Reimbursement Claims (Purchases Paid by Students)

• Ensure appropriate pre-approvals have been approved before making purchases.
  • For Engineering Design Teams, pre-approval is for approving the selected goods/services and budget from the team approver(s) and/or Faculty Advisor. Pre-approval must be obtained in written form (including via email), and to be kept internally within the team.
  • For other student groups, pre-approval from the supervisor and/or budget owner is required before making the purchases. It can be verbally or via email to be kept for internal records.
  • All student groups need to review the “Pre-Approval Process” section and obtain the necessary written pre-approval from APSC PD Team based on the expense category for the group.
• Understand what source of funding will be paying for each purchase to streamline the reimbursement process. For example, EDT financial accounts, PAF, or AMS/EUS/SPF, etc.
• For EDT financial accounts and PAF inquiries, contact APSC Finance (finance@apsc.ubc.ca), for AMS/EUS/SPF, contact AMS Finance.
• Obtain and retain appropriate supporting documents to claim reimbursements after the purchases have been made. When the purchases will be claiming UBC Funds, the supporting documents need to follow UBC audit trail requirements. Take below actions to retrieve and retain supporting documents:
  • Take a picture of the physical paper receipts immediately after received.
  • Search email inbox and locate the receipt that show the item details as well as proof of payment.
  • Log in to the vendor account (if applicable), download the receipt or invoice that show the item details as well as proof of payment. Credit Card slip or redacted credit transaction/statement can be provided in lieu of invoice/receipt that does not show proof of payment.
  • Connect with the vendor to obtain a receipt and invoice that meet the UBC standards with an explanation that you are obtaining receipt for business reimbursement.

Supporting documents can be submitted in PDF or JPEG format for reimbursement.  Below is a list of appropriate supporting documents:

1. A receipt is required to support the reimbursement requests. The receipt should show a detailed breakdown of the items or services purchased, including their individual costs, quantities, description, and any applicable taxes or fees along with company information and proof of payment.
2. Invoice + Proof of Payment (e.g. redacted credit card statement/transaction). When receipt is not available, invoice showing the same detailed breakdown along with proof of payment can be accepted.
3. Shipping Confirmation + Proof of Payment (e.g. redacted credit card statement/transaction). When receipt and invoice are unavailable and unattainable, Shipping Confirmation showing the same detailed breakdown along with proof of payment can be accepted
4. A list of attendees or recipients, is require for these expenses: travel, food, events, gifts, and team swags. 

Providing the appropriate documentation for the purchases help streamline the reimbursement process in an efficient way and ensure compliance with UBC policies. 

The following types of documents are NOT considered to be supporting documentation for reimbursements.

• Quotes
• Work Orders
• Sales Orders
• Packing Slips
• Statements
• Credit Card Slips / Bank Statements
• Order Summary (from online purchase, such as Amazon, Staples, Home Depot, etc.)

The above documents may provide some information about the transactions, they often lack the necessary details required for proper verification and audit purposes.

Each student group may have multiple sources of funding to support the team’s projects. Ensure to check the reimbursement requirements from each of the source of funding (e.g. Student Team accounts, PAF, or AMS/EUS/SPF, etc.)

1. Complete Expense Claim Form based on your student group type. Use the excel form and convert to PDF for signature or use the PDF version. These forms can also be viewed and downloaded from the “Finance, Forms, Templates and Contacts”  section.
   1. For Engineering Design Teams:
      • EDT 2025-26 Expenses Claim Form (Excel)
      • EDT 2025-26 Expenses Claim Form (PDF)
   2. For All Other Student Groups
      • Generic Student Group 2025-26 Expenses Claim Form (Excel)
      • Generic Student Group 2025-26 Expenses Claim Form (PDF)
   3. For Travel and Conference and PD Opportunities (NON-DESIGN TEAMS)
      • PAF Claim Form 2025-26 (Excel)
      • PAF Claim Form 2025-26 (PDF)
2. Obtain appropriate signatures or email approvals for the claims:
   • For Engineering Design teams, approvals from claimant, team’s designated approver, and Faculty Advisor.
   • For All Other Student Groups, approvals from claimant and supervisor/budget owner.
   • For Non-EDT PAF, approvals from claimant and PAF applicant. 

NOTE: Claimant cannot sign/approve own claims. An alternate approver must sign off.

Digital signatures must be signed with the proper signing tool (e.g. Adobe). Copy and paste e-digital images are NOT ACCEPTABLE per below sample.
 

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3. Compile the claim form and appropriate supporting documentations, email them to APSC Finance for review and process.
   • All claims must be supported by appropriate documentations for audit purposes.
   • All supporting documents are complete, legible, and separated (adhesive notes, itemized receipts, credit card slip must be separated and scanned individually). Supporting documents must be in PDF or JPG format.
   • Expenses in foreign currency: Reimbursements will only be issued in Canadian dollars (CAD). For foreign transactions, proof of exchange rate will be required. Identify the exchange rate used by one of the following options:
   • attaching evidence such as redacted credit card statement, or
   • print out from online resources, such as (Bank of Canada or Oanda) on the date the expense were incurred, or
   • inform APSC Finance to use Workday exchange rate on the date the expense were incurred.
4. Ensure claimant to add/update banking information on Student Workday to receive the reimbursement electronically.
5. UBC will only reimburse eligible purchases to the claimant that paid for the purchases. Separate claim form will be needed for each team member. One team member cannot claim on behalf of others.
6. The processing time for complete, error-free reimbursement claims is approximately two weeks. An automatic email notification will be sent to the email address associated with your student Workday profile once the claim is approved for payment.

These accountability mechanisms are applicable to all APSC student groups (Engineering Design Teams, E-IDEAS Affinity groups) and purchases via PAF.  

LATE SUBMISSION (FOR REIMBURSEMENT CLAIMS) 

All reimbursement claims must be submitted within sixty (60) days of the receipt date or shipping date, whichever is later.  

Late reimbursements are tracked at the team level rather than the individual level. As a result, if three different team members submit late reimbursements for the same team, that team is considered at risk. 

Group executives are responsible for ensuring the team has robust processes (e.g., who can make purchases, ensuring adequate funding in account, ensuring all purchases are appropriate and policy-complaint).  Student groups must also ensure that all current and incoming members are informed of and understand applicable finance policies to support responsible and accountable operations. 

Accountability Measure: 

Within a one-year period, if a team’s members submit late reimbursements on three (3) occasions, the following actions may occur: 

• Temporary pause of current projects or activities 
• Cancellation of pending or future projects 
• Suspension of reimbursements from UBC funds 

Escalation Sequence: