on the receipt and either sent to the Travel Office for scanning OR attached to the Statement of Traveling Expenses.
If a cardholder does not submit the required documentation along with their Travel Claim within a timely fashion after the end of the trip (usually within 5 days) a written warning will be sent to the cardholder for the first offense. Habitual failure to submit documentation will result in the suspension of the card; the user and their TARGET approver will be notified by e-mail. To reinstate privileges, a memo from a user's TARGET approver giving adequate justification will be required and all TCard supporting documentation submitted to bring the cardholder's reconciliations up to date. Upon receipt and approval of that justification, the Business Office will establish a time for the user to attend Travel Card training again.
If using a Traveler TCard and detailed receipts, when applicable, are not included with the Travel Claim, the Travel Claim will not be processed until the receipts, or justification for lost receipts, has been obtained.
If the cardholder and the supplier cannot resolve the issue, a Cardholder Dispute Form must be completed and mailed or faxed to the Travel Card Administrator, Carol Wade, at Travel Office, HOTZ 617, or fax 575-2838. She will forward this request to UMB for action.
Cardholders are required to immediately report any lost or stolen Travel Card to UMB toll-free at 1-800-821-5184 (24 hours a day, 365 days a year). The cardholder MUST also immediately notify the Travel Card Administrator at the first opportunity during normal U of A business hours at 479-575-7951.
Travel Cards will be audited primarily by the Travel Office. As the Travel Claims are filed, TCard receipts will be reviewed at that time. The Travel Office will also be tracking charges where the Travel Claim has not been filed in timely manner.
The Travel Office will also monitor the download of Traveler TCard charges to insur that the charges are related to valid business trips and that the Travel Claim and any amounts still owed by the Traveler are reimbursed in a timely manner.
Internal and Legislative Auditors will also be reviewing TCard receipts for compliance.