Payable Entry - Electronic Funds Transfer

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Fund Accounting's Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) feature enables you to process vendor payments without printing physical AP checks. For EFT vendors, the system generates an Automated Clearing House (ACH) file as a part of vendor check processing.

The ACH file is formatted according to a template you select based on requirements from the bank that handles your AP account. You send the ACH file to your bank which then distributes funds electronically to the appropriate vendor bank accounts. The system can also send e-mail notifications to the vendors.

In terms of day-to-day data entry, the EFT feature requires little added work for personnel entering payable records or processing vendor checks. EFT-related processing occurs seamlessly if the correct reference table setup is in place.

This section gives information on the setup needed to facilitate EFT transactions and then provides an overview of the steps involved in making EFT payments.

For related information, refer to Accounts Payable Processing.

EFT Setup

Following is a listing of the Fund Accounting reference tables used for EFT along with an explanation of each table's role in EFT processing. Administrative personnel need to set up records in these tables for payable entry and vendor check processing to properly handle EFT transactions.

Bank Table Contains records for the banks used by the vendors you are paying electronically. The bank routing number associated with a vendor appears in the ACH file generated when you process EFT payments for that vendor. For details, refer to EFT Bank Codes Table.

Vendor Table Stores each vendor's bank information, including the type of transaction (checking or savings), bank account number, and, if applicable, prenote setting. The Vendor record also contains e-mail settings for sending automatic payment notifications. For details, refer to Vendor List.

EFT Destination Table Defines a template for the ACH file format and content required by each bank where you send EFT payment information. These are the banks that handle your AP accounts and which use the ACH files you generate to transfer the proper funds to the vendors' bank accounts. For details, refer to EFT Destination Table.

Alternate Vendor Address Table Contains bank and e-mail information for alternate addresses associated with EFT vendors. You can update this table when entering payable records. When you are making an EFT payment to a secondary vendor address, you can then select the appropriate record during payable entry. For details, refer to Alternate Vendor Address Table.

Once the necessary setup is complete, you can process EFT payments against existing purchase orders. The following procedures should be completed in order. Note that these steps do not address Fund Accounting's AP Approval feature.

Entering Payables for EFT Payments

1. Select Fund Accounting > Entry & Processing > Payable Entry > Post Accounts Payable to display the Post Accounts Payable page.
2. If you need to change the fiscal year accounting period or transaction date for the payable record, click Set Period. For details, refer to Resetting Periods.
3. In the Payment Type section, select the Purchase Order Payment or Non-Purchase Order Payment option.
4. Complete the fields in the General Payable Data section.
   After you complete the Vendor field and access the Invoice field:
   
   • The Vendor Address displays at the bottom of the page, showing the Accounts Payable Address associated with the vendor. Review the address. If you need to use an alternate address, refer to the next step.
   • The EFT identifier displays next to the Invoice Date field. The identifier indicates whether the transaction is for a checking or savings account. Vendors are designated for EFT processing if they have values in the following Vendor List fields: Transaction Code, Bank Code, and Account Number. Otherwise, the No EFT indicator displays.
   • With EFT payables, the Single Check field becomes the Print Check field. This field lets you indicate whether to process a printed vendor check for the payment instead of including it in an ACH file. By default, the checkbox is not selected, meaning the payment will be processed as an EFT transaction. To issue a printed check instead, select the field.
5. If you need to use a different Accounts Payable Address for the vendor payment, click Alternate Vendor on the Action Bar to display the Alternate Vendor Information page.
   
   • You can select an alternate address or add a new one.
   • If the alternate address has its bank information defined, the system displays the EFT indicator as described in Step 3.

   For additional details, refer to Alternate Vendor Information Page.

6. Complete the accounting distributions section, as needed.
7. Click OK to save the record.

Processing an EFT Payable Record

1. After completing the payable entry procedure, select Fund Accounting > Entry & Processing > Vendor Checks > Vendor Checks to display the Process Payables page.
2. In the Selection Criteria section, enter criteria identifying the EFT payable you created.
   • In the Payment Type field, select either A - All or E - EFT Only.
   • For details on the page's other fields, refer to Print Vendor Checks.
3. Click Next.
4. In the Print window, specify how you want to generate the Cash Requirements in Check Format report, and then click OK. The report's default file name is cashreq.rpt.
5. Click Next to display the Print Checks page.
6. In the Check Criteria section, complete the fields, and then click Next.
7. The Question dialog displays the number of vouchers to be printed. Click Yes.
8. In the Print window, enter your settings for printing the vouchers, and then click OK.
9. In the Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) page, enter the settings for generating the ACH file.
   • Use the Bank Destination field to select the file format template set up for the bank where you are sending the ACH file.
   • Use the Date Entries to be Posted field to select the date when your bank may process debits to your AP account. This date is included in the ACH file.
   • Use the File Creation Date field to select the date that you want to apply to the file. The field defaults today's date, which you may change. The File Creation Date is also stored in the file's header record.
10. Click Next to display a Print window for generating the ACH file.
11. Make note of the filename and server directory where the file will be stored, and then click OK to generate the ACH file and PDF vouchers.
    • The bank uses the ACH file to debit your account and route the appropriate funds to vendors' bank accounts.
    • Your site is responsible for sending the file to your bank.
12. In the next Print window, select a destination for generating the EFT report, and then click OK.
    • The EFT report shows the vouchers created, vendors paid, vendors' bank account information, and amounts paid.
13. If you are processing payables for another disbursement fund, the Print Checks page displays so you can set up the next part of the check run. Load check stock for the disbursement fund, then repeat Steps 6-12.
    Otherwise, continue with Step 14.
14. In the Confirmation dialog, click Yes, proceed if the vouchers were created correctly.
    If there was a problem, click No, reprint, and redo the check run as appropriate.
15. In the Vendor Check Register page, click Finish.
16. In the Print window, enter settings for generating the Vendor Check Register, and click OK. The system generates EFT e-mail notifications at this point.
17. A Processing window displays, indicating the number of records processed. Click OK.
18. In the next Print window, enter settings for generating the Voucher Register-Fund Totals report, and click OK.
19. In the Information dialog, click OK to complete the process.

Generating Prenote Data

Based on setup in the Vendor List, you can generate prenote data to send your bank for verifying a vendor's deposit information. The data is sent to an ACH file with a transaction code indicating you are not making an actual payment but are instead performing a test.

A vendor is designated for prenote processing if the Vendor List Transaction Code is 23, 24, 33, or 34. When you enter a payable for a prenote vendor, the system includes an indicator next to the Cash Account field.

For additional information, refer to EFT Prenotes.

Fields

Payment Type Section

Use this section to indicate the type of payment, either a purchase order/encumbrance or non-purchase order payment.

General Payable Data Section

Use this section to enter information for either a purchase order or non-purchase order payment. The fields will vary somewhat based on the type of payment.

Payment Distribution Section

Use this section to distribute payment amounts in Fund Accounting for the payable record.

• If you are using the Purchase Order Payment option and the Auto Display field is selected, the system displays all of the encumbrance’s line items.
• If you are using the Purchase Order Payment option and the Auto Display field is not selected, then you need to enter an item number to display the associated line item information.
• If you are using the Non-Purchase Order Payment option, then use this section to distribute payment to expenditure budget accounts. In this case, there are no line items to reference.