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Finance & Administration

University Credit Card Programs

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Texas Christian University provides employees with two types of physical University Credit Cards for purchasing business-related expenses: the Purchasing Credit Card (PCard) and the Travel Credit Card.

Purchasing Credit Card

The TCU Purchasing Credit Card (PCard) is issued to eligible faculty and staff for the efficient and cost-effective purchase of tangible goods under $2,500, supporting streamlined payment processes for low-dollar, infrequent business expenses. Allowable uses include items such as instructional or lab supplies, event materials, uniforms, subscriptions, and other tangible goods when travel is not associated. The PCard may not be used for travel or entertainment expenses, food, or invoice payments. The purchase of services is not permitted on a University Credit Card.

Travel Credit Card

The Travel Credit Card is issued to eligible faculty and staff to facilitate the purchase of University related business travel and entertainment expenses. This card type is designed to for the purchase of travel and entertainment-related expenses, such as conference registrations, food, and lodging. The purchase of services is not permitted on a University Credit Card. Hotel deposits are only permitted on Travel Cards for non-group travel arrangements.

University AirCard

The University AirCard is available to all employees through Concur and TCU’s dedicated travel agency, Anthony Travel, for the purchase of airfare. The AirCard is the preferred method for booking airfare, as it does not impact a cardholder’s available balance on their travel card. Cardholders may select the AirCard as the payment method when booking flights in Concur, or request its use when booking through Anthony Travel.

Relevant Policies

Concur Guides for Card Requests

Frequently Asked Questions

The general steps to obtaining a new University Card when you have never had one:

  1. Review and complete the University Credit Card Training
  2. Review and sign the Cardholder Responsibility agreement.
  3. Complete and submit a Concur request for the appropriate card type, attaching your signed agreement. How To Guide 
  4. Complete the emailed JPMorgan side application link that is emailed to you
  5. Receive and activate your card according to instructions provided.

Turn around time is typically 2 weeks from submission of your Concur request, to receiving your card in hand.

FAQs Purchasing vs Travel - covers common differentiations between the two card types.
FAQs AirCard - covers the usage of only the AirCard.
FAQs University Cards - A general FAQ guide that covers some of the items below.

Purchasing Guide - an abbreviate set of slides from the cardholder training covering allowable, restricted and prohibited purchases.

An MCC is a Merchant Category Code, and it provides the bank with information on what type of business is conducting the transaction. The MCC is dictated by the business, not the items being purchased. If a merchant uses an MCC that restricted for your card type, the transaction will be declined. If your purchase is within university purchasing guidelines, you may submit an MCC Change Request in Concur and retry your purchase once the request has been processed.

Common phrases and terminology used to indicate a transaction is declined due to the merchant's MCC include: "not an approved/authorized vendor," "using a restricted MCC," "blocked merchant category," "merchant type not allowed," "transaction declined by issuer," and "card not authorized for this purchase."

Always call JP Morgan first, anytime your card declines, to determine the reason.

Card Declines: JP Morgan via the number on the back of your card
Issues with Card Requests in Concur: Card Program Administrator, or concur@tcu.edu
Questions about Expense Reports: Concur Team via concur@tcu.edu
University Card Questions: Card Program Administrator, or concur@tcu.edu 

If a purchase is declined, always contact JP Morgan first using the number on the back of your card to obtain accurate, up-to-date information. They can help you review recent transactions for suspected fraud, confirm your available balance, and explain the reason for a decline. To avoid issues, anticipate purchases when possible and monitor your spending to stay within your monthly limit.

If additional spending power is needed, submit a temporary limit increase request in Concur.

If your card declined due to an MCC, submit an MCC request in Concur. For conference registrations or travel, submitting an MCC request in advance can help prevent declines with merchants you haven’t used before.

All University Cards have a billing address of TCU Box 297041, Fort Worth, Texas, 76129.

If a vendor's platform does not accept this format, try 297041 TCU Box. If that does not work, contact the vendor for issues with their platform.

Aging transactions are transactions on your Concur profile that are:

  1. Older than 30 days and not in a report
  2. In a travel report that is more than 30 days past the conclusion of the trip (Travel Card ONLY)
  3. In a non-travel report that is not approved by the 7th day of the following month

These transactions require your immediate attention to assign them to a report that is appropriately dated, and to submit the completed report if it is past due.

  • Individual travel: Hotel deposits are permitted for non-group travel.
  • Student group travel: Requires a contract. Hotel deposits are not permitted on a University Card; hotels must be arranged for direct billing with enough time for payment processing.
  • Services: Not permitted on a University Card. This includes deposits for catering, setup services, and other service-related expenses. Services must be arranged through Contracts and a Service Purchase Order.

TCU has a handshake agreement with the Overton Ridge Costco.

Bring your University Card to Costco and present it at the door/register as your membership card. You do NOT need to purchase a membership. Purchase Orders for Costco have been phased out due to confusion at the register. Sam's Club is being phased out, as their online ordering does not always support the proper TCU University Card billing address format.

If you encounter issues, please email Procurement@tcu.edu or Concur@tcu.edu.

The E for entertainment in T&E grants access to a very small collection of additional MCCs, specific to entertainment venues, such as golf courses and museums.  A standard travel card is sufficient in most cases, and does not prohibit the purchases at restaurants and grocery stores for internal or external entertainment. When applying for a T&E card, you must select one of the justifications provided under "T&E Business Justification" in Concur in order to be eligible for a Travel & Entertainment. If none of those situations apply, please request a standard travel card.