This is our commitment to the service we provide:

 

 
Your Main Financial Responsibilities as Budget HolderHow the RAO will help youSupport Toolkit developed for you by the RAOWhen you do it Days="Working" days RAO Turnaround*
Submitting Research proposals Approving budgets before submission to Funder

Funder Guides

Template for costing Budget Proposal

PI Day Workshops

Five days before Research Office deadline Five Days

Be familiar with your funders terms and conditions and Ensure eligibility of expenditure

Provide documentation on general Funder Guidelines

Funder Guides

RAO Website & Links

From Proposal stage throughout the Project Lifecycle

 N/A
Regular Review of Expenditure Develop and maintain Research Project Reports and process coding corrections

RAO FAQ

Agresso

Every Month throughout the Project Lifecycle  N/A
Expenditure Categorisation (to enable preparation of cost statement) Extract expenditure listing from Agresso and provide to Budget Holder for approval Agresso (Expenditure Listing Report) Within five days of receiving Expenditure Listing  Ten Days
Complete and Approve Cost Statement (including  other schedules as required) Create draft Cost Statement. Reconcile Cost Statement to Agresso. Agresso (Notification & ChecklistDraft Cost Statement Within 5 days of receiving draft Cost Statement  Ten Days
Monitoring research income Provision of monthly reports and regular review of income received Agresso Income Report (Includes Bank Details) Review monthly throughout the Project Lifecycle  N/A
Employing Research Staff Check labour budget availability and contract periods

PPF Form

Labour Commitment File

Timesheets Template

See Post Proposal form (PPF)  Five Days
Awarding Scholarships and Stipends Payment of Scholarship stipends and fees

Scholarship Form

Timesheets Template

Before the 7th of the month Within month if received before deadline
No Cost Extensions and Budget Changes Review financial impact of request. Complete and approve Funder submissions as appropriate

Agresso Report

Labour Commitment File

One month before required submission as per individual Funder Guidelines Five Days
Dealing with auditors and Funder Queries Co-ordinate audit visits and manage responses to Funder queries All of the above tools will help you in the event of an audit Respond to RAO within ten days. Ten Days 

 *RAO turnaround times are based on (1) receipt of fully completed and accurate information from the Principal Investigator and (2) uninterrupted workflow.

Working in Partnership

The primary role of the Research Accounting Office is to ensure Financial Reports are submitted to Research Funding Agencies in a timely manner. Along with this, the Research Accounting Office works in partnership with Principal Investigators (PIs) and Budget Holders to advise them on the financial management of the university research portfolio. If the Principal Investigator is not a permanent member of staff, then they must nominate a permanent member of staff to be the Agresso Budget Holder.

According to the University Contract Research Policy, the Agresso Budget Holder is responsible for all aspects of the financial management of their project. This is to ensure that their academic independence cannot be compromised.

We have included a glossary at the bottom of this page, however if you feel that anything is unclear, please let us know. We also have provided a list of frequently asked questions. Click here to see our team.

Agresso is the University's financial management tool. All budget holders and administrators need to be familiar with it.

Grant Proposals

 The Research Office provides support for Researchers in identifying funding opportunities.

  •  The Research Accounting Office will approve budget proposals over €50,000 submitted on the NUI Galway ‌‌Budget Proposal Calculation Tool within a maximum of five days.
  • The approved budget will be forwarded to the Research Office or returned to the Budget Holder if changes are required.

Read more on how to get your proposal submitted

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Account Setup

A research project must have a research account on Agresso before the Budget Holder can start spending.

  •  The Research Accounting Office will activate the budget associated with a new Grant Agreement on Agresso within five days of the Research Office authorising it.
  • If there is no grant agreement the Research Accounting Office will setup the research account on Agresso within a maximum of five days of receiving a contract setup form from the Research Desk Manager.

Read more on how to get your cost centre set up for a new award

Cost Statements and Financial Reports

The Research Accounting Office submits all financial reports to funders within a maximum of two months of the reporting date (or earlier if required by the Treasury) having ensured the report is correctly reconciled to Agresso. To facilitate this, the Budget Holder will approve the project transactions and provide any additional information required.

  • The Research Accounting Office will provide the Budget Holder with a draft cost statement within three weeks of the report falling due.
  • The Budget Holder will respond within one week confirming the eligibility and categorisation of expenditure.
  • The Research Accounting Office will finalise the report within a maximum of two weeks.
  • The Budget Holder will sign the report within one week.
  • The Research Accounting Office will return it to the Budget Holder or submit it to the Treasury within one week.

Read more on how to get your report submitted on time

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No Cost Extensions and Budget Reallocation requests

  • The Research Accounting Office will review and approve revised budgets having ensured they comply with Treasury's terms and conditions within a maximum of five days.
  • The revised budget will be forwarded to the Research Office or the Budget Holder depending on the Treasury's rules. 

Read more on how to get your No Cost Extension Approved

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Research Financial Queries and Audits

The Research Accounting Office will co-ordinate Treasury audits on behalf of the Budget Holder.

  • The Research Accounting Office will resolve all Treasury queries directly with the funding agency where possible.
  • Where the query relates to eligibility or other items that require Budget Holder input, the Research Accounting Office forward the request to the Budget Holder within five days.
  • The Budget Holder will respond to the request within a maximum of five days.
  • The Research Accounting Office will forward all the requested information to the Treasury.

Read More on how to resolve Research Queries

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 Account Operation

The Principal Investigator must ensure that all expenditure charged to their account is eligible and in compliance with both the University and the Treasury's terms and conditions

Read more on how to manage your account on a day to day basis

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Contract Employees

In order to employ a researcher on a Research Project, a Post Proposal Form (NUI Galway Scales) must be submitted to HR

  • The Budget Holder completes the PPF.
  • The Research Accounting Office checks that there are sufficient funds available for the position within a maximum of five days.
  • The Research Accounting Office will forward the approved PPF to HR or return it to the Budget Holder for amendments.

Read more on how to employ researchers on your project

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All University Scholarships

The Research Accounting Office will ensure that all Scholars whose fully completed paperwork is received by the office before the 7th of the month will be paid that month.

  • The scholar and the Budget Holder must complete and sign the paperwork.
  • The Research Accounting Office will check the budget and ensure the scholar is paid.

Read more on how to charge scholarships to your award.

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VAT

The Research Accounting Office will collect VAT on Research Income every two months. Purchase Invoices must have the correct VAT code (VAT Codes Explained) on them when submitted to Financial Accounting for payment.

  • The Research Accounting Office will automatically deduct VAT on Research Income where applicable.
  • The Budget Holder will use the correct VAT codes when submitting invoices for payment.

Read more on how to get VAT right on your account

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Closing Accounts

The Research Accounting Office will attempt to close research accounts within six months of the final report being submitted and receiving all income due.

  • When preparing the final cost statement, the Research Accounting Office will transfer ineligible expenditure to the Budget Holder's general account.
  • The Research Accounting Office will check expenditure against income.
  • The Budget Holder will respond to any queries from Research Accounting or the Treasury within a maximum of five days.

Read more on how to get your research account closed once research has finished

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TRAINING

The Research Accounting Office provides training on Agresso and Financial Management. Anyone can request this through HR. Before contacting the Research Accounting Office with queries the Budget Holder should check if anyone in her research centre has been trained to provide the necessary support.

Read More to see what training is available to researchers

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PRE AWARD

 Proposals

 The Research Office provides support for Researchers in identifying funding opportunities. The Research Accounting Office provides support for the budgetary aspects of research proposals.

  • The Principal Investigator together with the Research Office will identify open funding calls.
  • The Principal Investigator will examine the funding call and prepare a budget as part of the proposal using the NUI Galway Research Budget Tool (Budget Proposal Calculation Tool). Care should be taken to use the appropriate salary scales and include VAT if appropriate.
  • The proposed Agresso Budget Holder will submit budgets in excess of €50,000 to the Research Accounting Office.
  • The Research Office may require approval for some smaller budgets from the Research Accounting Office.
  • The Research Accounting Office will review all budgets within a maximum of five working days.
  • The Research Accounting Office will advise the Budget Holder and the Research Office of the approved budget or return it to the Budget Holder for changes.
  • The Budget Holder will submit the complete proposal to the Research Office (VPR) for approval.

Account Setup

 The Research Accounting Office will issue a Research Account code (e.g. RE7025) and release the budget specified by the contract within five days of approval by the Research Desk Manager. This can only happen after the Treasury notifies the University that the proposal will be funded and issues a grant agreement or letter of offer

  • The TTO signs the grant agreement.
  • The Research Office matches the grant agreement against the proposal.
  • The Research Office sets up up the project on Agresso.
  • The Research Office advises the RAO of the Budget.
  • The Research Office liaise with the Budget Holder and arranges Agresso access.
  • The Research Accounting Office sets up the budget on Agresso.
  • The Research Accounting Office advises the Budget Holder and the Account Administrator of the budget code.

If an account is required but there is no grant agreement (e.g. a general account for the Budget Holder's share of overheads) then a different process must be followed:

  • The Budget Holder completes the contract setup form and sends it to the Research office researchcontracts@nuigalway.ie.
  • The Research Office checks the Budget Holder page and completes the necessary pages.
  • The Research Office setups up the project on Agresso.
  • The Research Office advise the RAO of the Budget.
  • The Research Office liaise with the Budget Holder and arranges Agresso Access.
  • The Research Accounting Office sets up the budget on Agresso.
  • The Research Accounting Office advises the Budget Holder and the Account Administrator of the Budget code.
  • Before completing the set-up form please see the user friendly tool Guide to Contract Set Up.

Cost Statements and Financial Reports

The Research Accounting Office submits all financial reports to funders within a maximum of two months of the reporting date (or earlier if required by the Treasury) having ensured that the expenditure is correctly reconciled to Agresso. To facilitate this, the Budget Holder will approve the project transactions and provide any additional information required.

Agresso categories expenditure into generalised budget categories based on the general ledger code.

  • The Research Accounting Office will prepare a draft report based on this categorisation within two weeks of the final month of the reporting period closing on Agresso.
  • The Budget Holder will be expected to review this report, confirm that the expenditure is complete, eligible and has been correctly categorised within one week, or state what changes are required within one week of receiving the draft cost statement.
  • The Research Accounting Office will then present the Budget Holder with a finalised cost statement for approval within two weeks. The Budget Holder has one week to approve this. 
  • The Research Accounting Office will submit the report to the Treasury within one week of the Budget Holder approving it.
  • Note that some awards require additional schedules to be completed by the Budget Holder. The Research Accounting Office will advise the Budget Holder on what is required when they present them with the draft financial report.
  • If the Budget Holder is not able to review the report in the time frame above, then they should contact the Research Accounting Office and arrange a meeting to finalise the report within the Treasury’s deadline.
  • The Budget Holder is expected to be familiar with the expenditure charged to the award before any meeting.
  • If the Budget Holder advises that expenditure needs to be re-categorised as part of the cost statement process, the Research Accounting Office will arrange for this to be transferred to the correct category.

Invoices

  • The Research Accounting Office will raise invoices to draw down research funds as per the schedule on the contract set-up form.
  • Where the invoice is triggered by the achievement of project milestones, the Budget Holder will advise the Research Accounting Office when they should issue the invoice.
  • The Research Accounting Office will advise Financial Accounting of any invoices raised so income can be posted to the correct Research Account.

No Cost Extensions and Budget Reallocation requests

 The Research Accounting Office will review the budgetary aspects of No Cost Extensions and Budget Reallocations

  • If the contract amendment requires a revised budget for the remainder of the award, the Budget Holder is expected to have reviewed their outstanding pay and non-pay commitments before submitting the revised budget to the Research Accounting Office.
  • The Research Accounting Office will review the request to ensure the budget complies with the Treasury’s terms and conditions within a maximum of five working days.
  • The approved budget will be returned to the Budget Holder and the Research office for submission to the Treasury.
  • If there is a problem with the budget the Research Accounting Office will return the budget to the Budget Holder and expect a response within one day.
  • The amended budget will be approved for submission to the Treasury within a further five days
  • If the Budget Holder wishes to arrange a meeting to prepare a budget alteration or contract alteration, then they should give the appropriate Research Accounting Office contact three days notice. The Budget Holder will be expected to have reviewed the budget before the meeting.
  • The Budget Holder (or whichever office required by the Treasury) will submit the request to the Treasury. (It may be necessary to liaise with other partners)
  • The Treasury will approve or reject the request. If the request is approved, the Treasury may issue a revised grant agreement to the Budget Holder.
  • The Budget Holder will liaise with the TTO regarding any revised documents and advise the Research Accounting Office when the change has been approved.
  • The Research Accounting Office will revise the budget on Agresso or change the end date of the award if required.

Research Financial Queries and Audits

  • The Research Accounting Office will resolve all Treasury queries directly with the funding agency where possible.
  • If the Research Accounting Office is able to answer the query without contacting the Budget Holder, then they will do so within ten days of receiving them.
  • Where the query relates to eligibility or other items that require Budget Holder input, the Research Accounting Office will forward the queries on to the Budget Holder within five days of receiving them and the Budget Holder will respond with the necessary information within another five days.

Funders will not approve payment of research funds until all financial queries have been resolved regardless of the technical strength of the research, so it is essential that all financial issues are resolved as quickly as possible.

Most funders have the right to audit expenditure submitted to them.

  • This can take place by desk audit or as a site visit.
  • The Research Accounting Office will co-ordinate these audits but rely on the support of the Budget Holder to ensure that expenditure is not deemed ineligible.
  • The Research Accounting Office will liaise between the Treasury and the Budget Holder to arrange a suitable time for the audit visit. 
  • The Research Accounting Office will arrange with Financial Accounting, HR and the TTO that the documentation supporting all expenditure is available to the auditors before the visit.
  • The Budget Holder must provide the Research Accounting Office with time sheets for all employees and scholars charged to the award during the period under audit within five days of it being requested.
  • The Budget Holder must be available to answer any queries from the auditors during the visit.
  • Before the visit is completed, the Research Accounting Office will agree a list of outstanding items with the auditors and work with the Budget Holder to ensure that these are all resolved within ten days of the audit visit.
  • Any expenditure deemed ineligible by the auditors will not be funded, leaving a shortfall on the Research Account.
  • Shortfalls will be transferred to the Budget Holder's general research account. 

POST AWARD

Account Operation

The Principal Investigator must ensure that all expenditure charged to their account is eligible and in compliance with both the University and the Treasury's terms and conditions

  • The Research Accounting Office accepts that any transaction posted by the Budget Holder is an eligible cost in compliance with the Treasury’s terms and conditions.
  • The Budget Holder is expected to review their expenditure on a regular basis and request corrections if required.
  • The Budget Holder is responsible for any shortfall in the account caused by ineligible expenditure or an overspend.
  • This shortfall will be transferred to the Budget Holder's general account. 


Eligibility of Expenditure

  • It is the Budget Holder’s responsibility to ensure the eligibility of all expenditure charged to the award. 
  • For expenditure to be eligible it must comply with NUI Galway, state and Treasury rules.
  • The Research Accounting Office is not in a position to provide advice to the Budget Holder on eligibility.
  • Specific questions on eligibility should be addressed directly to the Treasury.
  • The Research Accounting Office will make Budget Holders aware of audit findings by providing updates on our website.

General Accounts

  • A general account is for research and other work that does not require financial reporting.
  • The final balance on all Research Projects will be transferred into the Budget Holder's general account.
  • If the Budget Holder does not have a general account, the Research Accounting Office will set one up if required.

Creditor Invoices

Once Off Supplier Payments

  • If goods or services are purchased from a supplier once, then the supplier is classified as sundry and the invoice will be processed through the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office.

Expense Claims

  • Expense Claims should be submitted online through Agresso and any queries relating to them should be directed to the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office. Note that expense claims contain VAT which is ineligible on Framework Program funded EU awards.

Internal Invoices

  • The Research Accounting Office will post internal invoices where cost centres are cross charging for services. Some funders deem these charges to be ineligible.
  • The Research Accounting Office will ensure that the cost centre is active before posting internal invoices.
  • The Budget Holder must ensure the costs invoiced are eligible.

Miscoded Transactions

Transactions may only be moved from one account to another if they have been coded incorrectly in the first instance.

  • The Budget Holder needs to submit a Correction of Miscoded Transaction Form (to the Research Accounting Office.
  • This will be posted to the ledger within two weeks of receipt.
  • The Research Accounting Office will ensure that the transactions have not been already reported to a Treasury.
  • The Budget Holder must ensure that the VAT and pension associated with the journal are correct.

Reviewing Agresso

The Budget Holder and the designated Administrator will receive a monthly report advising cumulative expenditure and income received on the award.

They are also expected to review all expenditure in Agresso regularly and advise the Research Accounting Office of any errors.
They should also check expenditure against budget to ensure they are not in danger of overspending in any category.

Receipt of Income

The Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office lodges all Research Income and posts it to Agresso.

  • The Budget Holder is solely responsible for ensuring all income relating to a research project is collected by the university.
  • If the Research Accounting Office is advised that research funds are about to be paid to the university, they will advise the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office of this.
  • If the Budget Holder is informed of a payment then they must advise the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office with three days.
  • All research Income should be credited to the correct bank account (Payments to Partners).
  • Ideally income should be received in advance with a final payment when the final report is submitted.
  • A project is not considered complete until all the income is received.
  • If the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office cannot determine the correct research account then they will contact the Treasury for guidance.
  • If income is received before a Research Account is set up, the Research Accounting Office will reserve a number on Agresso to facilitate the posting of the income in a timely manner.
  • This cost centre will not be available for expenditure until the account has been set up fully on Agresso
  • The Budget Holder will review their research account regularly to ensure all monies are received when due.
  • If income is not being paid on schedule the Budget Holder should follow up with the Research Accounting Office and the Treasury.
  • The Research Accounting Office will assist the Budget Holder where the Budget Holder has not been able to recover all the income owing from the Treasury, but the Budget Holder remains responsible for clearing any shortfall on the research account.
  • If the technical reports are not submitted then the Treasury will not pay for the work carried out.
  • Any shortfall will be transferred to the Budget Holder's general account

Distribution of Pre-financing to Partners

The Research Accounting Office will arrange payment of pre-financing to other research institutes if NUI Galway receives money on their behalf.

  • When NUI Galway is the lead partner it may receive funds on behalf of the other partners.
  • These funds should be lodged in a Research Account set up specifically for partner funds.
  • These funds must be distributed in line with the contract or consortium agreement.
  • When the Consortium agreement is signed, the Budget holder should provide the Research Accounting Office with bank details for the partners using this form.
  • The Budget Holder must request by email the Research Accounting Office to make these payments fifteen days in advance.
  • The Research Accounting Office will calculate the payments and send them to the Budget Holder for approval. 
  • The Budget Holder must approve these payments within three days.
  • The Research Accounting Office will then arrange payment through Banking On Line.
  • The Budget Holder will advise the partners that payment is issued.

Interest on Pre-financing

  • The Research Accounting Office will calculate and post the interest on pre-financing at cost statement stage if required by the research contract.

NUI Galway Research Overheads Levy

  • The Research Accounting Office will collect the University Research Overheads Levy on a quarterly basis.
  • All NUI Galway Research Accounts are subject to a Research Overheads Levy (unless specified by the Treasury) to support the cost of Research. This is taken on research income.
  • For most contracts the budget for overheads will be in the Agresso research account so the Budget Holder must remember to exclude outstanding levy when viewing the available balance.
  • To facilitate this, the Research Accounting Office has written a suite of Agresso Treasury reports that shows the Research Overheads Levy budget separately.
  • If the Budget Holder believes an error has been made in calculating the levy then they must notify the Research Accounting Office in a timely manner as corrections for the overpayment of levy cannot be made after year end accounts have been finalised.

Budget Holder Share of Overhead

In some cases the Budget Holder will be entitled to a share of the indirect costs.

  • The Research Accounting Office will transfer this to the Budget Holder’s general account within ten days of a written request from the Budget Holder.
  • Ineligible costs charged to research accounts will be funded from Budget Holder overhead. 
  • The Research Accounting Office can also use these funds to cover overspends on other awards belonging to the Budget Holder before transferring the remaining balance to the Budget Holder's general account.
  • Only overhead relating to expenditure already incurred can be transferred.
  • Ineligible costs should not be charged to a research account that requires financial reporting but should be charged directly to the Budget Holder's general research account - providing funds are available.

Contract Employees

  •  The Research Accounting Office will approve fully completed Post Proposal Forms (PPF Form‌) for new contracts or contract extensions within five days of receipt of a digitally signed PPF from the Budget Holder.
  • The PPF has not been completed until the excel macro has been run and the cost of contract calculated.
  • Alternatively the Budget Holder can email his approval to the Research Accounting Office.
  • The Budget Holder must review the Labour Commitments File and the Agresso budget to ensure there are sufficient funds available for the contract and advise the Research Accounting Office of any errors in the Commitments file.
  • The Research Accounting Office will review the labour costs projections and the dates of the employment contract.
  • The Research Accounting Office will check that the total cost of labour commitments against the research account is within budget.
  • The Research Accounting Office will forward approved PPFs to HR, copying the Budget Holder and attached a copy of the Labour Commitments File.
  • The Budget Holder must then check this and advise the Research Accounting Office if any changes are required.
  • Incomplete forms will be returned to the Budget Holder, the Budget Holder can restart the procedure if desired.
  • Time sheets must be kept by the Budget Holder for all people charged to research projects.

All University Scholarships

  •  The Research Accounting Office will ensure that all scholars whose fully completed paperwork is received by the office before the 7th of the month will be paid that month.
  • The Budget Holder will check that there is budget available for the scholarship and check that the paperwork has been completed correctly before submitting it to the Research Accounting Office.
  • The Research Accounting Office will submit the tax exemption forms to the Revenue Commissioners on behalf of the student.
  • Because this document is required by the Revenue Commissioners it is imperative that it is completed correctly and signed by the correct people.
  • Incomplete forms will be returned to the Budget Holder to restart the procedure. The corrected forms must be received before the 7th day of the month for payment to be made in that month. 
  • If the scholar leaves early, the Budget Holder must write to the Research Accounting Office to cancel the payment.
  • Time sheets must be kept by the Budget Holder for all people charged to research projects.

VAT

  • The Research Accounting Office will ensure that VAT on Research Income is collected and paid to Revenue and Customs every two months.
  • TTO will advise whether a Research Project is vatable when they are approving the contract set-up form.
  • If an account is vatable at the standard rate, then VAT must be paid at 23% on research income, however the input VAT on purchases is not charged to the Research project.
  • Projects with a commercial aspect would fall into this category.
  • If an account is vatable at the zero rate, no VAT is paid on research income and input VAT on purchases is not charged to the Research project.
  • If an account is not vatable, no VAT is paid on research income and input VAT on purchases is charged to the Research project.
  • When invoices are being paid, the Accounts Payable and the Accounts Receivable & Treasury Office will process VAT based on the VAT code entered on the invoice by the Budget Holder. Thus the Budget Holder must take care to put the correct VAT code on the invoice.
  • A handy guide is available (VAT Codes Explained) to assist the Budget Holder with the appropriate VAT codes.
  • When transferring charges from vatable to non vatable accounts great care must be taken by the Budget Holder to ensure the VAT is handled correctly.

Closing Accounts

 The Research Accounting Office will attempt to close research accounts within six months of the final income being received. The Budget Holder is responsible for the cost centre until it is closed on Agresso.

  • When the final income has been received, the Research Accounting Office will finalise the Research Levy and VAT and post any outstanding journals.
  • If there is a surplus arising from the Budget Holder's share of overheads or a deficit arising from ineligible expenditure, then this will be transferred to the Budget Holder's general account.
  • The Budget Holder is responsible for clearing any deficits arising from ineligible expenditure or a shortfall in funding arising from a failure to meet deliverables.
  • Every effort should be made by Budget Holder to collect income in a timely manner.

 Review of Balances

 The Research Accounting Office will review all account balances in March and August.

  • If all the income has been received, the Research Accounting Office will transfer the account balance to the Budget Holder's general account and close the research account.
  • If all the income on finished awards has not been received, the Research Accounting Office will ask the Budget Holder to follow up with the Treasury.
  • The Budget Holder is will respond to these queries within one week as the information may be required by university auditors.
  • Live projects where no income has been received will also be queried by the Research Accounting Office with the Budget Holder.

 General Queries

Issues that are not covered by this document should be dealt with by the Budget Holder or their support team. 

  • The Research Accounting Office will not provide information about account balances or whether an expense has been charged to Agresso.
  • This information is available to the Budget Holder through Agresso.
  • However the Research Accounting Office will try to assist if the information is not available on the University or Research’s website.

 TRAINING

The Research Accounting Office provides training on Agresso and Financial Management. Anyone can request this through HR. Before contacting the Research Accounting Office with queries the Budget Holder should check if anyone in their research centre has been trained to provide the necessary support.

OTHER SERVICES

Please note that the Research Accounting Office is part of the Bursar's Section and may at times have to focus resources on other areas such as the preparation of year end accounts, or the provision of financial reports to the University Management Team. We will try and schedule these to cause as little disruption to Research Services as possible, however your patience and understanding is appreciated.

ERDF RETURNS

The Research Accounting Office is responsible for completing the ERDF returns for SFI, EI and HEA funded projects. The Research Accounting Office will prepare a B0 or B1 return and coordinate the audit. The Budget Holder must be familiar with the ERDF rules on publicity and comply with them.

The Research Accounting Office will update the ERDF manual on an annual basis.

YEAR END AUDIT

The Research Accounting Office will support Financial Accounting in preparing notes to the year end accounts relating to research and liaising with auditors on research related issues.

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COMPLAINTS

We aim to offer excellence in our services. However, if you are unhappy with the level of service provided please let us know.

If you are not happy with the level of service you are receiving from the Research Accounting Office, please contact the person you are dealing with and explain your concerns to them. If you are still not happy, please contact the Research Accountant with your issue. We can only deal with questions regarding services we are committed to providing, however we are open to suggestions on how we can improve our service to you.

If the Research Accounting Office feels that a Budget Holder is not providing sufficient information, they will advise them of this and escalate it to the Research Accountant, who will advise the Budget Holder of what is required. If the Budget Holder still does not fulfill their obligations, it will be escalated as part of the Research Accounting Office quarterly Reports.