Ensuring project costs are eligible

To prepare for financial reports and audits, Award Services gather and review documents from UCL systems and departments, including inter-departmental transfers (IDTs) and intra-departmental journals (IDJs).

A recent KPMG audit of research income management at UCL highlighted that costs are being charged to projects that were ineligible. If we are unable to provide the required evidence for project expenditure, the costs will be disallowed by the funder. Departments would need to meet any disallowed costs from their budgets.

How to ensure costs are eligible

Charging expenditure

Internal transfers need to be documented in the same way as other expenditure to show compliance with funding agreements and UCL’s financial regulations. Principal Investigators (PIs) and departments should ensure that any costs are charged during the lifetime of the project and meet any funder and UCL requirements.

From 29 November 2024, attachments at the header level will be required for all IDT and IDJ transactions to ensure the necessary documentation is available for future audits. When raising an IDT or IDJ, PIs and departments need to ensure they attach full auditable evidence with a clear breakdown and description of the costs at the time of processing, so they can be assessed for eligibility by our Award Services team.

PIs and departments should also make sure that all chargeable costs are included before final billing.

Completing timesheets

Time recording is another key area covered during audit checks. If we are unable to provide fully completed and authorised timesheets to support staff costs, the entire amount claimed for that employee may be declared ineligible. 

Departments should ensure properly completed timesheets are sent via email to their designated Post-Award Research Finance Administrator every 3 months from the start of the project.

Conducting regular checks

As the approvers for expenditure to grants, departments should conduct regular checks during the lifetime of awards to ensure costs being charged to grants are eligible and include the necessary documentation. Our Award Services Post-Award team will also conduct more health spot checks on awards to review grant expenditure and identify any ineligible spend.

Where can I find further information?

Our Financial management page offers detailed guidance on charging expenditure to research and innovation projects. You can also find timesheet guidance and templates on our staff timesheet requirements page.

For information on the steps you need to take once your project has ended, visit our Completing and closing your award page.

Who can I contact for support?

If you have any questions about audit processes or the financial management of your research project get in touch with your designated RIS Post-Award contact for advice.