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Billable Per Unit Guidance

Billable Per Unit (BPU) projects are defined as contracts that provide for an indefinite quantity of supplies or services rendered during a fixed period, not to exceed a funding ceiling (“up to” amount) or a price per supply/service (“per unit” amount), as specified in the agreement. The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) will determine if a project qualifies as a BPU project.

New Processes

BPU projects will be set up with a Ledger six PS Project ID number (6xxxxxx). In the RAMSeS Billing Tab, a checkbox field “Billable Per Unit (BPU)” has been added and if checked, will also define that project as a BPU.

The key reminder on billing for BPU projects is that departments are responsible for invoicing throughout the project period at intervals as defined in the agreement. Departments will need to establish their own processes for handling BPU projects – recommendations and resources are below:

Invoicing on a BPU Project:

  • Review the agreement and identify payment terms
  • Register and maintain any sponsor portal credentials, when applicable
  • Create an invoice – use the OSP Invoice Template (Excel) if the sponsor does not have a required template
  • Submit the invoice to the sponsor per their required method
  • Follow-up with the sponsor as needed for late payments
  • Receive and remit payment to OSP using the OSP Deposit Memo (Excel)
  • Confirm payment application to the BPU project*

* Payments are allocated to the project budget in the month after the deposit has posted. For example, if the deposit posts in January, the funds will reflect in the budget in February.

Succeeding with BPU Project Billing
  • Read and re-read the agreement. Most invoicing and billing questions are answered in the agreement. You must invoice based on the Sponsor’s requirements in order to receive payments.
  • Establish protocols for invoicing within the department. This involves sending out invoices at certain times each month. A good rule of thumb is within 30 days of providing the service though the sponsor’s specific terms will supersede this guideline. The sooner and with regularity that you send invoices, the likelihood of prompt payments from sponsors.
  • Make use of the invoicing template (Excel) if able, as it helps ensure all necessary information is included.
  • When you receive a payment, it needs to be sent, with the deposit memo (Excel), to OSP following the instructions on the deposit memo. You should not submit payments to the Office of Clinical Trials (OCT) or any other central office.

Note: existing BPU projects will remain on their current PS Project ID and will not move to ledger 6.

For invoicing questions after project set-up, contact OSPBilling@unc.edu. For award management questions, contact SponsoredPrograms@unc.edu.

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