Payment Processing FAQs

You must follow the below steps when submitting a payment request.

• Failure to comply with these requirements will result in your payment being returned to you, unpaid.
• NOTE: resubmitted requests will not be prioritized in the queue and will be reviewed in the same first in, first out processing time as any other request. 

Steps for submitting a complete payemnt request:

1. If your payee is an independent contractor, complete related tasks.
2. Ensure that the payee has completed the PaymentWorks onboarding process and has registered the remittance address that is on the invoice.
3. Complete your payment request form in full, obtain the proper approvals, and attach the required documentation.
   • RELATED: How do I know what payment method to use for my invoice?
   • RELATED: What documentation do I need when making a payment?
   • RELATED: Where can I find Accounts Payable forms?
   • RELATED: How do I approve a PO invoice?
   • RELATED: How do I approve a payment or wire request form?
4. Submit the payment request to apinvoices@kent.edu.

For in-depth information on the PaymentWorks vendor onboarding process, including written instructions and a video showing how to use the portal, visit the PaymentWorks Vendor Management page.

All payment requests, wires, and/or invoices must be submitted electronically, via email, to apinvoices@kent.edu.

Note the following:

• Payment requests and approvals must be submitted from kent.edu email accounts.
• Each emailed submission may contain only one PO invoice, payment request form (and associated documentation), or wire request form (and associated documentation.)
  • Our processing system converts every submission into a PDF file that contains the body of the email as well as its attachments, which means that your email is part of the payment documentation. We then key and index each request separately.
• The subject lines on submission emails should be formatted as follows, so that we can sort, search, and find requests about which we receive inquiries.
  • PO invoices
    • Format: <vendor name><invoice # or service date when there is no invoice number><PO#>
    • Example: ABC Company 12345 P0012345
  • Payment request forms
    • Format: <vendor name><invoice # or service date when there is no invoice #>
    • Example: ABC Company 06/24/20
  • Wire requests
    • Format: <WIRE><vendor name><invoice # or service date when there is no invoice number><PO# when applicable>
    • Example: WIRE ABC Company 12345 P0012345

There are two methods of approval that are acceptable:

1.  You may physically sign a hard copy of a payment or wire request form, scan it, and then attach it to your email submission, OR
2. Initiators and approvers may indicate their approval within the body of the email chain that is sent to apinvoices@kent.edu.

If you choose to use the second method (approval via an email chain), you must use the format shown below. This format has been developed to ensure that the approvals meet audit standards and allow AP to efficiently review and process payments. Deviating from these standards will result in your request being returned to you, unpaid.

Click here to see an example of a correctly-formatted email approval chain.

Required email approval format:

• Initiator's email. The body of this email must contain:

Vendor:     Name of Vendor (full legal name, not initials or nickname)

Banner ID:   Vendor ID as it appears in PaymentWorks and Banner

Invoice #:   Invoice number (or service date when no invoice.) If submitting a form with multiple invoices, list all invoice numbers.

Amount:      Total dollar amount of request (i.e., if multiple invoices are listed on the form, state the grand total, not each individual total.)

Initiator:   Name of the person sending the email (initiating the payment)

• Approver 1's email. The body of this email must contain the same information shown in the Initiator's email (copy and paste it) PLUS the signoff from Approver 1:

Vendor :          Name of Vendor (full legal name, not initials or nickname)

Banner ID:      Vendor ID as it appears in PaymentWorks and Banner

Invoice #:        Invoice number (or service date when no invoice.) If submitting a form with multiple invoices, list all invoice numbers.

Amount:          Total dollar amount of request (i.e., if multiple invoices are listed on the form, state the grand total, not each individual total.)

Initiator:          Name of the Initiator

Approver 1:    Name and title

• Subsequent approvers and Grants Accounting:

  • Copy and paste the body of the previous approver's email into the body of your email, adding additional approver lines (e.g., Approver 2, Approver 3, etc.)

  • All payment requests that are charged all or in part to indexes beginning with 4, C, or P must be approved by Grants Accounting (grants@kent.edu.)

The end result of the email method of approval will be that the submission that is sent to apinvoices@kent.edu will have all of the approvers listed in the topmost email in the chain, and AP staff will be able to see each approver's email in the chain below. 

There are two methods of approval that are acceptable:

1. You may physically sign a hard copy of a PO invoice and then attach it to your email submission, OR
2. You may indicate that a PO invoice is "okay to pay" within the body of the email that is sent to apinvoices@kent.edu.
   • NOTE: If an international wire is required as payment method, a wire request form is required regardless of whether a PO has been assigned. 

If you choose to use the second method (approval via email), you must follow the instructions below. These instructions have been developed to ensure that the approvals meet audit standards and allow AP to efficiently review and process payments. Deviating from these standards will result in your request being returned to you, unpaid.

Instructions:  Attach the invoice to an email that contains this information in the following format:

• Vendor :          Name of Vendor (legal or dba name, not initials or nickname)
• Banner ID:      Vendor ID as it appears in PaymentWorks and Banner
• Invoice #:        Invoice number (or service date when no invoice.)
• PO #:                 PO number that follows the format P0012345. Anything that does not follow that format is not a PO that we can key against.
• Amount:          Total dollar amount on invoice
• Initiator:           Name of the person who sending the email (and thus indicating that the invoice is "okay to pay")

AP processes payments on a first in, first out basis, however AP may be able to accomodate rush payment requests in urgent situations.

The following process must be adhered to for rush request consideration:

• The fully completed, approved, and documented payment request must be submitted to apinvoices@kent.edu by 1 p.m. on Tuesday.
• The email must be:
  • Marked as important.
  • Include "TPR" or "RUSH" at the beginning of the subject line.
    • Without such flags, requests will be put in the regular payment queue.
• The manager or assistant manager determines whether the need for the payment is truly urgent.
  • AP must prioritize the needs of the university as a whole and leverage our human resources appropriately. 
  • Submitting an invoice late is not considered to be sufficient enough reasoning to rush a payment.
  • Requests from departments that repeatedly ask for rush processing will be denied.

Payments issued outside of the normal check runs are rare as they are resource-intensive and inefficient. Such requests must be approved by the manager or assistant manager of Accounts Payable. Requests of this nature must be of such urgency that a mission critical need will not be met without completing a payment. 

Accounts Payable mails checks directly to their payees. Exceptions to this rule are limited and must be approved by the AP management team. 

To request an exception, send an email to apcustomerservice@kent.edu with the vendor name, invoice specifics, and reasoning for pick up requirement. 

The Payment Method Matrix, which is found under the General Payments header on the Payment Processing page, describes how to submit a PO invoice for payment, as well as when a payment should be made by P-Card or submitted on a Payment Request Form or on a Wire Request Form.

The Specific Payment Types Matrix lists specific payment categories, the documentation and/or special approvals needed for them, as well as any related university policies.

All Accounts Payable forms (including both the Payment Request Form and its instructions) are located under the General Payments header on the Payment Processing page.

As of July 1, 2020, scholarships, grants, awards, and prizes, given to students must be evaluated by the Student Financial Aid Office, which will determine whether they qualify as financial aid, payment for service, or may be paid through Accounts Payable.

• A scholarship, grant, award, or prize is a financial aid award if it is given to a student who is enrolled at the University. Such amount is not a loan and there is no expectation of repayment. Likewise, no past, present, or future services can be required as a condition of receiving such amount.  If past, present, or future services are required, the department must contact Student Employment for assistance in making the award.
• Scholarship, grant, awards, and prizes for the current academic year must be submitted through the Scholarship Payment Authorization Workflow.  The Student Financial Aid Office can assist you with setting up the workflow, if you do not have one already established for the award you would like to make. 
  • Please contact Melissa McKenney, Director Scholarships and Foundation Liaison, at mmckenn9@kent.edu for assistance.
• Scholarship awards must be applied to the student account. If the student owes a balance for any reason, the award will be applied to that balance first.
• If you are making an award to an individual who is not a student in the current financial aid year (currently summer 2022, fall 2022, and/or spring 2023), you must submit the request for payment through AP.  To prevent processing delays, include a statement that the individual is not a current student, in the Business Purpose box on the payment request form. 
• If the award is neither financial aid nor a payment for service, it may be submitted to AP for payment, along with documentation showing that the University Scholarships Office made that determination.

AP keys payments daily and issues payments every Thursday.

• Checks that print on Thursday are mailed that day.
• Direct deposits (ACHs) that are released on Thursday generally post in the recipients' bank accounts on Friday. However, if Friday is a bank holiday, they will post on the following Monday.

AP operates on a 2-3 week turnaround time for payment requests. Incorrect/incomplete approvals and non- onboarded vendors are the biggest causes of delay. By ensuring that you follow proper protocol for payment request submission, you will help us to issue payments faster.

To check the status of your payment, take the following steps (in order):

1. Check Banner screens FAIVNDH and FGITRND to see if it has been keyed. If you cannot access these screens, ask your local Banner security administrator to submit a request for you to have BAN_FIN_DEPT_USERS/C access.
2. If it has not been keyed and more than 4 weeks have passed since you submitted your request, check with the person(s) whose signature/approval were needed on the payment, to ensure that they signed and submitted it.
3. If your final approver submitted your request to Accounts Payable, email apcustomerservice@kent.edu with the vendor's Banner ID, name, invoice number, and dollar amount.