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AP Process

How do I find out the payment status of an invoice or reimbursement?

Payment status is available in Ariba using the Payment Loop feature for BPO, PO and Non-PO invoice payments, as well as Payment to Individual (XP), eReimbursement (XR), and eTravel Expense Report (ER) transactions.

For BPO, PO and Non-PO invoice payments, such as payment dates and payment numbers will show on the Payments tab, which can be reached by clicking through from the Summary tab > Invoices tab >  Invoice ID > Reconciliation tab > Reconciliation ID > Payments tab > Payment ID.

For Payment to Individual (XP), eReimbursement (XR), and eTravel Expense Report (ER) transactions, payment status and details are shown in the Payment Details section on the Summary page of the XP, XR or ER once the transaction has been fully approved and payment has been processed.

See guidance on our website: https://finance.uw.edu/ps/how-to-pay/payment-status-terms-timelines-delays

Please note that wire payment details are not included with the Payment Loop feature.

Once my ARIBA invoice says Reconciled, how long does it take for the Payments tab to show the information?

When Invoice Reconciliation has started in ARIBA (an IR is available on the Reconciliation tab), the Payments tab will show up as well.

  • On the day the invoice status changes from Reconciling to Reconciled, the Approved Amount of the invoice will show on the Payments tab.
  • The following day, more payment information will begin showing up in the ARIBA Payments tab, like the Doc Seq Invoice No. (DSI number) and Invoice Status, followed by the Scheduled Pay Date and the Check Number, and finally with the Check Date, which is the date the payment is issued.
    • Funds availability for ePayables is indicated by receipt of the Remittance Advice document the supplier will receive when funds are available on the card.
    • Funds availability for ACH payments is based on the supplier's bank's posting procedures.
  • The Check Clear Date will show when the information is available, and also depends on processing by the supplier and payment type (paper checks may take 30 days or more to update).

Note: This is the best-case scenario, assuming there are no errors (such as a closed budget number) that would prevent the payment from being processed.

What does "Scheduled" mean on the Payments tab information? I thought we were not scheduling ARIBA payments yet.

Currently the UW is not able to schedule the payment date for ARIBA invoices.

The Payments tab does show a status of "Scheduled" which cannot be changed.

To view the payment information for an ARIBA invoice:

  1. Verify the Invoice status is Reconciled and the Reconciliation status is Paying
  2. Click the Reconciliation ID to see the Payments tab
  3. After clicking on the Payment ID, you will be able to view the Transaction Details for the payment information, which will gradually fill in as the payment goes through processing.

See more guidance for the ARIBA Payment Loop on our website: https://finance.uw.edu/ps/how-to-pay/payment-status-terms-timelines-delays

Approval

Who is put on the approval graph for Non-Catalog Orders or BPOs?

Non-Catalog Orders and BPOs use the same approval process as eProcurement catalog orders. When you assign a budget number to an item, then the Approvers and Watchers will be added based on the eProcurement ASTRA roles that are in effect for the budgets/organizations involved. 

Ariba

How do I set up a default budget number or default delivery address in ARIBA?

For visual instructions and guidance, please visit the Changing Preferences in ARIBA eLearning on our Independent Study section. 

 

  1. Select Preferences from the command bar.
  2. Select Change your profile from the options provided.
  3. Click on the link for Step 2 Account/Ship in the left panel.
  4. To set a default Budget Number, click the down arrow to the right of the Budget Number field and select “Search for more…”.
  5. Enter the Budget Number (with no dashes) in the search field and click Search. (Alternatively, you can click the down arrow on the field to select Name if you prefer to search by the name of the budget.)
  6. Click the Select button to choose the default Budget Number.
  7. To set a default Ship To, click the down arrow to the right of the Ship To field and select “Search for more…”.
  8. Enter part of the address (e.g., street name or address number) into the search field and click Search.
  9. Click the Select button for the address you wish to set as your default shipping location.
  10. Click Next.
  11. Type in an option internal comment.
  12. Click Next.
  13. Click Next.
  14. Click Submit to submit the change. Note: There is no approval required for this change.
How do I change my email notification preferences for ARIBA?

For visual instructions and guidance, please visit the Changing Preferences in Ariba eLearning on our Independent Study section. 

 

To set-up frequency of email notifications:

  1. Login to ARIBA
  2. Select Preferences from the command bar.
  3. Select Change email notification preferences from the options provided.
  4. Click on the drop down arrow to the right of the Edit preferences for: field and select the document type.
  5. Under Notification method, you can choose the method based upon being an approver or watcher. Select the option you prefer. You have a choice of Send email immediately or Send email summary. Your choice specifies whether to receive each request as it is generated or receive all requests at once in a daily bath email, respectively.
  6. Under Notification frequency, set the following:

 

7.   When you are finished making your selections, make sure to click Save to save your changes

How do I find out the payment status of an invoice or reimbursement?

Payment status is available in Ariba using the Payment Loop feature for BPO, PO and Non-PO invoice payments, as well as Payment to Individual (XP), eReimbursement (XR), and eTravel Expense Report (ER) transactions.

For BPO, PO and Non-PO invoice payments, such as payment dates and payment numbers will show on the Payments tab, which can be reached by clicking through from the Summary tab > Invoices tab >  Invoice ID > Reconciliation tab > Reconciliation ID > Payments tab > Payment ID.

For Payment to Individual (XP), eReimbursement (XR), and eTravel Expense Report (ER) transactions, payment status and details are shown in the Payment Details section on the Summary page of the XP, XR or ER once the transaction has been fully approved and payment has been processed.

See guidance on our website: https://finance.uw.edu/ps/how-to-pay/payment-status-terms-timelines-delays

Please note that wire payment details are not included with the Payment Loop feature.

Can I do a Standing Order in ARIBA BPO? What about in Non-Catalog Ordering?

Standing Orders can be based on a quantity or on a dollar amount. You specify quantity or amount when you create the CR (Contract Request). BPO is the only ARIBA module designed to easily handle standing orders. It offers the ability to set start and expiration dates, variable dollar amounts (for orders based on Amount) and the ability to increase or decrease Quantity or Amount over time. Best Practice is to use BPOs for standing orders or recurring purchases.

What do I do if I created a duplicate receipt?

If you submitted a duplicate receipt in ARIBA that you do not want to keep, you can submit a new receipt to reverse it.

First, have the Approver approve the receipt submitted in error.

Second, you will create another receipt-

  • If you created the first receipt by amount, create the second receipt as a negative amount
  • If you created the first receipt by quantity, create the second receipt as a negative quantity

Have this receipt approved as well. Doing so will zero out the amount of the first receipt submitted in error.

Questions? Contact PCS Help at pcshelp@uw.edu or 206-543-4500.

Can there be more than one Preparer on an ARIBA order?

No, there is only one Preparer on an ARIBA order (including catalog or non-catalog POs and BPOs). Only the person submitting the request is the Preparer.

How do I remove items from my To Do list in Ariba?

If you are a Watcher or another person has approved an order or invoice, you can remove the item from your To Do list by archiving the item. To archive approval requests:

  1. On the bottom right corner of the To Do box, click View More
  2. On the Approval Requests page that comes up, select the Approval Request(s) that you want to remove
  3. Click Archive to Label. You can archive to the default label of Archive Items, or you can assign a different label

In some cases, your To Do content might contain documents that you are no longer responsible for. (For example, if a document was assigned to you based on your org code and you are no longer with that department) The document might remain in your To Do column. You can clean up the To Do content item to remove these documents. To clean up: 

  1. On the bottom right corner of the To Do box, click View More
  2. On the Approval Requests page that comes up, click Clean Up
Can there be more than one requester on an ARIBA order?

No, there is only one Requester on an ARIBA order (including catalog or non-catalog POs and BPOs). For POs, the person listed in the "On Behalf Of" field is the Requester. For BPOs, the person listed in the "Contact" field is the Requester.

What is the reason that budget changes can only be made from the same budget type?

Central Office has strict rules about what can be verified as appropriate charges on a budget. Because we can’t verify what is and is not allowable on budgets (nor should we since they are not our budgets), we can only make budget changes to and from the same budget type. However, you as the department know what is allowable and can create an expense transfer in MyFD once the invoice posts to change it to whatever budget you deem appropriate. 

Is there a size limit for attachments in ARIBA?

The current size limit is 4 MB for attachments in ARIBA (Catalog, Non-Catalog, BPO, Non-PO Invoice, etc.)

Can I search for invoices that have been rejected?

To search for rejected invoices:

  1. Click Search in the blue command bar.
  2. Select Invoice from the drop-down.
  3. Ensure the Status field is visible in the Search Filter window. If it is not, click the Search Options link in the upper right-hand corner, and select Status.
  4. Click on the drop-down arrow for the Status field and select Rejected.
  5. Optionally, you can add other search filters such as Supplier and Invoice Date.
  6. Click Search.
  7. Rejected invoices meeting the Search filter criteria should appear in the Search Results.
What document types can be attached in ARIBA?

The following document types may be attached in ARIBA:

txt, csv, xls, xlsx, doc, docx, dotx, potx, ppt, pptx, ppsx, sldx, xltx, pdf, ps, rtf, htm, html, xml, jpeg, jpg, bmp, gif, png, zip

How can I tell if my invoice reject request for a BPO has been processed?

You will see a status of Rejected on the Invoices Tab of the BPO. If the status of the Invoice is Reconciled, that means that the invoice has been released for payment.

To determine the status of the BPO Invoice for invoices paid or rejected prior to the 9r2 deployment:

  1. Navigate to the invoice detail by clicking on the Invoice ID
  2. Click on the Reconciliation Tab of the invoice to see if the status is Rejected or Paying.
I was just added as a Central Receiver for ARIBA in ASTRA. When will I be able to receive invoices?

If a Central Receiver is added to the organization in ASTRA, they will begin receiving notifications when a receipt is created and be able to receive on a BPO the day after the role assignment in ASTRA.

When a BPO is created, the first receipt (RCxxxxxx) is also created at that time, and the receipt is thus able to be accessed for receiving only by those that have receiving ability when that receipt was created. Since only the Preparer and Contact (Requester) have the receiving ability automatically for BPOs, these are the people who will receive on the BPO.

If a BPO is created, and later a Central Receiver is assigned in ASTRA, the Central Receiver will not have access to receipts prior to their activation date. They will only have the receiving ability for receipts created the day after the role is assigned in ASTRA.

What does the Clean Up button do?

The Clean Up button is used to remove items from your To Do in ARIBA list if you have been removed from an ASTRA approval role. The Clean Up button is at the upper right corner when you:

  • Select Manage > My To Do.

If you have been removed from an ASTRA approval role, clicking on the Clean Up button will remove those items that no longer require your attention.

What is the difference between the Date Attached and the Date Created fields for Non-PO Invoices?

Several years ago based on campus user requirements, we created a customization to ARIBA to include the Date Attached timestamp field because the out-of-the box software did not have a field that recorded when an attachment was added.

In release 9r2, ARIBA added the Date Created field for attachments, so currently there are 2 dates for attachments:

  • Date Attached – UW Customization
  • Date Created – ARIBA 9r2 Enhancement

In a future release of the ARIBA system, we will be removing the Date Attached customized field and keeping the ARIBA Date Created field.

Who is put on the approval graph for Non-Catalog Orders or BPOs?

Non-Catalog Orders and BPOs use the same approval process as eProcurement catalog orders. When you assign a budget number to an item, then the Approvers and Watchers will be added based on the eProcurement ASTRA roles that are in effect for the budgets/organizations involved. 

How does ARIBA decide the tax rate for BPOs and POs?

ARIBA calculates the tax rate based on the ship-to address. If the ship-to address is in Seattle, WA, it will match the tax on the invoice to that rate.

How does a supplier invoice for only shipping or freight, or send a credit invoice for only shipping or freight?

Have the supplier refer to the invoicing guides found at:

https://finance.uw.edu/ps/AribaBlanketPurchaseOrders/bporeceivingsuppliers

 

Once my ARIBA invoice says Reconciled, how long does it take for the Payments tab to show the information?

When Invoice Reconciliation has started in ARIBA (an IR is available on the Reconciliation tab), the Payments tab will show up as well.

  • On the day the invoice status changes from Reconciling to Reconciled, the Approved Amount of the invoice will show on the Payments tab.
  • The following day, more payment information will begin showing up in the ARIBA Payments tab, like the Doc Seq Invoice No. (DSI number) and Invoice Status, followed by the Scheduled Pay Date and the Check Number, and finally with the Check Date, which is the date the payment is issued.
    • Funds availability for ePayables is indicated by receipt of the Remittance Advice document the supplier will receive when funds are available on the card.
    • Funds availability for ACH payments is based on the supplier's bank's posting procedures.
  • The Check Clear Date will show when the information is available, and also depends on processing by the supplier and payment type (paper checks may take 30 days or more to update).

Note: This is the best-case scenario, assuming there are no errors (such as a closed budget number) that would prevent the payment from being processed.

How do I know that the Manual Order has been sent to the supplier?

Both the preparer and requester will be copied on the email that is sent to the supplier. The email will include a PDF version of the EI as an attachment. In addition, if you have attached a quote and marked it Visible to Supplier, the quote will also be attached to the email that is sent. Even though we recommend using an email instead of fax number, if you must use a fax number, a copy of the EI and any attachments marked as Visible to Supplier will be faxed.