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 (Non-Resident)
Visa classifications permit a foreign national/non-resident to receive an honorarium. Refer to Visa Classification Chart for eligible visa types and documentation requirements.
UC Academic Employees
Payments to employees of the University of California must be submitted to Academic Personnel Office for processing. Payments to non-employees can be paid through 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).
