If you are an employee, student, guest, or faculty member and need a cash advance for a business related trip, you can submit a request based on your relationship with the university.
Employee Travel Cash Advances
Employees in need of a cash advance are responsible for submitting their own request using Chrome River. If you are new to the process, you might find the Request or Approve Cash Step-by-Step Procedure published by Procurement helpful.
Employees must request an advance within 30 days before departure. Cash advances for less than $1000 should be limited to employees with a compelling financial need.
Cash advances must be approved by the employee’s immediate supervisor or higher administrative authority. For amounts $5,000-$10,000, additional approval is required by one of the following:
- a department chair of an academic unit
- a department manager of a non-academic unit
- the senior university officer responsible for the fund charged
Cash advances of $10,000 or more require approval from a chancellor, vice chancellor, vice president, major university director, or senior university officer.
Chrome River cash advance requests route to the Accounting Customer Service Team at the SSC for final validation. For questions regarding your Chrome River Cash Advance approval, please call 734-615-2000, press 3, press 4 or email us.
Post Trip
Upon return, cash advances obtained through Chrome River must be reconciled in Chrome River. To ensure the most timely and accurate processing, please include the following information in your report submission:
- Submit request via the Expense Request eForm
- Attach receipts and related supporting documentation.
- Include cash advance number, business purpose(s) and ShortCode(s).
Chrome River Cash Advances are reconciled by the SSC Travel & Expense Team. For questions and/or assistance with reconciling your cash advance in Chrome River, please call 734-615-2000 press 3, press 2 or submit questions via the Travel & Expense General Request eForm
Non-Employees (Students and Guests)
Students and G
Students and Guests may request a cash advance by using the Non-Employee Cash Advance form. Advances paid by check or electronic funds transfer (EFT), must have the completed form approved by their university sponsor and submitted to the SSC using the Supplier Maintenance eForm. The advance minimum for non-employed students is $100.
Advances paid in cash may be requested by submitting the approved form to the Cashier’s Office. Teller Services can issue cash in amounts between $100 – $1000 for non-employed students, post docs, research fellows and house officers. Any advance request exceeding $1000, must be submitted to SSC-Supplier Maintenance.
Please note, if a student has a Chrome River profile due to a regular appointment with the university, the cash advance should be requested via Chrome River. Review the “Employee Travel Cash Advances” section above for more information.
Temporary Employees
Employees with temporary appointments can obtain an advance using the Non-Employee Cash Advance form. The completed form must be approved by their university sponsor and submitted to the SSC using the Supplier Maintenance eForm. The advance minimum for temporary employees is $100.
If you have questions regarding cash advances for non-employee (student and guest) or temporary employees, please contact the Shared Services Center at 734-615-2000, press 3, press 3, or by email.
Reconciling Non-Employee Advances
Expenses related to the cash advances are reported using a Travel and Business Hosting Expense Report (TBHER) form. Once all expenses are reported, any remaining funds must be returned to the university. The affiliated unit can deposit the funds to the same chartfields the advance was issued from by attaching a copy of the cash receipt ticket. A TBHER form should be submitted within 45 days after the return date on the approved advance request. If you have questions about reconciling a non-employee cash advance, please call the Shared Services Center at 734-615-2000, press 3, press 3, or email us.
Lump Sum Advances
Lump Sum Advances are a special type of cash advances for eligible Faculty or Graduate Students conducting research predominantly outside the country and may include expenses not related to travel. In limited circumstances, university employees may obtain a lump sum advance for certain allowable costs that cannot be paid through the university’s typical procurement processes.
Please review the Lump Sum SPG and the Procurement website for additional policy information.
Post Trip
Once the advance is received, the Faculty member must keep record of all receipts in order to account for how the cash is spent. Once they return from the trip, please send all relevant receipts to the SSC Travel & Expense Team for reconciliation in Chrome River. Any funds that were not spent will be paid back to the university.
Lump Sum Advances are reviewed and approved in Chrome River by the Accounting Customer Service Team at the SSC. For questions regarding lump sum approvals, please call 734-615-2000, press 3, press 4 or email us.
Lump Sum Advances are reconciled in Chrome River by the SSC Travel & Expense Team. For questions regarding lump sum reconciliation, please call the Shared Services Center at 734-615-2000, press 3, press 3, or email us.
If there is a reason that a lump sum request cannot be processed through Chrome River, please contact the Accounting Customer Service Team at the SSC by calling 734-615-2000, press 3, press 4 or email us.
