Title
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Finance Procedure 1252.2 - Procedure on Using a Purchasing Card
Procedure
This procedure states the scope of Purchasing Card (P-Card) use to comply with state auditing rules. It details allowable and non-allowable uses of the P-Card, and defines the oversight of card use at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ("UNC-Chapel Hill" or "University").
Allowable and non-allowable charges
The following is a sample list of allowable and non-allowable charges. If you have questions about a purchase, please contact the P-Card Office at pcard@unc.edu.
Allowable
- Advertising (no contract/agreement involved)
- Caterers or restaurants that are providing food/beverage for University meetings & events (if no contract required)
- Conference Calls
- Copying/Framing/Photo Developing (that produces a supply item)
- Credential Verification/Background Checks
- Conference Registrations (Financial donation/gift component when registering for a conference or other event are personal expenses and not allowed)
- In-Restaurant Dining (Alcohol is not permitted)
- Information Technology (IT) goods and services (which are in compliance with the UNC-Chapel Hill Information Security Controls Standard). Please visit the University's Safe Computing Purchasing Guide for more information.
- Inventory Purchases
- Medical License/DEA License/Passport Renewal
- Professional Business Related Membership Dues
- Newspaper/Magazine/Online Subscriptions
- Postage/Shipping/Courier
- Repairs from a vendor (a corporation or partnership)
- Reprints
- Rentals (If a Rental Involves a Contract with Terms and Conditions requires review by Purchasing Services)
- Services from a vendor (a corporation or partnership)
- State Contract Purchases (must use contract vendor)
- Supplies (office/shop/IT/lab)
- Travel & Entertainment for Athletic Department, Student Travel, or Guest Travel upon Request
- Utility (power/water/gas/cable)
- Zipcar
- Uber and Lyft rides to and from the Clinics for Clinical Trial Studies using Departments Defined Dashboard
- Purchases that require a signed contract or agreement must be submitted for review and approved by Purchasing Services on a requisition. Purchasing Services will advise if the Purchase may be made via P-Card during the review process.
Non-Allowable
- Items otherwise available from BuyCarolina Vendor
- Alcohol/Tobacco
- Anything costing more than $5,000
- Avoiding State Contracts
- Cash Advance
- Cell phone or home Internet expenses
- Contributions or donations
- Gift Certificates/Gift Cards (Exception allowed for purchase eGift Cards for Clinical Trial Subject Study, Designated P-Card for each project and OSR approval required)
- Moving Services
- Personal memberships such as wholesale club memberships
- Personal purchases
- Radioactive Materials
- Research Gases
- Goods or Services from a Sole Proprietor (a Doing-Business-As Vendor; these are independent contractors)
- "Splitting" of transactions to avoid purchasing thresholds
- Travel (Exception allowed for Athletics, Student Travel, or Guest Travel upon Request)
- Security Camera Equipment
Blocked Vendors
The University has also blocked several Merchant Category Codes (MCC). MCCs identify the different types of vendors served by Visa. The University has blocked many of these codes (primarily travel and entertainment), and your card will decline if you try to make a purchase with a vendor categorized under one of these codes. The University decides to block MCCs based on whether Purchasing Services deems P-Card purchases from a merchant category inappropriate. Direct questions in this area to the P-Card Office at pcard@unc.edu.
In addition to use restrictions, an individual's department may impose additional restrictions. The required online training covers P-Card restrictions.
When a Statewide Term Contract is available, you must use the contracted supplier. Statewide Term Contract information is available at the N.C. Department of Administration website, or by calling the appropriate buyer in Purchasing Services.
Exceptions
Oversight of P-Card Use
The University's P-Card Office is charged with oversight of this delegation of purchasing authority to individuals. To ensure compliance with University policies and State purchasing laws and regulations, an after-purchase compliance review will be conducted on individual purchases. Using a random sample technique, the University's P-Card Office will screen the list of purchases and select certain purchases to review. The P-Card Office will request that the individual produce documentation to support all purchases.
If the P-Card office or an approver finds misuse of a P-Card, they will contact the employee who allegedly misused the card by sending a copy of the P-Card Misuse/Abuse Notification. This serves as an official warning of misuse and could be followed by further corrective action if more abuses occur.
Violations of University policies and/or State purchasing laws and regulations will result in notification of the department head, Campus Unit Finance Lead and/or the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Finance and Budget as appropriate. Violations may result in disciplinary action against the individual or removal of the P-Card privilege, or both.
Related Requirements
University Policies, Standards, and Procedures
External Regulations and Consequences
Contact Information
Primary Contacts
Subject: P-Card Purchases
Contact: P-Card Office
Email: pcard@unc.edu
Subject: Suspicious Transactions
Contact: Bank of America Fraud Department
Telephone: 1-866-500-8262
Publication Details
Issuing Officer: Travel and Payment Card Services Manager
Effective Date: August 27, 2026
Next Review Date: August 27, 2027