Effective March 20, 2023, the stated guidelines are applicable to individuals who have been invited for one of the eligible activities on or after this date.
Overview: Reference UC Policy D-371-35
An honorarium is a payment to an individual in recognition of a special or distinguished service for which propriety precludes setting a fixed cost.
Eligible Activities
Individuals of scholarly or professional standing invited for the following UC Merced academic activities are eligible to receive an honorarium:
- Guest speaker.
- A special lecture, short series of special lectures.
- Conduct seminars or workshops of no more than 2 weeks.
- Musical demonstration related to Music Department instruction.
- Appraisal of a manuscript for the University Press or an article submitted to a professional publication.
Foreign National (Nonresident)
Certain visa classifications permit a foreign national (nonresident) to receive an honorarium. Please refer to the Visa Classification Chart for a list of eligible visa types and documentation requirements.
UC Employees
Payments to University of California employees must be submitted to the Academic Personnel Office for processing. Non-Employee payments are processed by Accounts Payable via the Non-PO Payment Request process.
Allowable Amount
Honorarium payment must be limited to $2,500 per calendar year (The Internal Revenue Service requires all payments of $600 or greater in a calendar year to be reported as income to the individual via IRS Form 1099 NEC; see IRS Publications 1141, 1167, and 1179 for more information on the taxability of individual income greater than $600). Non-resident payees performing services in California will have 7% of their total payments withheld for state income taxes if the total payments exceed $1,500 during the calendar year.
Requests exceeding $2,500 will not be processed as an honorarium payment but will be submitted to Procurement to have an executed Service Agreement completed.
Documentation Requirements
- Supplier setup: If this is the first time processing payment to the recipient, the individual will need to be set up as a supplier in Oracle via the New Vendor Setup ticket.
- Completion of the Payment Request Form
- Confirmation that the UC Merced Honorarium letter was completed and emailed to the invited guest.
- Completion of the Speaker/Performer Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk, and Indemnity Agreement.
- Note: If services are provided virtually from a non-UC location, completion of this waiver is not required.
- Syllabus or flyer of the event.
- Submit a request to Accounts Payable via Service Now .
- Note: Only attach one pdf-file per service ticket and must include documents noted above.
Funding Restrictions
Generally, honorarium payments are not allowed to be made with federal funds unless a contract or grant specifically authorizes such payments. State funds may be used to pay honoraria to individuals not employed by the University (e.g., outside speakers).
Authorization to Approve
Non-grant Funds: Only an individual with the delegated authority listed on the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) list may approve the payment request form.
Grant Funds: Research Administrators (RA).
