• Cash
  • Cash advance (CA)
    • A cash advance can only be issued to the Principal Investigator or faculty co-investigator
    • IRB determination letter is required to support the cash advance request
    • PayPal or Venmo using cash advance funds
      • In addition to the Reconciliation Documentation section below, record a screenshot of the payment verification screen from the Payment App to document each payment as it is issued
    • Process:
      • The CA recipient will initiate the DocuSign Cash Advance Form
      • CA recipient will enter in their info, PI info, and DOA info
      • CA recipient fills out CA form and uploads IRB determination letter -> click Finish -> the form will automatically route to the PI indicated in step above
      • PI signs -> click Finish -> the form will automatically route to the DOA indicated in step above
      • DOA signs -> click Finish -> the form will route to Dell Med Review Team
      • Dell Med Review Team reviews and releases (turnaround time: 3 business days)-> the form will route to CSU Business Officer
        • If applicable, when a grant account is used, Dell Med Review Team will add DMS Research Operations to the routing to sign before the CSU Business Officer
      • CSU Business Officer signs (turnaround time: 3 business days)-> All parties receive a completed copy
      • CA recipient downloads a completed copy and emails it to the Cash Advance Office via email to process the CA.
    • For any questions related to cash advances, contact the Cash Advance Office
  • PI reimbursement – PI uses personal funds for incentives then requests reimbursement
    • Only allowed by the Principal Investigator or faculty co-investigator
    • Participant incentives paid with the researcher's personal funds are allowable reimbursements, BUT these expenses will only be reimbursed after the incentive has been given to the participant and the required documentation is collected. Required documentation for reimbursement includes participant receipt forms, a summary reconciliation sheet, and proof of payment of expenses.
• Gift Card (Tip: Do not order the anticipated maximum number of cards immediately in the event you do not have as many participants as expected. You can always order additional gift cards at a later date, if needed.)
  • TANGO (UT preferred) – Purchase order used to fund a TANGO account to distribute electronic gift cards
    • If grant funded, limit PO amount to one month’s worth of incentives (UT preferred) or expense from a non-sponsored account and process a cost transfer (VT6) to move the expense to the applicable project.
    • NOTE: Once two Tango payment vouchers are more than 6 months past the record date and have not been reconciled on an account, unless an extension is granted, no additional Tango payment vouchers will be approved on this account.
  • Cash Advance – cash can be used to purchase in-store gift cards
  • ProCard – procurement card used to purchase electronic or physical gift cards
• Other
  • Consult with your post-award specialist if grant funded
  • Consult with Dell Med Finance

• Cash Advance
  • Return unused funds to the Cash Advance Office – refer to HBP 9.1.7.I. Returning Unused Funds for guidance.
• TANGO
  • Send an email to funding@tangocard.com with the refund $ amt and TANGO account nbr to request a refund via check to:
    • ATTN: DMS Finance
    • 1601 Trinity St
    • HTB 10^th fl – Z0200
    • Austin, TX 78712
  • When TANGO provides you with the check# once issued, please email dellmedfinance@austin.utexas.edu with the following info:
    • check nbr
    • $ amt
    • Associated VP1 or PO#
  • Once Finance receives the check, it will be deposited into the acct the VP1 was paid from.
• Gift Cards via Cash Advance or ProCard
  • Gift cards are typically non-refundable. Unused gift cards will need to be purchased by a UT employee (cut a check to UT per the Cash Handling guidelines) or can be reassigned to another UT project. All participant incentive policies still apply. The dept is responsible for correcting the expense to the appropriate account. Keep detailed records of the trail.

Dell Med Finance does not determine if your activity requires IRB Review. Departments must do their due diligence to determine if IRB Review is needed of your activity before procuring or distributing participant incentives. Note: If IRB review is required, the dept can not purchase or disburse incentives until an IRB determination is made by the IRB Office. If IRB determination is denied, incentives may not be purchased or disbursed.

Resources:

• https://research.utexas.edu/ors/human-subjects/activities-requiring-irb-review/
• If you are unsure and would like help making a determination before submitting to the IRB, contact the IRB staff via email

Office of Research:

Refer to Guidelines and Policies for additional guidance regarding participant compensation.

1. All participants receiving incentives regardless of disbursement method are required to complete and sign a UT approved receipt form:
   • Individual Receipt Form (English)
     
   • Individual Receipt Form (Spanish) or,
   • Multiple Receipt Form
     • Exceptions: In the following scenarios, the participants are required to complete a UT approved receipt form but signature is not required.
       • Internet studies (remote participant) with incentives of $25 or less
       • TANGO incentives of $25 or less
2. For every purchase, a Dell Med Summary Reconciliation Form is required.
   1. Process:
      1. The reconciler will initiate the Dell Med Summary Reconciliation Form
      2. Reconciler will enter their info and PI info (or DOA if there is no PI)
      3. Reconciler fills out the summary reconciliation form, uploads supporting documentation (listed in b. below), signs, and clicks Finish -> the form will automatically route to the PI (or DOA) indicated in step above
      4. PI (or DOA) reviews, signs, and clicks Finish -> the form will route to the CSU Business Officer
      5. CSU Business Officer signs -> All parties receive a completed copy
      6. Reconciler downloads a completed copy and takes the appropriate next step based on the procurement method used. Refer to "What to do with the Documentation" section.
   2. Attach the following:
      1. receipt form(s)
      2. If applicable:
         1. For TANGO incentives, add TANGO order history report per PO
         2. For PayPal or Venmo incentives, add screenshots of the payment verification screen from the Payment App to document each payment per receipt form
         3. For PI reimbursement, add proof of disbursement of funds (bank statement of withdrawal of funds)
         4. For ProCard purchase, add receipt of purchase

Reconciliation is required when all incentives of a purchase have been dispersed, or 6 months after purchase, whichever is sooner. If funds remain after 6 months and the project is ongoing, reconciliation is required when all incentives of a purchase have been dispersed or every 6 months until the project ends. Each time you submit a Dell Med Summary Reconciliation Form for a single purchase, the documentation should be cumulative.

Once you receive the completed Reconciliation through DocuSign, save a copy for your records and then:

• For Cash Advances:
  • Send documentation to the Cash Advance Office
• For Researcher Reimbursement:
  • Submit a payment request through the Request Form System
• For TANGO:
  • Upload to Dell Med TANGO Widget -> Dell Med Finance will review documentation and upload it to the Image Retrieval System
• For ProCard Purchases:
  • Send documentation to ProCard holder -> ProCard holder sends the documentation to their assigned reconciler for the month of the original charge -> Reconciler will review and upload it to the Image Retrieval System

1. I made a gift card purchase with the procard but haven’t given out any gift cards yet by the time procard documentation is due. What do I provide?
   1. Complete and provide a Dell Med Summary Reconciliation Form as backup for procard reconciliation. Receipts = $0 because no incentives have been given out and select roll-over to continue study.
2. My participant is a UT employee. Can they receive a participant incentive?
   1. Yes, because a participant incentive is identified as non-employee compensation. A participant’s role should be separate from their role as a UT employee.
3. Do my participants have to sign the receipt form?
   1. Yes, signature is required but there are two exceptions, refer to the “Reconciliation Documentation” section. All participants are required to fill out the information on the form.
4. Why is it important for my participants to complete the receipt form?
   1. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires The University of Texas at Austin to report all cumulative payments of services in excess of $600 in a calendar year for non-employee compensation. The receipt form will assist the University in meeting IRS regulations. Participants receiving $600 or more in a calendar year from all UT Austin non-employee compensation must provide their SSN and permanent address so a 1099 tax form can be issued. The question on the receipt form is required to be answered by the participant because only they would know if they expect to receive over $600 in a calendar year in non-employee compensation. Keep in mind, your activity may not be the only activity they participant in and receiving incentives from across UT Austin.
5. Due to the sensitive nature of the information, my participants are uncomfortable with providing their mailing address and SSN. What do I do?
   1. If the participant doesn’t expect to receive more than $600 in a calendar year, a mailing address and SSN are not required. If they do expect to receive more than $600 the mailing address and SSN is required to meet IRS regulations. If the participant will not provide the required information, the participant can not receive a participant incentive.
6. Who is responsible for managing incentives, dispersing incentives, collecting receipt forms, and completing reconciliation?
   1. Principal Investigator (PI) or faculty co-investigator or UT employee who is leading the activity/project. Volunteers, students, and non-employees are not allowed to be a part of the participant incentive process.
7. Are participant incentives taxable?
   1. Yes, incentive payments are considered taxable income by the IRS and it’s the participants responsibility to report it to the IRS as required by federal law.
8. How do I handle cash or gift cards?
   1. Physical cash or gift cards should be kept under lock and key at all times to ensure proper physical security and to protect from theft and loss. Access to the cash or gift cards and keys to the locked areas should be limited to the individual(s) responsible for safekeeping of the gift cards. See FAQ #6 regarding who is responsible.
9. A UT employee who manages the TANGO account will be leaving UT. What do I do?
   1. Before the UT employee’s last day, make sure to work with TANGO to transfer the account to another UT employee. Ensure multiple UT employees within the dept have access to all the reconciliation documentation for any funds coming from the TANGO account.
10. Once I submit my reconciliation documentation, do I need to keep a copy?
    1. Yes, keep an internal copy that is accessible to multiple UT employees within your dept. Documentation is subject to review and must be provided upon request for auditing purposes.
11. What is the obj code for participant incentives?
    1. 1340
12. Will I get an official notification when reconciliation is due?
    1. No, there is no notification. The responsibility falls on Principal Investigator (PI) or faculty co-investigator or UT employee who is leading the activity/project to ensure the reconciliation is complete and submitted for UT records.
13. How do I fill out the summary reconciliation form with roll-over from a previous PO?
    1. Add Notes to explain the trail
    2. Example:
14. How do I fill out the summary reconciliation form when a previous PO uses funds from a 2nd PO?
    1. Add Notes to explain the trail
    2. Example:
15. Why is my TANGO VP1 being held?
    1. Accounting and Financial Management leadership has issued additional requirements that state that only two TANGO vouchers are permitted to be outstanding (unreconciled) for a single UT source account at a time. Further payments are barred until at least one outstanding document has been reconciled.