Fellowship and training grant payments (stipends) to students and persons in post-doctoral training are generally support given to an individual for study, training, or research which does not constitute compensation for personal services.  

Reason for policy

Fellowship and Training Grant Stipend payments 

Procedure

Fellowship and training grant stipends are processed as unencumbered payments by submitting a payment request through the Financial Management System. 

Prior to a department requesting the first stipend payment, a recipient must register through the Supplier Registration system at https://suppliers.uga.edu. This is a one-time registration. Recipients can opt to receive a paper check or an electronic deposit to their specified bank account. For assistance registering in the Supplier Registration system, please contact the OneSource Service Desk at (706) 542-0202 or onesource@uga.edu. 

After the recipient completes the one-time supplier registration process, the department may initiate a payment request. Departments may request a lump-sum (single) payment that covers a specified time period, such as a semester or consecutive months. Alternatively, departments may submit multiple payment requests, for example, 

once per month or twice per semester, etc. Departments should consult the requirements of the fellowship or training grant to determine if there are any restrictions on the timing of the payments. As new grants/projects are used to fund fellowships or training grants, Sponsored Projects Administration should review those projects before they are used to fund these payments. Departments should communicate the payment schedule with the recipient, so they are aware of the payment timing. 

Submitting the payment request: 

 

1. Submit payment requests prior to the desired payment date. Accounts Payable generally requests 3-5 days for processing after all departmental approvals are complete to ensure ample time is available for potential issue resolution. Please prepare accordingly and review chartstring distributions for validity prior to submission, as errors may delay payment. 

1. The Description field should indicate that the request is for a Fellowship or Training Grant Stipend Payment. 

1. Payments must use the Account Code 782100 for Fellowships and 783100 for training grants in the chart string information. 

1. Attach to the payment request the Non-Employee Payment form. This form has a section to document fellowship and training grant stipend payments. 

1. If future or additional payment is needed to the same recipient, the COPY feature may be used. Initiators should access the Payment Request Center tile from the Financials page, locate the previous Fellowship Payment Request, open it, and click the “COPY” button at the bottom. After copying to a new request, update the invoice number, invoice date, and description field with current information before submitting for approval. 

1. Competed payment requests will route for approval by the appropriate spend approver(s). 

1. Payments to non-resident aliens require review by the University International Tax Coordinatorfor appropriate tax withholding. 

 

Training material for processing fellowship/training grant payments in the UGA Financial Management System are available in the Onesource Knowledge Base. 

Definitions

Fellowship: A fellowship is generally an amount paid for the benefit of an individual to aid in the pursuit of study, training, or research. The amounts paid do not constitute compensation for personal services. 

IRS Publication 970 - The Department of Treasury/Internal Revenue Service publication that outlines the tax treatment of several types of educational assistance, including fellowship grants. 

Record Retention

Research Grant Records Number 0472-09-006 

These records relate to funded research grant proposals and research activity associated with grant funded projects. Examples of records include supporting statistics, demographic data, draft proposals, suggested revisions, final proposals, forms, protocols, applications, research/activity reports, progress reports, and summary reports. Retention: Final research report is permanent. All other records: 7 years after the end of the grant period. 

Accounting Records    Number 0472-03-001 

This series includes bank statements, purchase requests, purchase orders, requisitions, financial reports, accounts payable and receivable records, write-off records, discrepancy, payment schedules, operating statements, year-end projections, reconciliation and expenditure reports, cancelled checks, check stubs, moving expense records, cost accounting reports, refund/disbursement request records, returned checks, deposit slips, travel records, credit voucher requisition records, cash balances and reconciliations, sales and cash reconciliation records, journal entries, outstanding obligations, refund/disbursement requests, receipts and invoices 

Retention: Monthly and Quarterly Reports: 1 year; All other records: 5 years