New cheque procedures implemented by the Finance Department

York University’s Finance Department is moving to 4747 Keele Street on Friday. As a result of the move, and in keeping with the department’s commitment to continuous improvement, efficiency and sustainability, the Finance Department is moving to the direct deposit form of payment. As a consequence, there are new procedures in place for cheque pickup.

New cheque procedures

Staff within the Finance Department recognize that getting to the new off-campus location will require additional travel time and may pose an inconvenience to some community members. To minimize the number of trips off campus, the Comptroller’s Office is encouraging the use of direct depost, which is a more timely, secure and sustainable method of payment compared to payment by traditional cheque. For that reason, effective as of July 19, the Accounts Payable unit will no longer be accepting requests to pick up cheques for vendor invoices or employee expense reimbursements, except in extenuating circumstances as approved by the Comptroller’s Office (see below).

In order to ensure timely and secure payment of vendor invoices, the Finance Department asks that vendors enrol in direct deposit banking. The application form for direct deposit can be found on the Forms web page on the Finance Department website, or a PDF of the application form is available by clicking here.

York University employees requesting reimbursement of expense claims are encouraged to enrol in direct deposit banking for timely and secure payment. The application form for direct deposit can be found on the Forms web page on the Finance Department website, or a PDF of the application form is available by clicking here.

Approved cheque pick-up 

In extenuating circumstances, a cheque may still need to be picked up. These instances will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. The following outlines instances when cheque pickup will be permitted:

Off-campus event venues – Many off-campus event venues require payment at the end of the event.  Cheques required to pay these vendors will be made available for pick-up prior to the event date.

Student accounts – In certain extenuating circumstances, students will be permitted to pick up their refund or other cheques. Requests to pick up student cheques should be directed to Student Accounts, located in the Bennett Centre for Student Services. Student Accounts will provide a list of approved pick-up requests to Accounts Payable. Only cheques approved by Student Accounts will be permitted to be picked up. Accounts Payable will not accept requests directly from students, nor will “walk-up” requests be accepted.

Other extenuating circumstances may arise where a cheque may still need to picked up. Should such a circumstance arise, the request for pick-up will require the approval of the Comptroller’s Office. Any request for pick-up should be directed to Paula Perri at 416-736-2100, ext. 22000, or by e-mail to perrip@yorku.ca, or Sanish Samuel at 416-736-2100, ext. 22914, or by e-mail to sanish@yorku.ca.

Questions on the changes to York’s cheque pick-up procedures should also be directed to Perri or Samuel.