The Purchasing Card (PCard) is a great tool that helps you to procure non-travel, small dollar goods and services necessary in accomplishing the purposes and mission of your department and the University. The employee to whom the card is issued is responsible for all purchases made with the card.
There are two types of purchasing cards available to University of Utah and University Hospital employees; a purchasing card and a department card.
This purchasing card may only be used by the employee who holds the card.
This Card:- Has fraud protection if the fraud is reported within 60 days of the transaction.
- Has larger Single Transaction and Cycle Limits available – based on demonstrated need.
$3,000 or $5,000/transaction & $10,000/cycle
This purchasing card is issued to an employee, but can be checked out/used by other employees for University purchasing.
This Card:- Has fraud protection if the fraud is reported within 60 days of the transaction.
- Can be checked out (using a check out log) for use by other employees with University purchasing needs.
$250/transaction & $500/cycle
Important Dates to Remember
The University uses the Post Date for accounting purposes – which follow the calendar month.
Any transactions with a post date in the previous month that have not been reallocated will automatically be charged to the default chartfield listed on the PCard.
Reallocators will receive an email at the end of the month reminding them of the upcoming Reallocation Cut-Off Date.
These dates are important for your credit card limits
Your purchasing card statement will align with these dates
Purchasing Card Limits
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The amount a cardholder can spend during the bank’s billing cycle – which is from the 12th of the current month to the 11th of the following month.
The University’s default cycle limit for individual purchasing cards is $10,000 but it can be lower by request if your purchases are generally less than that amount during the 30-day cycle. You may also have a higher cycle limit with approval from your department and the Purchasing Department.
Department cards have a cycle limit of $500 with a $300 limit for hospital department cards.
Some cardholders face a situation near the end of the billing cycle when they have reached their “cycle limit” near the end of the billing cycle. These purchases would then be declined by the bank due to insufficient funds.
There are several options available to the card holder if they’ve reached their cycle limit before the end of the billing cycle. They can:
- Submit a Change Cardholder Limits form to request a permanent increase to the monthly cycle limit
- Submit a Change Cardholder Limits form to request a temporary cycle increase with a specific date range for the increase
- Consider waiting to make the purchase until the 12th of the following month when the limit resets
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The amount a cardholder can spend with one vendor for one transaction for a single purchase.
The University’s default Single Purchase Limit is $3,000 for purchasing cards (much lower for a department card) for a single purchase. The Single Purchase Limit can be increased up to $10,000 with approval from your department and the Purchasing Department, but it cannot exceed $10,000 which is the Single Procurement Threshold.
For department cards, the single purchase limit is $250 for campus department cards and $300 for hospital department cards.
Some cardholders may have purchases they need to make that are higher than their card’s current limits. These transactions would be declined by the bank due to the amount being over the established single transaction limit.
Possible Resolutions:
1. Request a permanent Monthly Single Transaction Limit increase by submitting a Change Cardholder Limits form. This is recommended if you regularly make single purchases that approach or exceed the single transaction limit.
2. Request a temporary Single Transaction Limit Increase with the same form mentioned in #1 above and specify a date range for the increase.
Refer to this page for general PCard information.
Once you feel confident that you know the basics of a PCard, you can begin the process of Applying for a PCard.