General Overview
The Illinois Office of the Comptroller offers vendors who provide goods and services to the State of Illinois a more efficient and secure method of receiving their payments through an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Direct Deposit system. Direct Deposit payments bypass the printing and mailing procedures and are transmitted electronically to the vendor's financial institution for posting to their accounts. Generally, payments made via Direct Deposit take two banking days to be debited to the account specified.
To sign-up for Direct Deposit or make changes to an account, please contact the Electronic Commerce Department at (217) 557-0930.
Eligibility
Individuals or companies who have received at least one commercial payment from the State of Illinois within one of the three most recent fiscal years are eligible for Direct Deposit. Vendors must be able to receive all payments issued by the State to the same Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) in one bank account. Those vendors who may not be able to meet these criteria but not be assessed any processing fees are free to submit a Direct Deposit hardship petition.
Enrollment
Begin the enrollment process by contacting the Comptroller's Electronic Commerce Division at (217) 557-0930. A representative will send you an “Authorization for Direct Deposit of Payments” form. Completed forms should be mailed to:
Illinois Office of the Comptroller
ATTN: Electronic Commerce
325 West Adams Street
Springfield, IL 62704
Only original signed documents will be accepted. For the security of our vendors, submissions made by email, facsimile, or any other electronic format will not be accepted. Copies of completed forms are not acceptable submissions.
Every authorization form must be accompanied by at least one of the following:
- A voided check from the account specified on the authorization form. Neither deposit slips nor starter checks are acceptable. Or;
- An identity verification letter. This document can be obtained from the payee’s financial institution. This letter should be printed on the financial institution’s letterhead and signed by an authorized bank representative. The contents of the letter should include the name on the account, the account’s routing number, and the account number.
Remittance Information
Because payments are transferred instead of printed, there is no hardcopy remittance advice. That is unless vendors that receive Explanation of Benefits (EOB) statements will continue to do so as they are prepared and distributed outside of the Office of the Comptroller. Payees on Direct Deposit can receive remittance information through four different mediums:
Enhanced Vendor Remittance
Enhanced Vendor Remittance (EVR) is the most comprehensive and customizable way for vendors to receive their payment information while on Direct Deposit. It not only contains all of the remittance information the Office of the Comptroller has on file for each individual payment, but it also gives users the option of receiving payment notifications through email or text message. Further, any vendor that would like to view limited payment information through the ILPays mobile app for Apple iOS and Android devices must have an EVR account. Click here to learn more about how EVR works, log in, or register for an account.
Vendor Payments
Any remittance information not marked as confidential by the paying agency nor the Office of the Comptroller can be accessed through the Vendor Payments system. For more information on how to use this system, please click here.
Corporate Trade Exchange (CTX)
Each payment issued by the Comptroller through Direct Deposit is accompanied by a Corporate Trade Exchange (CTX) file that contains multiple addenda records. This allows payees to receive remittance information through their financial institution whether it be on a bank statement or an online bank account. Vendors hoping to make use of these files should contact their financial institution for more information.
CTX is a National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA) standard. Addenda records are formatted in an ANSI X.12 820 Remittance Standard and are delivered through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network, along with the payment to the financial institution designated by the vendor. If you require notification of payment receipt and addenda detail, contact the financial institution to establish how you will be notified. It is the financial institution's responsibility to provide you with this information. Effective September 18, 1998, NACHA rules require financial institutions to provide the information contained in the CTX addenda records within 48 hours to any customer who requests them.
Using Direct Deposit to Avoid Processing Fees
Pursuant to Section 9.03 of the State Comptroller Act, vendors may be assessed a $2.50 processing fee per paper check once they have been issued more than 30 paper checks in the same fiscal year from the same state agency. To prepare vendors for this change, the Office of the Comptroller is incrementally decreasing the number of paper checks state vendors may receive without being assessed the $2.50 processing fee. At this time, vendors are not subjected to the processing fee until they have received at least 100 paper checks in one fiscal year from the same state agency. Effective June 1, 2014, state vendors that receive at least 75 paper checks in a fiscal year from the same agency will be assessed the $2.50 processing fee for each subsequent paper check. Notice of further threshold reductions will be made via messages on state check stubs.