PTA reimbursement form and policy

PTA reimbursement rules

Volunteers spend their own money on supplies all year. A simple, written policy keeps it fair and traceable, and it protects the treasurer as much as the volunteer. These rules work for a PTA, a school PTO or a booster club:

• Use the form for every request. Name, date, what was bought, budget line, amount, and the receipt or invoice. Requests come in on the form, not by text or a quick email.
• Pay only for spending that fits the budget or was approved in the minutes. Spending that isn't in the budget needs a vote, ideally before anyone spends. See PTA spending rules.
• Someone other than the person being paid approves it. If the treasurer is being reimbursed, another officer signs the check.
• Set a deadline for turning in receipts, such as 30 or 45 days after purchase, and put it in your bylaws or standing rules.
• Announce a year-end cut-off in spring, so requests don't trickle in after the books close.

PTA check request form vs. reimbursement form

The same form works two ways. The difference is timing:

Check requests keep volunteers from being out of pocket and make a sales tax exemption easier to use. Utah PTA's check request form is one example of a state PTA form. If your state PTA has its own, use theirs.

What a booster club reimbursement form should ask for

A good form, whatever your group calls it, has room for:

• The request type: reimbursement, check request, or online payment
• Who's asking, with a phone number or email
• Who to pay, and their address or the vendor's name
• What it's for, and the event or budget line
• The date it was approved in the minutes, if it isn't in the budget
• The amount before tax, the sales tax and the total
• A box to confirm the receipt or original invoice is attached
• Signatures: the requester and two approving officers, neither of them the payee
• For the treasurer: the check or confirmation number, the date paid, and "Paid" marked on the invoice

Marking the invoice "Paid" with the date and check number means the same bill can't be paid twice. See two signatures on every check for the rest of the payment rules.

Sales tax on reimbursed purchases

Some states let tax-exempt groups buy supplies without sales tax, and some don't. Where it's allowed, the group usually has to apply for a certificate, and the purchase usually has to be paid with the group's money: a group check, a group card, or an invoice the treasurer pays. A volunteer paying with their own card and getting paid back usually doesn't count.

PTA, PTO and booster club differences

• PTA units often have a state PTA form and rules about approvals. In California State PTA, for example, each bill is read out at a meeting and approved, so you write that meeting's date on the request.
• PTOs and booster clubs set their own policy. Write the receipt deadline and the two-approver rule into your bylaws or standing rules, so every volunteer sees the same rule.
• Everyone uses one form for every team, event and committee, so the treasurer report and the year-end review can trace each payment the same way.

Common mistakes

• Paying from a text message or a photo with no form.
• Approving your own reimbursement. Someone other than the payee approves it.
• Paying for spending nobody approved. If it isn't in the budget, it needs a vote.
• No deadline. Receipts from months ago make the books hard to close.
• Handing a volunteer the tax-exempt certificate for a personal purchase that will be reimbursed.