Invoicing Standards

To ensure timely processing of a supplier's invoice for payment, review the details that should be included on an invoice when submitting to UBC.

Invoice receipt and triage

  • Invoices come directly to the AP team first via the ubc.invoices@ubc.ca email account. Before invoices can be processed, suppliers and users must adhere to the appropriate invoicing standards outlined below (e.g., ‘Billed to UBC’ must be present).
  • Invoices should be received via email whenever possible. If required, the supplier may still mail a hard copy directly to AP. Contact details and information for suppliers is available in the  For Suppliers section.
  • The AP email address for receiving transactions is completely automated. It takes the attachment off of a received email and loads it directly into a processing queue. This distinction is important to note, because any communication in that email will NOT be viewed or actioned by a person. An auto-response on the email account will remind the email sender of this fact.
  • Either a valid Workday PO or a ‘requestor’ name is required on all invoices. Requestors must be faculty or staff. Students are not able to be a requestor unless they are also an employee.
  • Suppliers must be set up in Workday before their invoice can be processed. This can be done at any time and is only necessary if they aren’t already in the system, or if their identification number has changed/changes.
  • The legacy process of signing and writing “OK to Pay” and physically submitting invoices has been replaced with Workday’s receiving functionality.
  • Receiving is enabled in Workday to allow automated three-way matching (between PO, receipt, and invoice) and invoice processing, eliminating the need for additional approvals for PO Invoices.
  • Match exceptions (the warning indicator that purchase order, receipt, and/or invoice are in conflict with each other) should be resolved independently, where possible, before going to a buyer.
  • For support or issues related to purchasing or paying for goods and services, contact the Integrated Service Centre through the UBC Self-Service Portal.

Payee Information:

  • Payee (supplier) name and remittance address. If Canadian GST is charged, then for tax purposes this name must match the name on file with the CRA.
  • Any additional supplier contact information, including phone number and email address.
  • If Canadian taxes are charged:
    • Include a valid GST number.
    • Include tax charged per taxation type (i.e. GST, PST, QST, HST). Per CRA regulations the separate tax amounts must not be combined into one line item.
  • A unique invoice number. If no unique invoice number is provided, one will be created by UBC staff — however this will impact supplier ability to inquire as to payment status, and match UBC’s payment to your records.
  • Invoice date. If an invoice date is not provided, UBC will use the date the invoice is processed in our system, which may impact timeliness of payment.
  • Description of the items being billed, including line item unit, quantity, and price.
  • Total amount of the invoice including currency. If no currency is indicated we will assume the currency of the supplier’s remittance address.

UBC Information

  • A “Bill to” line of either:
    • University of British Columbia (or UBC)
    • University of British Columbia-Okanagan (or UBCO)
  • A valid UBC Purchase Order number. If no Purchase Order was issued, the name of the UBC requestor. Please note that UBC students are not permitted to place orders on behalf of the university.
    • If a UBC PO is issued for the purchase, the invoice line items must match the PO line items exactly for those items that are being billed. In the event that we are unable to match the supplier invoice to our PO, it will either delay payment, or the invoice may be returned to the supplier, unpaid, with a request to rebill accordingly.