Fiscal Operations Manual
Section 415: Relocation and Moving
Effective: 02/01/1982
Revised: 06/25/2012

Prior to the Move

Note: Employees are to relocate at their own expense. The maximum amount allowable for reimbursement must be included in the new employee offer letter. 

1. After receiving the signed offer letter, the OSU Relocation/Moving Agreement   must be signed and submitted to Business Affairs, Financial Accounting & Analysis (FA&A) prior to any expenses being incurred. The Agreement can be found on OSCAR.
   
   1. If expenses will be paid using gift, grant or contract funds, approval by Office of Post Award Administration [OPAA] must be obtained on the OSU Relocation/Moving Agreement. 
   2. If moving expenses include the services of a commercial moving company and total $5,000 or more, a copy of the approved OSU Relocation/Moving Agreement must be processed through the Business Center Purchasing Department for creation of a Purchase Order. A list of contracted moving companies is maintained on the Procurement and Contract Services’ (PaCS) Buy Orange website. 
2. The OSU Relocation/Moving Agreement becomes part of the employee’s hiring package and is considered confidential.

After the Move

Reminder: Expenses cannot be reimbursed until the employee has a joint relationship with OSU, which means their employee record has been set up in Banner by Human Resources and Payroll.

Employee Reimbursements

1. An employee must submit a request for reimbursement of relocation expenses to their Business Center within six months following their start date.
2. The reimbursement can either be submitted using the Travel Reimbursement Entry System (TRES) or Relocation Expense Reimbursement Form found in OSCAR.
3. In TRES or on the Relocation Expense Reimbursement Form, detail the relocation process (Who, What, When, Where, Why) and categorize each of the expenses incurred as appropriate (i.e. house hunting, temporary living, moving from old to new location).
4. Forward the signed TRES/reimbursement form, along with applicable original receipts and documentation to Business Affairs/FA&A.
   Note: If TRES is used to process a relocation reimbursement, transfer the completed T-document to the “Accounts Payable” inbox in the TRES system.
   1. Business Affairs/FA&A will:
      
      1. Review for appropriateness, account code use and categorize the expenses as taxable or non-taxable, then return the TRES document or Reimbursement form with notes and approval.
      2. Scan all documents related to the move into Nolij as “Confidential” document type.
      3. Create a Payroll Submission Form and submit taxable expenses for reimbursement to Central Payroll for inclusion on employee’s next payroll check.
5. Once the TRES or Reimbursement form is reviewed by FA&A and returned to the Business Center, create a Banner invoice for the non-taxable portion of the reimbursement as noted by FA&A. The completed I-document will route through the appropriate approval queues.
   1. To create an invoice from a TRES T-document, click the “Create Invoice” button at the bottom of the TRES form.
   2. If TRES was not used, create an invoice in BANNER using the Invoice Entry Form FAAINVE.

Vendor Payments

Payments made directly to vendors are allowed for commercial moving companies. The appropriate account code to use is 10790- Moving-Employee-Non-Taxable.

Prior approval by FA&A is required for direct billing of other expenses related to relocation, including lodging and airfare. The appropriate account code to use will depend on the taxability of the expense; FA&A will provide assistance in determining the proper account code.

Due to financial risk, if direct billing is used, it should not be done more than 60 days prior to the employees start date.

Direct Vendor Payments

1. The Business Center will enter an invoice in BANNER. 
2. The invoice will route through FA&A for approval in BANNER.

AutoPay Vendor Payments

1. Contact FA&A for prior approval and account code.
2. Provide proper account code to the vendor when authorizing the expense.