Purpose:

To provide guidance to departments who have new tenured and tenure-track faculty hires and need to process their relocation payment.

Relevant Definitions:

Relocation Payment: A stipend given to incoming TTT faculty to help defray the expenses of moving to Austin; one of the standard commitments made to an incoming faculty hire.

  • This payment is considered taxable income by the Federal government.

Standard Rates in COLA:

  • Calculated using the faculty candidate's primary home address (pre-move): 
  • For Individuals Living in the Continental U.S.:
    • Assistant or Associate Professors: $6.00/mile; $4,000 minimum
    • Professors: $7.00/mile; $5,000 minimum
  • For AK/HI/U.S. Territories/International Moves:
    • Negotiated on an individual basis in consultation with the Dean's Office
  • Dual-Career Hires, if both hires are incoming COLA TTT Faculty:
    • Calculated at 1.5 times the rate of the highest-rank faculty member; payments are then split equally between the two faculty members.
  • Departments have the option of supplementing the standard college rates with departmental funds.
  • Faculty who rescind their decision to come to UT after receiving a relocation payment are required to repay those funds in full.
  • The relocation payment amount should be recorded in the Offers Database, the PAR (section 2), and the offer letter itself.

TTT faculty: tenured (Associate Professor or Professor) or tenure-track (Instructor or Assistant Professor) faculty

Process:

  1. To figure out the payment amount, enter the faculty candidate's home address into Google Maps as the starting location, and then enter "The University of Texas at Austin" as the destination. Google will calculate the distance in miles between the two locations. Save that screenshot/web page as a PDF for your documentation.
    1. Use the relevant rate to calculate, as defined above. Ex. Boston, MA to UT Austin = ~1,961mi. x $6 (for Asst or Assoc) = $11,766
    2. Follow the instructions for the Offers Database and PAR (section 2) to record the amount as part of the faculty recruitment process.
  2. The TTT offer letter will detail the amount being paid to the faculty member for relocation, and will typically name an individual in the department with whom the new hire should be in contact to initiate the payment. 
  3. There are 2 ways to process the relocation payment:
    1. Easiest: Process a One-Time Payment in Workday. 
      1. You will need to wait until the PAR has been Accepted by the Provost Office, it has loaded into Workday, and the new hire has begun their onboarding to process this.
      2. Attach the fully-signed offer letter to your One-Time Payment (OTP) business process (BP); add comments to your BP indicating that it is a new faculty hire relocation stipend being paid per the offer letter, including the amount of the stipend, the account number 1916004623, and any other comment to help the approvers. 
        1. For these payments, please add Maria Morinigo (mem8624) at the Add Approver step.
    2. If the new hire would like the funds ASAP/in advance of hire: Process a VP2:
      1. If the new hire does not already have a vendor ID in UT's system, they will need to complete the Payee Information Form. (For more information about UT business processes, see Business Affairs.)
      2. Note: In addition to the PIF, the future employee will need to complete their I-9 in order to receive a relocation payment in advance of employment.
      3. Invoice number: OFFER LETTER
      4. Object code: 1280
      5. Account number for COLA/UT-paid relocation funds: 1916004623
      6. Add these voucher comments: "Per offer letter, moving expenses for new faculty." 
        1. Explain any funding from department, if applicable, and provide the total amount of funding.
        2. If the departmental funds are on another voucher, please include that VP2 Doc ID for reference.
      7. Attach the fully-signed offer letter to the voucher.
      8. FYA the completed VP2 to LAMEM (Maria Morinigo).
  4. IMPORTANT: Please be sure to remind the new hire that the payroll taxes for the relocation payment will be deducted from their first UT paycheck, and not the lump-sum payment itself. 

 

Policy:

Relocation Expenses (UT Handbook of Business Procedures)

Other Links:

Faculty Hiring and Onboarding (wiki)

COLA Offers Database (wiki)

Academic Personnel Services and Faculty Affairs Resources (including Offer Letter templates)

AskUs Video on Using the Correct Effective Date for your One-Time Payment Request

Confluence Documentation | Web Privacy Policy | Web Accessibility