Monthly Closing Deadlines

The April 2024 period in the general ledger has closed.  The current and future month-end processing deadline schedules are located at Monthly Closing Deadlines.

Fiscal Year End 2023-2024 Memorandum is now available

The fiscal year end closing process is quickly approaching. In preparation for the fiscal year end close, please refer to the FY24 Year End Memo for important information including all year end closing deadlines and a listing of departmental contacts. Our team counts on you to meet crucial year end and monthly closing deadlines, so we thank you for your efforts and cooperation throughout the year.

Deactivation and Chart Field Change Requests

The last day to request deactivation or changes to chart field strings for activity numbers or projects is May 17, 2024 for FY24.  If a balance exists in fixed assets or liability accounts, it is not possible to process your request until the balances are zero, this may result in your request being processed in the next fiscal year.

Travel News and Updates

Travel Forms:

We have updated our Travel Website and created various forms to help you reconcile travel expenses. We encourage you to use those forms.

• Travel Reimbursement Checklist
• Foreign Travel Template- 2023
• Foreign Travel Template- 2024
• Group Travel

Mileage:

The traveler must substantiate the mileage reimbursement using a mapping website such as MAPQUEST or the State of Florida DOT. The mapping website must include the beginning and ending addresses of the trip.

Travel and Expense Year-End Process:

• We request you cancel Travel Authorizations (TA) for employees who have separated from the University if the travel did not occur. If travel did occur, please contact the Financial Systems team (controller@fiu.edu) to gain access to these individuals’ profiles.  Once access has been granted, you must create an expense report for a non-employee, including any prepaid travel and out-of-pocket expenses (if applicable) that were listed on original TA.  Please click here for instructions.
• The department should cancel or delete TAs that have not been finalized.
• June 3, 2024 – Last day for Expense Reports (ER) in the Prepay Auditor (Travel) queue to be processed against FY24. All required documentation must be included to meet this commitment.
• The travel staff will continue to approve ERs for payments after June 3, 2024.
• If the ER has not been paid by year-end, we have created a new process to avoid deleting them. Here is what we need from the community:
• If the ER is in submitted status, the proxy (or employee) must withdraw the report, or the approver must send it back.
• If the ER was in the Prepay Auditor queue and not paid, the travel staff will detach the TA from the ER. 
• For ERs not paid in FY24, the Travel and Financial Systems team will ensure that the Approved TA is detached from the ER.
• After July 2, 2024, the travel proxy can reattach the TA to the ER and resubmit the report. Please click here for instructions.
• June 14, 2024 – System access to the Travel & Expense module will be removed.
• The Travel staff will begin the cleanup process. All TAs that are not approved will be deleted.
• TAs deleted in FY24 must be recreated in the new fiscal year.
• July 2, 2024 – All TAs in an approved status will roll over to FY25.
• Vicinity travel will not be reimbursed if the dates claimed are over 90 business days old.
• The year-end process will not affect cash advances regardless of the status of the document.
• Ensure the TAs are approved to avoid delay in the final processing of cash advances.

Accounts Payable Updates

Unencumbered Form

The unencumbered form was recently updated with a new required field.  Under the Justification section, you must now enter the date that the services were rendered, or items received.

Voucher List

A list of vouchers pending receipt is now available on the Office of the Controller’s website.  The list is updated every week. It can be found under the News & Announcements section.

Please:

• Review the list of vouchers.
• If the items have been received or services rendered, create a receipt in PeopleSoft.
• If a receipt was created before the date noted on the spreadsheet, contact bblancog@fiu.edu or ldelcam@fiu.edu
• If an item ordered is not delivered or received, you must contact the vendor and request a credit memo.

Receiving Notifications

If you receive an e-mail from fin-panthersoft@fiu.edu requesting a receiving transaction, Accounts Payable has already received and entered the invoice.  Do not resubmit the invoice.  The e-mail is a notification that an invoice has been received and that there is no receipt in the system to match it.  Once you create a receipt, PeopleSoft will automatically match the invoice to the receipt.

If you create a receipt and continue to receive the notifications, please send Beatriz Blanco-Hernandez (bblancog@fiu.edu) an e-mail and she will review the voucher and correct any matching errors or let you know if anything additional is needed.

ODP and Amazon

When an item ordered and invoiced is not received or is returned, a credit memo from the vendor is required to delete the invoice from PeopleSoft.  Please make sure to contact the vendor and request a credit memo.  The vendor will then forward it to Accounts Payable.

Amazon

Receipts should be created by shipment received and not by the total ordered amount.  Most vendors issue invoices by shipment.  Creating one receipt per order will delay the payment of the invoice.

Travel Reimbursements (on a Vendor Invoice)

All travel reimbursements require an approved TA.  This includes any travel reimbursements that are included on a vendor invoice submitted to Accounts Payable.

Florida Sales Tax Rate Decreased to 2.0% effective June 1, 2024 for Rental, Lease or License to Use Real Property

Currently, Florida imposes a 6% sales tax on the sales of most goods and certain services. In addition, Florida counties can impose a local option surtax on top of the 6% rate that varies by county. Therefore, the sales tax rate is 7% in Miami-Dade County, Broward County, and Pinellas County (due to the additional 1% surtax).

The sales tax is also imposed on commercial leases and licenses to use real property, but at a reduced rate. Some examples of real property rentals that are subject to tax include (commercial office or retail space, conference rooms, ballrooms, stadiums, arenas, etc.). The sales tax rate imposed under Florida Statutes on the rent charged for renting, leasing, or granting a license to use real property is currently 5.5% (4.5% plus the additional 1% surtax).

Effective June 1, 2024, the sales tax rate imposed under Florida Statutes on the rent charged for renting, leasing, or granting a license to use real property is decreased to 2.0%. Therefore, the combined sales tax rate for any rental activity taking place on or after June 1, 2024, will be 3.0% (2.0% plus the additional 1% surtax) for Miami-Dade County, Broward County, and Pinellas County.

To accurately collect and remit the sales tax collected by the University, rental related sales tax collections should only be posted to one of the following general ledger accounts shown below.

Account number 311318 (Sales Tax Liab MD Prop Rental) – this account is used to record/deposit sales tax for rental activity taking place in Miami-Dade County, which is subject to the reduced 3.0% (June 1, 2024) sales tax rate and the previous 5.5% (December 1, 2023) sales tax rate.

Account number 311319 (Sales Tax Liab Bwd Prop Rental) – this account is used to record/deposit sales tax for rental activity taking place in Broward County, which is subject to the reduced 3.0% (June 1, 2024) sales tax rate and the previous 5.5% (December 1, 2023) sales tax rate.

Account number 311320 (Sales Tax Liab PIN Prop Rental) – this account is used to record/deposit sales tax for rental activity taking place in Pinellas County, which is subject to the reduced 3.0% (June 1, 2024) sales tax rate and the previous 5.5% (December 1, 2023) sales tax rate.

However, this reduction does not change the sales tax rate for all other taxable sales. All other sales tax activity (not rental related) should be posted to one of the following general ledger accounts.

Account number 311315 (Sales Tax Liab MD NOT Rental) – this account is used to record/deposit sales tax for goods or services being sold in Miami-Dade County which are subject to the 7.0% sales tax rate.

Account number 311317 (Sales Tax Liab BWD NOT Rental) – this account is used to record/deposit sales tax for goods or services being sold in Broward County which are subject to the 7.0% sales tax rate.

Please continue to use Department Number 110401000 and Activity Number 1104120007 for all sales tax deposits regardless of the general ledger account used.

If you have questions about this change or any other sales tax questions, please email Tax Compliance Services or call any of the Tax Compliance team members. You can also click this link to Florida Tax Information Publication (TIP) No. 24A01-02, which contains additional information related to the sales tax rate change.

TCM and Sourcing Access Request Moving to PeopleSoft

Starting May 13^th 2024, The TCM (JAGGAER Contract) and Sourcing Access Request form will no longer be accessible in ImageNow. To request TCM and Sourcing roles, login to PeopleSoft Financials and complete the Access Request Form. 

Instructions for submitting and approving the access request form can be found under the Training Resources section of the Controller’s website.

If you have any questions or need assistance with the form, please contact our help desk at 7-7200 or send an email to controller@fiu.edu.

Credit Card Reconciliation: Supporting Documentation

As a reminder, when reconciling Pcard transactions, scanning and attaching receipts and supporting documentation is mandatory. While all charges must still be approved within 10 business days, Approvers will have thru the end of the calendar month to complete attaching all documentation.  Examples of supporting documentation include:

• Flyers
• Print samples
• Agendas
• Quotes
• Attendance Sheets

If you have any questions, please reach out to the Credit Card Solutions Team at ccsteam@fiu.edu

Coming Up: Mandatory Retraining of All Program Participants

As part of our programs audit corrective actions, in July, all card program participants (Cardholders, Approvers, and Reconcilers) will be required to complete a periodic retraining of Pcard program processes and procedures.   

This “self-paced” training experience, available on Canvas, will meet this essential audit requirement. Additionally, all participants must pass a brief assessment with a minimum of 80% accuracy to complete their recertification.

For those participants that have both a Departmental Card and a T&E Card, you must complete both courses.

In the coming weeks, you should receive an email containing additional information on how to access and complete your refresher training, including important deadlines.