Financial Resources

There are several ways to obtain goods or services at the Institute: using an MIT credit card (called the Procurement Card); submitting a purchase order using Buy-To-Pay (B2P); or submitting a Request for Payment (RFP) if you paid from personal funds (and would like to get reimbursed for the purchase).

MIT Procurement Card

This is the MIT credit card, also known as the ProCard, can be used when purchasing:

• Goods on a one-time or recurring basis-such as FedEx charges
• Purchases of $3,000 or less (not to exceed $15,000 per month)
• Equipment such as laptops, monitors, printers, and scientific materials that costs less than $1,000
  

For more information, please visit the MIT Procurement Card (ProCard) User’s Guide.

Buy-To-Pay (B2P)

MIT employees/students can use the Buy-To-Pay (B2P) system to purchase lab/office supplies and equipment from our partner vendors. Purchase orders will be generated.
 
To access B2P, go to Atlas and select Full Menu under the “Menu” bar on the left. Under the “Purchasing” and “Buying” categories, select “B2P @ MIT”. The preferred vendors will be listed on the right-hand side, under “Shop Online”. Click on the icon to place an order. To purchase products from vendors not listed in B2P, please click here to request a new supplier.
 
Please reference the B2P Superuser Guide and the Buy-to-Pay (B2P) Training Series for more information.

Request for payment (erfp)

RFP is used for reimbursing out of pocket expenses, payment of honorarium, registration fees, dues, and other items where a purchase order is not necessary. Please note that travel expenses are reimbursed through Concur, not through this form. Please find step-by-step instructions on how to submit an RFP through Atlas here. Refer to this webpage on the different G/L codes used on campus. Please note that sales tax is not reimbursable.

Students should reference the AeroAstro instructions for submitting Requests for Payments (RFPs).

the concur system

Concur, under Atlas, is MIT’s online travel booking and expense reporting tool. To access, select “Full Menu” and click on the “Purchasing” category. Under the “Travel” section, select “Travel Expenses and Booking (Concur)”.
 
For staff, to add yourself as a delegate for specific faculty members, you must email the Travel Office at travelsupport@mit.edu. Once you have access, you will be able to view expenses on their travel card and submit reports through their profile.
 
MIT travel card can be used for:

• Airfare and train tickets
• Hotel and conference registration fees
• Meals and other business expenses

Check with your program administrator or cardholder agreement prior to departure for limits on amounts and types of transactions. For more information on travel and expenses, please visit the VPF website.

the travel collaborative

MIT community members are encouraged to book their travel through The Travel Collaborative (TTC), a full-service travel agency. As MIT’s Preferred Travel Agency, TTC is able to provide special, negotiated rates on airfare, hotels, and ground transportation to MIT travelers.

Additionally, TTC is connected to Concur, MIT’s online travel booking and expense reporting tool that makes it easy to find the lowest available fares, track and report itineraries and expenses, and sign up for automatic travel alerts. When you reserve your flight using Concur, TTC will automatically issue you an electronic ticket. As a reminder, if you are using a departmental MIT Travel Card, you must book through TTC.

Please note that while MIT travelers always have the option of booking through agencies other than TTC, they will not receive MIT’s special rates.

useful travel resources

Staff and occasionally students may be asked to order food for department meetings and workshops. If you use the MIT Procard to place orders, please reference the tax form and MIT’s VPF website when requesting meals tax exemption. Please discuss any charges that are to be placed on research accounts with supervisors or financials officers in advance. Some frequently used vendors around MIT are: