Helpful Hints for Our Vendors

How to send us an invoice:

• A valid UC Berkeley Purchase Order number is required on all invoices. All UC Berkeley POs start with "BB" and are 10 digits in total (i.e. BB00120075). Invoices without a valid UC Berkeley purchase order number will not be processed. Be sure that your invoiced items match those on the purchase order. If the quantities differ, or if lines on a purchase order have been combined on your invoice, the transaction will require additional research which may cause a delay in payment.

Electronic (Preferred):

• All BearBuy Catalog suppliers should submit catalog order invoices via cXML

• Non-catalog suppliers submitting more than 25 invoices per year should register with Transcepta, our invoicing partner. For information about enrolling in the Transcepta program, please visit http://connect.transcepta.com/berkeley (link is external) and click on Contact Transcepta.
  

Manual:

• Submit directly to the Accounts Payable Office preferably via the e-mail instructions below. Sending invoices to campus departments will delay the payment as it adds additional steps to the payment process (see exceptions below)

Via e-mail:

E-mail and attachments interface automatically to our imaging system. Please follow these instructions exactly:

• Create an e-mail to ucinvoice@berkeley.edu (link sends e-mail)
• Attach invoice using PDF or similar file type. If the invoice is multi-pages, include all pages in one attachment.
• Only one invoice can be accepted per e-mail. If more than one invoice is attached to an e-mail it or if more than one invoice is included in a single PDF, the invoice(s) cannot be processed.
• In the subject line of the e-mail:

• Type the Purchase Order Number followed by the # sign and then type the Invoice Number followed by underscore. Do not enter spaces.
• For example, PO# BB00027195 and Invoice # J156987 should be inserted into the subject line as: BB00027195#J156987_

Do not use the body of the e-mail for questions/comments or other correspondence. Only the attachments are viewed.

Via postal mail and courier delivery, our address is:

University of California, Berkeley
Accounts Payable
Warren Hall, Room 159
2195 Hearst Ave.
Berkeley CA 94720-1101

Exceptional processing: The following departments have unique payables processing procedures which require that vendors send the invoices directly to the departments. Invoices for these departments SHOULD NOT be sent to the above Accounts Payable Office address, as it will delay the processing of your payment:

• Physical Plant - Campus Services
• Facilities Services/Capital Projects
• The Library

How we issue payment:

• Payments are issued within payment terms as detailed in the matrix above, unless negotiated otherwise by contract.
• Accounts Payable will process your invoice within 10 business days of receipt in our office. However, in most cases, payment cannot be issued until the voucher is approved by the campus department that made the purchase. If the payment terms have expired and there appears to be a delay in payment, please contact the campus department directly.

 Payment Options:

1. Our preferred method of payment is via US Bank’s Payment Plus. This electronic payment option allows for the secure delivery of payments to our suppliers who accept credit cards and provides a key benefit of Net payment terms in which payment is issued within 2 business day of invoice approval. Read more about Payment Plus.

2. For suppliers that do not accept credit cards, EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) is the preferred payment method. With EFT, the payment is deposited into your bank account 2 business days after the payment is issued. EFT eliminates payment delays and the risks involved with paper checks such as loss, theft, etc. The EFT form and instructions are available on our website. Print a copy of the form, fill it out, attach a copy of a voided check and mail it to our office at the address listed on the form or send via e-mail to disburse@berkeley.edu (link sends e-mail). EFT will become effective within 5 business days after we receive the completed form. For each EFT payment issued, we will email an EFT remittance advice form showing the payment details

3. Suppliers will be required to provide a valid business reason for why they are unable to sign up for EFT or Payment Plus. For those suppliers, they will receive payment by paper check mailed via US Postal Service with payment terms as detailed in the matrix above. Please allow up to 10 business days for mail delivery. Exceptions for international wire transfer or courier delivery should be requested through the campus department that made the purchase.

How to contact us

• Suppliers who go through our BearBuy Purchase Order process can register with our supplier portal for self-service, 24/7 inquiries, including payment status. To request access, send an e-mail to disburse@berkeley.edu (link sends e-mail) and include in the subject line "requesting access to supplier portal".
• Email disburse@berkeley.edu (link sends e-mail) or leave a voicemail at 510-643-2199 (M-F 9:00am - 4:00pm). All contacts create a service ticket. Your ticket will be routed to staff who can best address your inquiry.
• If you have an open ticket for an issue, please do not open a duplicate ticket by sending a new inquiry. Simply respond to the notification received when the ticket was originally created and that will update the existing ticket.
• If your ticket is closed, please do not reply with a ‘thank you.’ This reopens the ticket and clutters the in-box.

• We are not exempt from Sales/Use tax. The University of California is subject to State–administered sales and use tax laws to the same extent as private individuals or businesses.

• If you need UC Berkeley's Taxpayer Identification Number, you may obtain it from UC Berkeley’s W-9 form.

• Refund checks for overpayments should be made payable to UC Regents and sent to our mailing address (see above).