Finance

means:

1. cash owed to a Government department or public agency from the time the debt is incurred until the due date for receipt of payment, which is 30 calendar days past the invoice date; or,
2. a cash debt owed to a Government department or public agency by the recipient of an accountable cash advance forwhich the required accounting has not been received as of the due date. (Unaccounted-for cash has not been returned as required, and the unaccountedfor amount has been reversed out of recorded expense and rerecorded as an account receivable).

Responsible Government departments and public agencies shall collect all receivables and overdue receivables promptly, efficiently, and in a thoroughly accountable manner. Unless directed otherwise within this 3100 series of policies departments and regional Finance offices shall transfer the collection responsibility immediately to the Financial Reporting and Collections Section, Finance, for the collection of:

1. any delinquent account receivable; and,
2. any receivable, that is owed by a debtor who has begun bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings.
3. documentation required to pursue collection and all recorded action taken to date.

For detailed direction on the above, refer to FAM 3103, Departmental and Public Agency Responsibility for Collection of Receivables.

The Financial Reporting and Collections Section, Finance, shall pursue vigorously the collection of delinquent accounts receivable transferred to them, unless:

the Comptroller General orders otherwise or,

the Deputy Minister of the department or Chief Executive Officer of the public agency requests reduced or suspended collection efforts in writing and the Comptroller General grants the request. Only the Comptroller General may grant that collection efforts be reduced or suspended and only if collection is likely to cause or compound personal financial hardship or the cost of collection exceeds the debt

Financial Reporting and Collections, Finance, shall ensure that appropriate steps are taken in relation to the collection of delinquent accounts receivable, selecting from the following list and considering subsections 4.4 and 4.5 below;

1. small claims court action for amounts of $10,000 or less;
2. legal action for amounts over $10,000;
3. a request for Comptroller General approval for the set-off of any money payable to the debtor by any Government department or public agency (see 4.6 below);
4. payroll deduction(s) if the debtor is an employee in accordance with the Collective Agreement provisions and FAM 2102, Accountable Advances (see also FAM 3103);
5. collection through the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Refund Setoff Program (see FAM 3104, Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Refund Setoff Program);
6. a recommendation of write-off or forgiveness of the debt (see FAM 2702, Write-off, Forgiveness, and Remission).

The Comptroller General may retain money by way of deduction or set-off out of any money payable to a person by the Government in accordance with the FAA s.22.

(Refer also to Directive Series 3105, Set-offs, Third Party Demands, and Assignments, and to FAM 3104, Collection through the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Refund Setoff Program).

Delinquent accounts receivable must be collected in the following descending order of priority and the proceeds must be applied in the same order.

1. Student loans
2. General debt, including mortgages and property leases
3. Property taxes

Payments received must be applied first to the oldest invoice in the first priority, then to the next oldest, etc., until the debt in that invoice or category is satisfied or the payment received is completely applied, and then to the oldest invoice in the second priority, etc.