Payments for Services to International Guests

This guide describes how to issue a payment for services (such as a guest speaker payment) to an international guest when services were performed within the United States. Review Completing the Tax Information Section for guidance on determining location of performance for services rendered online.

Click a button below to learn about that part of the process.

• Before the guest is invited
• Before the guest arrives
• During the visit
• After the visit

Before the guest is invited

• Consult the Office of International Services for resources and help determining which visa status is most appropriate for your guest. Be aware that there may be extended processing times if a visa is needed.
  • For general guidance on hiring and hosting a guest, visit Hiring and hosting international faculty, staff, and visitors.
  • For specific guidance on visitor visa types, visit Short-term visits to IU.

Before the guest arrives

• Search for the guest in BUY.IU. If they have an active supplier record, ensure the registration type is Profile 2 or Individual.
  • No record? Submit a new supplier request form.
  • Inactive or Profile 3 type record? Submit a Supplier Edit Request Form.
  • Review supplier record for their preferred currency. Foreign suppliers can be paid in US Dollars (USD) or a foreign currency. Currency is selected by the supplier during the supplier registration process.
• Is the supplier being paid $5,000 US Dollars or more? Submit a Contract Request Form in BUY.IU. International contracts require considerable processing time, so begin the contract process as soon as possible.
• Determine how the supplier will be paid. Payments are processed in BUY.IU via non-catalog order or check request form.
  • Use a non-catalog order when: your order involves a contract, or you are issuing multiple payments to the supplier. Submit the non-catalog order prior to the supplier’s visit. Additional instructions for completing non-catalog orders can be found at the Non-Catalog Order Resource Center.
  • Use a check request when: you are issuing a one-time payment that is less than $5,000 US Dollars and does not require a contract. Generally, check requests are submitted after the supplier’s visit.
• Make the supplier aware that their payment is subject to U.S. taxes. This means that the net payment amount they receive may be less than the agreed upon amount. International guests can file a US tax return to receive a potential refund for the tax withholding. Encourage your guest to review the Tax Treaty Benefits page to see if they may be able to apply for tax treaty benefits. If they are, they will be required to complete the International Tax Questionnaire via the Foreign National Information System (FNIS). This process is initiated and managed by University Tax Services.
• Within your department, discuss whether you will “gross up” the payment(s) to cover any applicable taxes. Use the NRA Calculator to determine the additional expense to your department, should you pursue this.

During the visit

An international guest being paid for services performed within the U.S. must provide documentation proving they had a right to enter the county. This documentation is submitted to University Tax Services by the hosting department.

• Collect one of the following documents:
  • Passport with Admission stamp.
  • I-94 Website printout. An international guest can visit CBP online I-94 to retrieve a copy of their most recent Form I-94.
  • Form I-94A card.
  • Global Entry I-94.

• Complete the International Tax Coversheet.
• Passports, I-94 cards, and the Tax Coversheet for International Guests contain critical data and should never be emailed. Instead, upload these documents to the Tax Immigration Document Uploader. You must be connected to the IU VPN to access the upload tool.
  • Securely store this documentation until the BUY.IU invoice document has a Pay Status of “Paid” then securely destroy the documents.
• If you are issuing your payment via check request and you are using a payee certification, collect a signed copy of the Payee Certification Form from the visitor.

After the visit

If you are paying an international guest via check request, you can now submit your check request form. Review the Honoraria/Guest Speaker Check Request page for additional guidance on guest speaker check requests.

If you are paying an international guest via non-catalog order the guest must submit an invoice to receive payment. Provide the guest with the PO number for their payment. Double-check the currency of the PO and remind the guest that their invoice must be submitted in the same currency.

After the check request requisition is approved, or the supplier submits an invoice, an invoice document in BUY.IU, which starts with the characters “SI” routes for approval.

The image to the right displays an example invoice workflow. The action required at each step is described below. You may see all or only some of these workflow stops, depending on the details of your payment situation.

1. Hold for Receiving: Payments entered in foreign currency stop at this workflow stop. Any payment made in a foreign currency, regardless of value, requires a receipt. Visit the When is Receiving Required? page to learn more.
2. FO Treaty Check: An invoice routes to FO Treaty Check if the “gross up?” question in the Tax Information section of the order was left blank. An approver should log a comment on the invoice verifying whether the payment should be grossed up.
3. Tax Review-Initial: The payment is reviewed by Accounts Payable staff and back office fields are updated.
4. Tax Review-Foreign Supplier: Here, University Tax Services reviews the Tax Immigration Document Uploader and verifies that the necessary immigration documentation was submitted. The Tax team will contact the invoice owner via the comments with questions about uploaded documentation or how the Tax Information section of the requisition was completed.
5. Treasury Review: Payments entered in foreign currency stop at this workflow stop. Here, Treasury Operations staff access wire transfer details on the supplier record and manually initiates payment.

When workflow is complete, the invoice reaches Complete status. The document’s status is found at the top of the workflow pane on the right-hand side of the document.

Review the Locate BUY.IU Payment Details page to learn how to find payment details like the check number.

Once you have confirmed the supplier has received their payment, securely dispose of Tax Immigration documentation copies.