Prepayment Notification

Prepayment Notification is a feature that alerts the Accounts Payable (AP) department that a check must be cut and sent on to the supplier prior to the receipt of goods or services purchased on a PO.

Although it is not best practice to prepay for goods or services, there are times when a supplier must be paid in advance, such as a partial deposit payment for equipment that must be manufactured.

Prepayments for things such as memberships or honorariums where the check is to be presented by the department directly to the supplier on the day of the event can be submitted on the Payment Request form.

To indicate that your order requires prepayment, select Notify AP-Prepayment. Additionally, you must also select the incremental payments field. All prepayments should be paid using cost receipts.

If you forget to check this box while in the shopping cart, you can still edit this field when processing your requisition. It will be located under the Shipping Section, select the pencil icon to make changes.

Supporting documentation stating the prepayment terms from the supplier will need to be attached to the requisition electronically as an Internal Attachment.

A workflow step will appear on your requisition to notify AP to make prepayment. Receiving should be completed as soon as the PO is issued to initiate payment.

Guidelines for Prepayments

• Cannot be made more than ninety (90) days prior to the date of an event or start of service unless there is a monetary advantage to the university. If greater than ninety (90) days, special permission must be granted by AP.
• Maximum allowed for prepayment for goods and services contracts or agreements is fifty percent. If additional prepayment is needed, please contact AP.
• AP cannot pay from a quote or proforma invoice.
• AP must have documentation from the company stating prepayment or deposit is required.

Last Updated: 02/02/26