AW-11 · Payments, Claims, Honoraria and Travel

1. Purpose and scope

Purpose. To ensure that every payment leaving an IoL budget entity is for something received, delivered or properly incurred, was pre-approved where policy requires it, is endorsed and approved by people other than the beneficiary, and reaches HQ Finance or HQ HR with the evidence that lets it be paid without rejection; and that every journey on IoL business is decided before it is booked, recorded as business leave and reported on after return.

Scope statement. This procedure manages IoL payments and claims from the confirmation of a payable obligation (a matched supplier invoice, a delivered service, an incurred expense, an approved honorarium) to HQ's confirmation of payment, and IoL business travel from the travel request to the closure of the travel file.

Applies to. Supplier invoices released from AW-10; payments to consultants and external faculty under an AW-08 appointment or AW-23 contract; pre-approval of honoraria and speaker fees; expense, honorarium and speaker fee claims; petty cash; claims rejected by HQ; advances and per diems; domestic, regional and international business travel, conference attendance, business leave and post-activity reporting.

Does not apply to. Purchasing and receipt (AW-10). Payroll and allowances (HQ HR). Payment execution, banking and supplier master data (HQ Finance). HQ travel booking procedures. Annual and personal leave (AW-07). Academic selection of speakers (WF-21, AW-21); travel for external speakers is arranged under AW-21 and paid here. Legal review (AW-23). Revenue and refunds (AW-12).

Rules that hold throughout. This procedure operates within HQ Finance and HR policies; a claim rejected by HQ on policy grounds cannot be overridden by IoL. Honoraria and speaker fees are pre-approved in writing before the contributor is engaged. No person endorses or approves a claim, payment or journey from which they benefit. Claims are supported by original receipts or evidence of delivery. Each request names its budget entity, University or DAHC, and its sub-account. Petty cash stays within the DOA petty cash limits and is never used to divide a payment that exceeds them. The Dean decides every IoL travel request, and no travel is booked before that decision. A request or claim returned for revision, or rejected by HQ on correctable grounds, and not resubmitted within 10 working days is closed.

2. Trigger, boundary and interfaces

3. Roles and accountability

Process owner. Head of Administration and Operations (HAO). Custodian. Administration Affairs (SDO), which operates the procedure through the SDO Finance Officer (payments and claims) and the SDO Officer (travel) and keeps its records.

The Dean holds the highest IoL authority in this procedure. The beneficiary rule sets the chain: a Chair's claim goes to the HAO, or to the Dean above the HAO's limit, without Chair endorsement; the HAO's claim goes to the Dean; the Dean's claim and the Dean's own travel go to the Dean's superior, named in AW-05. A Chair's travel request skips endorsement and goes straight to SDO verification.

[CONTROL] Segregation. Nobody endorses, reviews or approves a claim, payment or journey from which they benefit (DOA Manual Chapter 3). The person who confirms that a deliverable or journey happened does not approve the payment. The SDO officer who reviews and submits does not approve.

[CONTROL] Delegation tiers. Tier 1: SDO Head of Finance approves pre-approvals, claims and single petty cash transactions within the internal limit set by the HAO and within the DOA petty cash limits. Tier 2: HAO approves above that limit and up to the HAO limit. Tier 3: Dean approves above the HAO limit and up to the Dean's authority under the DOA Manual. Above the Dean's authority the transaction goes through HQ for Level 3. The engagement of a visiting professor or expert is approved at Level 2 (CEO) through HQ before engagement, whatever its value. The three tier values are stated in AW-05 [HAO to state].

4. Procedure

1. Establish the basis for payment. Every request rests on one of four bases, named on the request by the SDO Finance Officer at intake: a supplier invoice matched under AW-10; a deliverable against an AW-08 appointment or AW-23 contract; an expense, honorarium or petty cash claim under HQ policy; or a journey decided under this procedure. [CONTROL] A request with no basis, or with a basis created after the fact, is returned; a pattern of these is reported through AW-24. Decision point. Matched supplier invoice or contracted deliverable: step 2. Honorarium or speaker fee for a contributor not yet engaged: step 3. Claim: step 7. Journey: step 11. No basis: the request is returned to the originator.

2. Match, confirm and release supplier and contracted payments. The SDO Finance Officer confirms that the supplier invoice, the purchase order and the goods-received note agree (AW-10 step 12). For consultants and external faculty appointed under AW-08 or contracted under AW-23, the lead who commissioned the work confirms in writing what was delivered (sessions, dates, hours, milestone) against the letter or contract, naming the evidence; nothing is paid above the rate and basis in the letter or contract, and contracts are reconciled at final milestone against total value. HQ Finance validates and pays; SDO follows up and confirms payment. [CONTROL] No payment is released without the goods-received note or the written deliverable confirmation; "approved for payment" alone is not a confirmation. Bank-detail changes are never actioned by IoL. Decision point. Matched and confirmed: HQ Finance pays and the file is closed under AW-10 or AW-23. Disputed deliverable: payment is held until the commissioning lead and the payee resolve it, with AW-23 consulted where a contract is involved, and the payment returns to step 2.

3. Prepare and endorse the pre-approval request. Before any contributor is engaged, the department completes the honorarium pre-approval form stating the contributor, the activity, the rate basis, the estimated amount, the budget entity and the sub-account, and the Department Chair reviews it. [CONTROL] Honoraria and speaker fees are not paid without a written pre-approval issued before engagement. Decision point. Endorsed: step 4. Returned with comments: step 3. Declined: the request is closed and the department informed.

4. Review the pre-approval request and determine the DOA level. The SDO Finance Officer reviews the request against HQ rate and eligibility policies, confirms budget availability with the SDO Head of Finance, and determines whether the engagement constitutes the utilisation of a visiting professor or expert under DOA Manual Chapter 9, which requires Level 2 approval. Decision point. Level 2 required: step 5. Not required: step 6. Not compliant or budget unavailable: returned to step 3 with written reasons. Timeout. Not resubmitted within 10 working days: the request is closed.

5. Obtain Level 2 approval. The HAO or the Dean submits the request through HQ for approval by the CEO at Level 2 and informs the Chair of the outcome. [CONTROL] Level 2 approval is obtained before a visiting professor or expert is engaged; an engagement made ahead of it is a breach reported through AW-24. Decision point. Granted: step 6. Not granted: the department is notified, the contributor is not engaged and the request is closed.

6. Decide the pre-approval. The approver for the value tier (section 3) approves or declines the request in writing; the Chair is informed, and requests above the Dean's authority go through HQ for Level 3. On approval SDO issues the signed pre-approval to the department, which engages the contributor under AW-08 or AW-21 on the pre-approved rate and basis. Decision point. Approved: the contributor is engaged and the claim follows at step 7 after delivery. Not approved: the department is notified, the contributor is not engaged and the request is closed.

7. Complete and endorse the claim. The claimant completes the HQ claim form with original receipts, the signed pre-approval for an honorarium or speaker fee, evidence of delivery (for an honorarium, the confirmation described in step 2), the budget entity and sub-account, and the payment details HQ requires. Per diems are claimed at the HQ rate for the destination without receipts, and nothing the per diem covers is reimbursed separately. The Department Chair confirms that the expense or activity took place as approved and endorses the claim; a Chair's own claim skips this endorsement. [CONTROL] A single petty cash transaction stays within the DOA petty cash limits; a payment above them is not divided. Decision point. Endorsed, or Chair's own claim: step 8. Returned for revision: step 7. Declined: the claim is closed and the claimant informed.

8. Review the claim for compliance. The SDO Finance Officer checks the evidence, the calculations, compliance with HQ Finance and HR policies, duplication against prior claims and any advance, and the beneficiary rule, and records the result on the review checklist. A travel claim is checked against the Dean's decision and any advance, with the balance repaid or claimed. [CONTROL] No second advance is issued while a first is unreconciled; an advance unreconciled beyond 30 days is notified to HQ Finance for recovery from the individual. Decision point. Compliant: step 9. Deficient: returned to step 7 with the deficiency named. Timeout. Not resubmitted within 10 working days: the claim is closed.

9. Approve the claim. The approver for the value tier (section 3) approves, returns or rejects the claim; the Chair is informed. [CONTROL] The beneficiary rule is applied at endorsement, review and approval: a Chair's claim goes to the HAO or, above the HAO's limit, the Dean; the HAO's to the Dean; the Dean's to the Dean's superior named in AW-05. A claim split to reach a lower tier is a breach reported through AW-24. Decision point. Approved: step 10. Returned for revision: step 7. Rejected: the claim is closed and the claimant and Chair informed.

10. Submit to HQ, communicate the decision and close. The SDO Finance Officer submits the approved claim to HQ Finance or HQ HR and records the submission reference; the claimant and Chair are informed. HQ validates the claim against HQ policy and either processes payment or rejects it. Where HQ rejects, SDO communicates the rejection and its reason to the claimant in writing, informs the Chair and the HAO, and records it in the rejection log. [CONTROL] A rejection on policy grounds is not overridden by IoL. Decision point. Paid: SDO confirms payment to the claimant and archives the file. End: claim paid and file archived. Rejected on correctable grounds: the claim returns to step 7 for resubmission within 10 working days. Timeout. Not resubmitted within 10 working days, or rejected on grounds that cannot be corrected: the claim is closed and logged.

11. Prepare and endorse the travel request. The traveller identifies a travel requirement aligned with the departmental plan or an institutional priority and completes the Travel Request Form: destination, dates, purpose, expected outcomes, estimated cost, budget entity, sub-account and ticket class, with the accepted abstract or invitation where presenting. The Department Chair reviews the business case; where the traveller is a Chair, endorsement does not apply. Decision point. Endorsed, or Chair's own travel: step 12. Returned for revision: step 11. Declined: the request is closed and the traveller informed.

12. Verify the travel request. The SDO Officer verifies completeness, budget availability with the SDO Head of Finance, compliance with HQ travel policy and ticket class entitlement, and informs the HAO. [CONTROL] Business class is limited to Directors and above and to People of Determination; any other case needs HQ HR approval, obtained before the request goes to the Dean. [CONTROL] Budget availability is confirmed before the request is submitted to the Dean. Decision point. Complete and compliant: step 13. Incomplete or non-compliant: returned to step 11. Timeout. Not resubmitted within 10 working days: the request is closed.

13. Decide the travel request and authorise processing. The Dean approves the request, returns it for modification or declines it, and the Chair is informed; travel by the Dean is decided by the Dean's superior named in AW-05. Following approval the HAO authorises SDO to process the request with HQ Finance, HQ Contracting and Procurement and HQ Travel [HAO to confirm whether this authorisation is a budget check, in which case it belongs before the Dean's decision, or a processing step]. [CONTROL] No travel request is submitted to HQ without the Dean's approval and the HAO's authorisation to process. Decision point. Approved and authorised: step 14. Returned: step 11. Declined: the request is closed and the traveller and Chair informed.

14. Record business leave, book and travel. The traveller records business leave in the HQ HR system, which AW-07 reads as the leave record. The SDO Officer arranges tickets and accommodation through HQ Travel and processes conference registration fees and other travel purchases under AW-10. Where HQ policy allows an advance, it is requested with the authorisation, paid by HQ Finance and recorded against the traveller. The traveller travels as approved and notifies SDO of any change in advance. [CONTROL] Travel booked before the Dean's decision is a policy breach; the traveller bears the cost unless the process owner accepts a documented exception, and the breach is logged for AW-24. Next: step 15.

15. Report, claim and close the travel file. Within 10 working days of return the traveller submits the post-activity report (key learnings, contacts, actions and value to the Institute) to the Chair, or to the Dean where the traveller is a Chair; the Dean and the HAO are informed. Any expense claim follows steps 7 to 10 and its reference is recorded. The SDO Officer closes the file once the report and any claim have been received. [CONTROL] A first late report draws a written reminder from SDO; a second draws referral to the Dean, and further travel requests from the traveller are held until the outstanding reports are submitted. Decision point. Report received and claim reference recorded or no claim: the file is closed. End: travel file closed. Report outstanding: the escalation ladder applies and the file stays open.

Exception routes. Urgent payment to prevent a learner-facing failure (visiting examiner about to travel, venue deposit): the process owner may approve submission to HQ ahead of full evidence, with the missing item obtained within 5 working days and the exception logged; HQ policy still decides whether the claim is paid. Contributor engaged before pre-approval: no route exists in IOL-OPS-003 v0.1 [HAO to confirm whether the Dean may give a retrospective pre-approval, with the breach logged for AW-24, or whether the fee is unpayable]. Urgent travel when the Dean is unavailable: the acting arrangement under AW-05 applies; IOL-OPS-007 v0.1 gives no route inside the travel lead time [HAO to confirm]. Change to approved travel: the traveller notifies SDO in advance; SDO re-verifies and, where the cost or ticket class changes, the request returns to the Dean at step 13.

5. Service standards

6. Records, retention and controls

Records are kept in the Administration Affairs (SDO) central repository and in the systems named below, and retained for a minimum of seven years or the period required by the Dubai Department of Finance, whichever is longer.

Key controls. (1) Every payment has a named basis. (2) Honoraria are not paid without written pre-approval issued before engagement; Level 2 precedes the engagement of a visiting professor or expert. (3) The beneficiary rule is applied at endorsement, review and approval. (4) No payment to external faculty or a consultant without a written deliverable confirmation; no supplier payment without the matched purchase order and goods-received note. (5) Approval matches the AW-05 tier; no splitting, and petty cash never divides a payment. (6) Returns not resubmitted within 10 working days are closed. (7) HQ rejections are communicated in writing, logged and never overridden. (8) Travel is decided by the Dean and authorised for processing before booking; travel booked earlier is borne by the traveller. (9) Ticket class and budget are verified before the request reaches the Dean. (10) Post-activity reports are due within 10 working days with the two-strike escalation. (11) No second advance while one is unreconciled. (12) Bank-detail changes are never actioned by IoL.

OBEF touchpoint. None. Industry revenue and in-kind valuation are captured in AW-12 and AW-10, not here.

7. Performance measures

8. Change control