A UW Ghost Account is a Visa purchasing account available for departments to charge merchant specific purchases. These accounts can be used for recurring transactions for specific merchant category codes such as shipping, cell phones, catering, utilities and much more. The accounts are set up under the department name and restrictions applied to the account for reduced risk.
New Card Application Process
Eligibility: UW faculty and staff are eligible to apply for a Ghost Account with department/unit approval.
- The cardholder completes and submits the UW Connect Card Services Form, choosing type "Ghost Account"
- The department ProCard approver must approve the application
- The ProCard Office reviews and approves the application weekly
- An email will be sent to the cardholder when the account information arrives in the ProCard office, typically in 7-10 business days
Renewal Application Process
Ghost Accounts auto renew and new information will be emailed to the cardholder once the information has arrived in the ProCard Office approximately 4-6 weeks prior to the month end of the expiration date.
Department Responsibilities
It is strongly recommended that documentation of the review is completed weekly.
Account holders will use Workday to do transaction review to ensure that the charges are valid, and that proper spend categories and funding worktags are assigned to each transaction. Account holders are responsible for reviewing the transactions.
Card Security
The Ghost Accounts should be treated with the same security as a regular ProCard.
The department issued the Ghost Account should be used only by the person to whom the account is issued (the account holder) and should not be shared or lent to other staff.
Only use reputable vendors.
Beware of requests for credit card information - These are email scams that can be very convincing as they attempt to extract account information from the recipient. Never reply to these email 'phishing scams'.
Please contact ProCard Office at procard@uw.edu if you ever have any questions or concerns regarding a suspicious email or phone call.