Travel Card
In an effort to eliminate cash advances, and solve the complaint of employees not having credit available on their personal credit cards for business travel expenses, the State offers a Travel Card through Bank of America (BOA).
The Travel Card can be used ONLY FOR OFFICIAL STATE BUSINESS TRAVEL-RELATED EXPENSES (lodging establishments, restaurants, public transportation and car rentals and associated travel services), but is essentially a personal credit card since:
- The UMW employee applies for the card based on their personal credit history;
- The bill is sent directly to the employee's personal, home address;
- The employee is personally responsible for paying the bill on time--whether or not the employee has received reimbursement from the University;
- Failure to pay BOA based upon BOA terms may negatively affect the employee's personal credit; and
- The employee is responsible for notifying BOA of home address and phone changes.
Here is the difference between a Travel Card and the personal credit cards obtained on your own:
- Both the Commonwealth and UMW conduct monthly reviews of the charges on your Travel Card statements to ensure the card has been used only to make appropriate charges (official business travel-related expenses) and to ensure the card is not in "delinquent payment" status.
- The cardholder must complete annual online training courses administered by the Virginia Department of Accounts.
- If your payment is not received and posted by BOA by the 15th of each month, the UMW Program Administrator will call and email you daily until payment is made.
- Delinquent balances are AUTOMATICALLY DEDUCTED FROM YOUR PAYROLL AND SENT DIRECTLY TO BOA on the 91st day of delinquency whether you have been reimbursed by UMW or not.
Eligibility
UMW employees who meet the following criteria may apply for a Travel Card:
- Full time or wage position
- Annual salary greater than $15,000
- Job duties which include overnight travel at least twice a year
Review and reimbursement
The UMW Travel Card Program Administrator (PA) for the is mandated by the state to check each cardholder’s online statement monthly in order to ensure proper use and prompt payments. A cardholder will be allowed two offenses before the card is permanently cancelled. An "offense" is defined as a late payment or an inappropriate charge. An "inappropriate charge" would be any charge other than an official business travel-related expense.
EXCEPTION: BOA will automatically and PERMANENTLY cancel any card that is delinquent 90 days or more.
If there are any charges on the card that appear to be inappropriate, the UMW Program Administrator for the Travel Card will email the cardholder for an explanation. If the charge is determined to be anything other than an official business travel-related charge, the charge will be considered an offense. If any cardholder has two offenses, the UMW Program Administrator will automatically, permanently cancel the card.
The cardholder is PERSONALLY responsible for payment of the charges and any late fees incurred whether or not the traveler has received reimbursement by the University. Any late payments reflect on the cardholder’s personal credit information—not the University’s. In addition, inappropriate charges and late payments by cardholders cause the University to be listed in the Quarterly Report, which can negatively affect funding for UMW.
Travel Expense Reimbursement Request forms should be submitted immediately after returning from travel to better ensure that your reimbursement reaches you before your Travel Card payment is due. Original, itemized, detailed receipts must be submitted with the completed Travel Reimbursement Request Form for reimbursable expenses as defined by the state.
You DO NOT need to submit receipts for meals purchased for overnight travel since a per diem is paid by the University. (See www.umw.edu/ap/travel for detailed Travel regulations.)
You DO need to submit original, detailed, itemized meal receipts for Business Meal reimbursements. (See www.umw.edu/ap/businessmeals for Business Meal regulations.)
Application Procedures
UMW employees who meet the stated eligibility requirements above and wish to apply for a Travel Card, should follow these procedures:
- Complete the state-mandated online training course at https://covkc.virginia.gov. (See the Cardholder Training Guide for instructions.) This online training is required annually. *IMPORTANT* - The training consists of a course module and a quiz module. You must exit the course module using the RETURN button at the bottom of the screen to receive credit and you must exit the quiz module using the FINISH button at the end of the quiz to receive credit. If you do not exit the modules this way, you will not receive credit for the training. If the cardholder does not successfully complete the training, the UMW PA will cancel the card.
- PRINT and read CAPP Section 20360 from the State Comptroller's web site. Section 20360 contains some information that is not applicable to cardholders; however, the state mandates that each cardholder have a copy of this section 20360, so print it and read it in order to be in compliance with state regulations. You will be held responsible for information that applies to the cardholder in this section.
THEN
- Print, READ, sign and date the UMW Corporate (Travel) Card Employee Agreement.
- PRINT this web page and SIGN EACH PAGE as proof that you have read the entire page.
- Submit #1 and #2 above to the UMW Travel Card Program Administrator (PA) in the Accounts Payable Department. (Email payables@umw.edu with questions.)
- The UMW PA will set up a user ID and password on the Bank of America WORKS web site and email you that information so you can complete an application on WORKS.
- Complete the online application process at https://payment2.works.com/wpm/bookmark using this Bank of America guide.
- After you have successfully completed the application, the UMW PA will "accept" the application in WORKS, allowing BOA to process the application. The application is processed by BOA and is based upon the employee’s credit history. This is a "soft" credit check and will not affect the person's credit score from the credit search.
- If the application is approved, BOA sends a confirmation email to the PA which is then forwarded to the employee.
- The employee MUST respond to the BOA confirmation email within 2 days or the credit card application process is automatically canceled.
- After the employee has confirmed the application request directly with BOA, the Travel Card is sent to the UMW employee
Frequently Asked Questions
What Happens if Bank of America (BOA) Denies the Application?
BOA notifies the UMW Travel Card Program Administrator (PA) of any denied applications, however, BOA does not disclose the reason for the denial. The PA will notify the employee that his/her application was denied.
How do I make sure my payment is received at BOA BEFORE the 15th of each month?
The cardholder should pay online in WORKS following the directions that were emailed to you by the UMW Travel Card Program Administrator when you applied for your card. (See No. 5 of the Application Procedures).
What happens when the Travel Card is canceled?
CAPP section 20360 requires the cardholder to pay the full balance on the day the card is canceled regardless of reimbursement status from UMW. If the cardholder does not pay the balance immediately upon cancellation of the card, Payroll will withhold the amount as agreed on in the UMW Corporate (Travel) Card Employee Agreement signed by the cardholder at the time of application.
Initial here to show that you clearly understand this payroll withholding requirement. ___________
Please contact Accounts Payable payables@umw.edu with questions regarding the BOA VISA Travel Charge Card.
Certification
I certify that I have reviewed the above information and have printed the required CAPP section 20360 as mentioned above.
__________________________________________________________
Signature and Date