GENERAL

3. An individual to whom an accountable advance is issued is personally responsible and accountable for that advance and any loss or shortage in respect of that advance may be recovered from that individual.

ISSUING OF ADVANCES

4. A deputy head may issue an accountable advance

• (a) to a person

  • (i) as a travel, relocation or posting advance where that person is entitled to such an advance pursuant to a contract, a collective agreement or a Treasury Board directive,

  • (ii) for the purpose of establishing a deposit account where a contract or the customary terms of trade require prepayment for goods or services,

  • (iii) for the purpose of establishing a change fund,

  • (iv) for the purpose of establishing a petty cash or other imprest fund,

  • (v) for the purpose of funding a departmental bank account established pursuant to Part III of the Cheque Issue Regulations, or

  • (vi) for any other purpose where payment has to be made by that person on the receipt of goods or on the rendering of a service and the usual payment facilities are not immediately available or their use would be impractical; and

• (b) to an employee as an emergency salary advance where the issuing of such an advance is otherwise authorized or required by statute, by a collective agreement or by a Treasury Board directive.

5. An accountable advance issued under these Regulations

• (a) pursuant to paragraph 4(a)(i) or (vi) shall not be issued as a standing advance unless the person to whom the advance is issued is required to incur expenditures or make payments or disbursements in respect thereof on a continuing basis;

• (b) shall not be issued for any type of payment owing on the termination of employment;

• (c) for a specific purpose shall not exceed the amount required to cover the expenditures that can reasonably be expected to be made for that purpose;

• (d) as a standing advance shall not exceed the amount required for expenditures expected to be made from the advance within a fixed period determined on the basis of operational requirements and the turnover of the advance; and

• (e) for the purpose of establishing a petty cash fund shall not exceed $2000 and no single expenditure from that fund shall exceed $200 without the prior approval of the Treasury Board.

ACCOUNTING FOR ADVANCES

• 6. (1) The deputy head shall establish and maintain records of all accountable advances issued by him and all expenditures made therefrom.

• (2) The records referred to in subsection (1) shall include a separate account receivable for every accountable advance and those accounts receivable shall be controlled by a control account maintained within the principal accounting system of the department.

• (3) Every standing advance shall be accounted for by the holder or custodian thereof not later than 10 working days after the end of any month in which expenditures are incurred or, where a standing advance has been used to establish a deposit account required by contract, in accordance with the terms of that contract, and every other accountable advance shall be accounted for not later than 10 working days after the purpose for which the advance was made is fulfilled

  • (a) in the case of an accountable advance issued for the purpose of establishing a petty cash or other imprest fund, by showing that the cash on hand or bank balance plus receipts or paid vouchers equals the amount of the advance; or

  • (b) in all other cases, by submitting receipts or vouchers covering the expenditures made from the advance where proof of payment is required for those expenditures under a Treasury Board directive.

• (4) The deputy head shall at the end of every fiscal year

  • (a) require every holder or custodian of a standing advance to provide, within 30 days after the end of the fiscal year, written confirmation of the amount of the advance and his continuing responsibility therefor; and

  • (b) provide to the Receiver General such reports and certificates in respect of all accountable advances as may be required for the purposes of the Public Accounts.