Duplicate_payments A05051 Duplicatepaments
User Manual: A05051
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OFFICE OF DISBURSEMENTS
1 Georgia State University | Office of Disbursements | Sparks Hall, Suite 400-A | 404.413.3040
Document Name: Duplicate Payments: Vendor Credits/Memos
Responsible Department: Financial and Accounting Services
Approval Authority: Director, Disbursements
Original Publish Date: April 17, 2008
Last Updated: September 5, 2008
Contact: Jean Pearson, Director of Disbursements
Overview
Occasionally, duplication of payments will occur. The Office of Disbursements conducts periodic reviews of
duplicate payments and advises departments to recover the funds either by check payable to Georgia State
University or by credit memo to Georgia State University by the vendor.
Refund checks for overpayments of duplicate invoices must be directed to the Office of Disbursements for
deposit (Attention: Libby Roessler). Note the voucher number and/or account number to be credited with the
check. If the reimbursement is for a previous fiscal year, the department will not receive a credit for the funds. In
this situation, the funds must be coded by Disbursements to properly reflect the adjustment.
Vendors should direct refund checks to:
Georgia State University
Office of Disbursements
P.O. Box 4030
Atlanta, GA 30303-4030
Credit invoices/memos from vendors must be netted against open invoices. Proper bookkeeping and
recording is essential.
1. Net the credit memo against an open invoice to reduce the amount of the invoice being paid.
2. Note on the invoice how the amount was calculated.
e.g. Open invoice amount $500 – Credit Memo ($410.50) = Payment $89.50
3. Attach the credit memo received from the vendor to the invoice.
4. Enter the following details in the Comments field of the voucher panel:
a. The invoice number and the original amount of the invoice
b. The invoice number or credit/memo number/reference, and the amount of the credit applied
OFFICE OF DISBURSEMENTS
2 Georgia State University | Office of Disbursements | Sparks Hall, Suite 400-A | 404.413.3040
Spectrum will prevent a user from entering a duplicate payment. To accomplish this, Spectrum will check the
invoice number, invoice date, vendor ID, gross amount and business unit for duplicate payments. If all fields are
matched, the system will reject the voucher, generate an error message and block the user from proceeding.
Error message: “A duplicate invoice exists. See voucher [number] for business unit GSUFS. This voucher
cannot be saved.”
Duplications may occur when invoice information is not entered consistently. Assume an invoice with number
A0505-1. If a user initially enters a transaction using invoice number A05051, and subsequently enters another
transaction for the same invoice with invoice number A0505-1, the system will not recognize the duplication.
Therefore, the error message will not generate.
Solution
A thorough monthly review of financial transactions will enable a department to catch duplication errors quickly.
When errors are found, follow the instructions listed for Credit Invoices/Memos from Vendors.
When entering invoices or requests for payments:
1. Enter the invoice number exactly as it appears on the invoice, without dashes, spaces or non-
alphabetical/numerical values.
e.g. Actual invoice number is “01548-Ap13”; Enter invoice number as “01548Ap13”.
Note: When entering a Payment Request form where an invoice number is not applicable, departments
should enter a payment reference number that reflects the reason for the payment. At no time should
the invoice number field be left blank during voucher entry.
e.g. A reimbursement for supplies purchased by a staff member may be assigned the invoice/reference
number, “ReimbSupplies”.
2. Enter the invoice date exactly as it appears on the invoice. The majority of duplicate payments are
caused by incorrect date entry.
e.g. Invoice date is listed as 04/24/2008; Enter the invoice date as 04/24/2008. Do not allow the system
to use the default value (today’s date) as the invoice date.
3. Vendor invoices do not need to be attached to Payment Request forms. Record the Spectrum system
generated voucher directly on the invoice. Additional information, such as the name of the person
inputting the data and the date of input is helpful.
Note: Payment Request forms are required: (1) when the payee is an individual; (2) when the payee is a
foreign national (report of residency status is required); (3) for payment of registration fees; (4) or any
special type payment where additional details are required.
OFFICE OF DISBURSEMENTS
3 Georgia State University | Office of Disbursements | Sparks Hall, Suite 400-A | 404.413.3040
4. Enter the invoice amount exactly as it appears on the invoice. When it is necessary to short pay an
invoice, the user must exercise control of the documentation.
e.g. The invoice amount is billed at $600; however, the department will only pay $400. [Ideally, the
vendor should offer a credit memo; however, that is not always possible. Refer to Credit
Invoices/Memos from Vendors.] The user should circle the amount being paid, $400, and note the
voucher number next to that amount. If the department decides to pay the balance of $200 at a later
date, the user should:
a. Copy the original invoice, which contains notations from the previous payment showing the
previous voucher number used.
b. Highlight the difference being paid, $200, and note the new voucher number for that amount.
c. The voucher entered for the $200 payment must contain the original invoice number and
original invoice date.
