Financial Services Operations

For Departments

Departments at Brown involved in requesting cash, accepting payments, or making deposits must follow University-established procedures and policies to ensure both compliance and efficient processing.

Bank of America/Brinks Supplies

Please use the Banking/Brinks Supply Order form to submit requests for supplies needed for banking or Brinks items. The Financial Services Operations / Cashier team will place the order accordingly and notify you upon receipt. Total costs will be charged to the department according to the worktags provided. Please note that orders can take up to 2-3 weeks, please plan accordingly.

Cash & Check Handling Policy

Written authorization from Financial Services is required before a department can accept cash or check payments. The Cashier's Office will work individually with departments to ensure proper cash controls. All departments must follow University cash and check handling policies.

Cash Request Procedures

Each department must complete and return a cash request form to request cash. The form must contain the date, departmental name, department contact, phone, address for funds to be delivered to, denomination, accounting code, accounting description and authorized signature.

Cash Ordering Guidelines: Plan Ahead for Your Needs

To ensure your department always has the necessary cash, please review the following ordering guidelines.

Order Placement:

All cash orders must be placed a minimum of 5 business days in advance of your requested pick-up date. This allows Financial Services time to process your request, receive the delivery, and prepare your order for collection.

  • Example: If you need cash ready for pick-up on a Wednesday, you should place your order by the previous Wednesday. (This accounts for Thursday, Friday, Monday, and Tuesday as the four full business days in between, plus the order day itself making it the fifth).
Important Considerations:
  • Timely Pick-Up: Financial Services Cashier Office will notify you when your order is ready for pick-up. While we aim for prompt processing, please understand that sometimes there may be bank or armored car delays, as well as cash deliveries may arrive late in the day, so your order may not be ready for same-day pick-up on the day our office receives it or the cash may not arrive within the 5 business days.
  • Plan for Peak Periods: During high-demand times (e.g., commencement, reunion weekend, fiscal and calendar year-end, semester start weeks), order volume is significantly higher. We strongly recommend placing orders even further in advance during these periods to avoid any potential shortages or delays.
  • Holidays Impact: University holidays will affect the 5-business-day lead time. Always account for holidays when placing your order, as they may extend the required notice period.

Cash Request Form

Credit Card & E-commerce Polices & Procedures

Accepting and Handling Payment Cards to Conduct University Business Policy applies to any department associated with the University that conducts business through payment card (credit and/or debit) transactions or is responsible for developing and maintaining a University website to conduct business transactions using payment cards.

Customer Account Receivables

All University departments that provide goods and/or services to customers and invoice for goods/services, are required to utilize the central system Workday. This process is referred to as Customer Accounts Receivable.

Departmental Deposits

Each departmental deposit must be submitted with a departmental deposit form to the Cashier's Office for processing.

  • All information must be completed on the form in order to ensure accurate and timely processing. 
  • Please review the Controller's Office General Accounting page for assistance with valid worktags.

Departmental Deposit Form

Gift Accounting

Any department that receives a gift, donation or pledge must submit cash, checks or credit card receipts to the Cashier's Office for processing. Please send gift deposits with a gift deposit form. 

Gift Deposit Form

Petty Cash

Reference the University Petty Cash Policy for details on replenishing a petty casy fund at the Cashier's Office.