FAR 32.1107—Payment information.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 32.1107 addresses payment information that must be sent to the contractor when the Government issues an electronic funds transfer (EFT) payment. The section requires the payment or disbursing office to forward available payment information that is suitable for transmission as of the date the EFT instruction is released to the Federal Reserve System. In practical terms, this means the contractor should receive the payment details that exist at the time the EFT is initiated, such as information needed to identify the payment and reconcile it in the contractor’s records. The rule is designed to support timely payment notification, improve cash management, and help contractors match deposits to invoices or contract actions. It also reflects the operational reality that payment data must be based on what is available at the moment the EFT is sent, rather than on later changes or updates. Although brief, the provision is important because it ties the Government’s payment notification process to the timing of EFT transmission and helps reduce reconciliation problems for both parties.
Key Rules
Forward available payment data
The payment or disbursing office must send the contractor the payment information that is available. The rule does not require creation of new information; it requires forwarding what the Government already has and can transmit.
Use the EFT release date
The relevant point in time is the date the EFT instruction is released to the Federal Reserve System. Payment information is measured as of that date, so later changes do not control what must be forwarded under this section.
Transmit only suitable information
The information forwarded must be suitable for transmission. This means the payment office should send information in a form that can be communicated effectively and used by the contractor for payment identification and reconciliation.
Responsibilities
Payment or Disbursing Office
Forward to the contractor the available payment information that is suitable for transmission as of the date the EFT instruction is released to the Federal Reserve System.
Contractor
Receive and use the payment information to identify the EFT deposit, reconcile it to invoices or contract actions, and maintain accurate accounting records.
Practical Implications
Contractors should expect payment notification to reflect the information available when the EFT is initiated, not necessarily the final or corrected information that may appear later.
If payment details are incomplete or delayed, contractors may have trouble matching deposits to specific invoices, so internal reconciliation processes should be able to handle partial information.
Payment offices should ensure their systems and procedures can promptly forward EFT-related payment data in a usable format.
This section is narrow but operationally important: it supports cash application, audit trails, and dispute resolution over whether a payment was received and what it covered.
Official Regulatory Text
The payment or disbursing office shall forward to the contractor available payment information that is suitable for transmission as of the date of release of the EFT instruction to the Federal Reserve System.