Glossary

Account:

The 5-digit Oracle General Ledger account. A valid account must be assigned to every P-Card transaction. An account is a financial code assigned to identify the type of goods or services that have been purchased. AKA (in its text form) “Expenditure Type” in Sponsored Research departments.

Alias:

The 6-digit Oracle cost center. Determines which budget will be charged for a particular transaction. It is used in lieu of Project/Task/Award for Sponsored Research purchases. Note that there is a unique alias for every PTA. Alias is not the same as Org or Organization Code.

Billing Cycle:

The period of time that equates to one monthly statement. Every billing cycle begins on the 21st of one month to the 20th of the following (e.g. June statement begins May 21 and ends June 20).

Billing Cycle Limit:

The available credit line during one billing cycle is set by default to $5,000. Any new purchases that will cause the card to exceed this amount will be declined. This limit can be increased by the Financial Director, Financial Manager or Dean of your school/department.

Enterprise Accounting System (EAS):

The GW name for Oracle Financials. All P-Card transactions will be posted from the iBuy+ Expense Reporting System to the Enterprise Accounting System.

Merchant Category Code (MCC):

A 4-digit code assigned to a supplier that defines the type of goods or services they provide. Certain MCCs are electronically blocked to prevent purchases with that vendor type.

Post Date:

The date that the transaction is posted to the P-Card account.

Single Transaction Limit:

The default amount for a single P-Card purchase is $3,500. The limit is set on total purchase price, not on an item-by-item basis.

Supporting Documentation:

Copies of receipts and other documents used to justify the expenditure on the P-Card

Transaction Date:

The date that the P-Card was presented for payment (i.e., the date of purchase).

Travel & Entertainment Expense:

Airfare, car rentals, hotel stays, business meals, etc. (see GW Travel & Entertainment Policy) for additional details).