Club Spending Policies

Learn about the guidelines and policies to club spending.

Policy	If not followed
Contracts: All contracts should be processed through Office of Student Engagement. Students are prohibited from signing contracts and requesting payment through their club/block/core group account. See the Event Contracts page for further information.	If a student signs a contract, he will be liable for any damages or injuries incurred, including a vendor not providing the agreed upon service. NYU Legal will not support students who independently sign contracts.
Appropriate Payment Method: Venmo, CashApp, Zelle, etc. cannot be used to collect event revenue or make payments. Do not pay in cash, as accounts payable needs to have a paper trail for audit purposes. If ApplePay is used to pay, additional documentation linking the credit card number connection to the ApplePay number will be required.	Reimbursements will require a detailed explanation of why a credit card payment was not used and Accounts Payable reserves the right to reject the reimbursement request.
Appropriate Club Expenses: Please be thoughtful of the types of expenditures that the club will be covering for club events (i.e. alcohol). Make sure your club is not purchasing anything inappropriate. If you have a question of what is inappropriate, please consult your club advisor.	Reimbursement will not be processed until a statement as to the use of the equipment and storage location are provided.
Board Spending: Professional and Affinity Clubs may spend up to 2% of the year's projected budget or a total $75/person over the course of an entire academic year on non-essential club spending (e.g. officer only events), whichever is higher. All officers in attendance must be tracked and the list submitted during the reimbursement process.	Reimbursements will not be processed until a detailed explanation of why the club did not follow NYU policy is provided.
Purchases Over $1,000: Any transaction that exceeds $1,000 must be processed as a purchase order via NYU Procurement. Reimbursements cannot be requested for charges over $1,000.	The person that paid for the expense will be responsible to cover the amount that is deemed "inappropriate."
Purchasing Equipment: Equipment purchased (i.e. cameras, sports equipment, etc.) must be stored on campus. Reimbursement for equipment must be well explained on the reimbursement form (i.e. purpose for purchasing/intended use).	The payee will only be reimbursed for the per head allowance unless previously approved by the Office of Student Engagement club advisor.
Meal Expenses: NYU has a hard limit on meal expenses of $75 per person for all meals. Extravagant officer dinners will not be reimbursed. If you have a question of what is extravagant, please consult your club's advisor. NYU will only reimburse up to 20% tip on the pre-tax total for meals.	The person who paid for the dinner will be responsible to cover the amount that is deemed "extravagant." Reimbursement will not include tip over 20% of the pre-tax total.
Alcohol Expenses: Under NYU Stern Policy, shots will not be reimbursed. Alcohol amounts must always be fully itemized on the receipt to be eligible for reimbursement.	The money will not be reimbursed to the student who covered the charge.
Gift Policy for Speakers/Event Judges/ Faculty: Gift cards should not be purchased as gifts for speakers, event judges, or faculty as they require the NYU ID# (for NYU students) or social security number (for non-NYU students). Students are not allowed to pay fees for speakers for club events, as this is an NYU Stern policy. This includes honorariums. Reimbursement for a speaker's travel expenses will be considered by OSE on a case-by-case basis. Instead, we recommend charitable donations on behalf of the speaker, branded club items, and ‘thank you’ notes.	The money will not be reimbursed to the student who purchased the items.
Gift Policy for Club Officers: Gifts for officers should be reviewed with your club advisor prior to purchase to ensure that they are appropriate. Extravagant gifts for club officers will not be reimbursed. Gift cards should not be purchased as gifts as they require the NYU ID# (for NYU students) or social security number (for non-NYU students).	The money will not be reimbursed to the student who purchased the items.
Third Party Payments: Never pay a third party individual for services (eg. DJ, workshop facilitator etc.). Payments to individuals for services count as taxable income for the individual and documentation will be complicated and would require the sharing of a W-9 due to IRS requirements on top of the regular invoice.	An exception will have to be requested to reimburse this, and documentation is extensive in order to approve. Exception requests are not guaranteed approval, and without approval, the funds will not be released.
Frequent Flyer Miles or Gift Card Balances: NYU will not reimburse frequent flyer miles or gift card balances.	The money will not be reimbursed to the student who purchased the items.
Credit Card Interest: Students will not be reimbursed for credit card interest on expenses.	Reimbursement will not include interest amount.
Donations: All donations must be processed as a purchase order via NYU Procurement. Reach out to OSE first for approval and instructions.	Students cannot be reimbursed for individual donations.
Insufficient Funds in Club Account: Clubs or Block Groups with insufficient funds will not receive payment/reimbursement.	The money will not be reimbursed to the student who purchased the items.
Reimbursement Timeline: Reimbursements can only be submitted after the event has passed. Reimbursements must be submitted within 30 days of the event, and then documents uploaded to the provided reimbursement link within 2 weeks in order to be processed. Note that reimbursements after approval can take 2-3 weeks before the funds are released by the Bursar's Office. Ensure any student covering club expenses is aware and prepared for the reimbursement timeline. See the Reimbursement Guide for further information.	Late reimbursement requests will require exception be requested. Early reimbursements will not be processed. Accounts Payable reserves the right to reject any exception request.