GPC Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the GPC Visa?
2. Does it cost anything to start a programme?
3. What do I have to do to start a GPC programme?
4. What help is available?
5.What if I want to start a Travel and Subsistence Programme?
6. Do I have to have a GPC Visa programme to start a T&S programme?
7. I am interested in T&S, but not right now, can I start a T&S programme later on?
8. What controls can you have with GPC Visa?
9. What is the difference between a GPC and VISA Purchasing Card?
10. Who provides the GPC?
11. Do we have to issue a tender for a GPC programme?
12. Where can you use GPC VISA Purchasing Cards?
13. What does MSC stand for?
14. What is meant by authorisation?
15. Does a GPC Visa provided by my employer affect my own personal credit status?
16. How do Suppliers become a Visa Merchant?
17. What does an integrated solution mean for a supplier?
18. Explain the different levels of transaction data that suppliers can provide
19. Should I advise my local VAT Office that I am using or accepting payments by GPC Visa?
20. How do I know if I would get benefits from using or accepting GPC Visa?
21. Are there any statistics about how many users and suppliers there are related to GPC and VISA Purchasing Cards?
22. How can I allocate card transactions into my Accounts or Costing system?
23. Can GPC Visa be used with our e-commerce order system?
24. How widely is the UK public sector using GPC Visa?
26. I keep seeing a figure of £28 mentioned as a saving figure - how is this calculated?
27. If I implement a GPC Visa programme does this mean staff redundancies?
28. Can the GPC Visa only be used for low value purchases?
29. Does the GPC Visa have a role in e-commerce?
30. I keep hearing the term of "back office software" - what is this?
31. What are Level 1, 2 and 3 transactions?
32. What restrictions are there in using my GPC Visa?
33. Should I run a pilot programme?
34. If we don't have the paper controls how can audit be satisfied?

1. What is the GPC Visa?

The GPC Visa is a branded Visa Purchasing Card provided to the UK public sector through a framework agreement between OGCbuying.solutions, Visa and six GPC Visa Banks. The GPC Visa agreement enables all UK public sector organisations, including Central Government, Local Government, NHS, Education, Emergency Services, Charities, NDPB's and others to benefit from a pre-negotiated contract that has been fully tendered through the OJEU process. The core service provides free cards and a competitive environment whereby all contracted GPC Visa Banks actively compete for each of the potential user organisation's business.

The GPC Visa is supported by OGCbuying.solutions through a dedicated helpdesk, a Payment Cards team, User Groups, personal account management and a wide range of other supporting activities. Becoming a GPC Visa user organisation opens the door to unrivalled support through the dedicated resources of OGCbuying.solutions, other public sector organisations such as NHS PASA, VISA and the six GPC Visa Banks.

2. Does it cost anything to start a programme?

No. The core service provision is free. A great strength of the GPC Visa programme is that the pre-negotiated GPC Visa contract requires the core service to be provided at no cost - including no annual card charge. The deal provides a comprehensive range of services and benefits covered by Government Terms & Conditions.

3. What do I have to do to start a GPC programme?

If you are at the very beginning of the process please navigate to the 'Getting Started' section of the www.ogc.gov.uk GPC website. If you are further on in the process, please view the range of GPC Visa Banks with whom you can choose to work. After selecting two or three of your preferred Banks, contact them to arrange a presentation and a meeting to discuss your requirements. You can then select the GPC Visa Bank that meets your particular requirements and sign an Organisational Agreement with them. Your chosen GPC Visa Bank will work with you to develop an implementation plan that meets your requirements and will assist with staff training.

4. What help is available?

You can get advice, guidance and assistance from your chosen GPC Visa Bank and OGCbuying.solutions. When you start a GPC Visa programme you will become a member of the GPC community where you will receive regular updates of GPC developments, different initiatives that are happening in the community, plus invites to User Groups, Working Groups, Workshops and other events.

5. What if I want to start a Travel and Subsistence Programme?

It is the same procedure as starting up a GPC Visa programme. Contact the GPC Visa Banks to arrange a presentation from them and a meeting to discuss your requirements. You can then select the Card Issuer that meets your requirements and sign an Organisational Agreement with them. Please note that you can also have a different card issuer for your GPC Visa & T&S programmes respectively.

6. Do I have to have a GPC Visa programme to start a T&S programme?

No. You can start up with either a GPC Visa programme or T&S programme.

7. I am interested in T&S, but not right now, can I start a T&S programme later on?

Yes. You can start your T&S programme at anytime. Just follow the process for starting your own programme, as above.

8. What controls can you have with GPC Visa?

There are a number of control features that you can utilise with the GPC Visa. These controls can be set around the specific requirements of individual Cardholder purchases - every supplier that can accept GPC Visa is allocated a Merchant Category Code (MCC). The MCCs are set up in groups (Merchant Category Groups). The GPC Visa allows you to block Merchant Category Groups enabling you to restrict the types of goods and services that individual Cardholder's can purchase. Best Practice for the GPC Visa recommends that you should try to minimise the number of blockings used, as the Management Information allows for high visibility of expenditure and transparency of transactions, allowing management by exception.

The GPC Visa allows you to pre-set the amount of money the Cardholder can spend on each single transaction, and the total amount they can spend in any monthly billing cycle. For example, if you only want the Cardholder to spend a maximum of £500 (including VAT) on any one transaction, then any attempt by the cardholder to purchase an item over £500 would be blocked by the system.
The GPC Visa allows you to control the total monthly spend of each individual Cardholder - the GPC Visa should be issued to the individuals that you wish to empower to purchase goods and services. This empowerment comes with accountability for their activities, supported by Management Information that provides details of every transaction. A clear audit trail exists for every user and all their transactions.

Many organisations maintain an Approved/Select List of Suppliers and Contractors. From these lists you can select those companies where you want to use your GPC Visa and make sure that they are recruited as Visa merchants at the level (Basic, Standard VAT Summary, or Enhanced VAT Line Item Detail) that you require. By instructing your Cardholders that they must use their GPC Visa with these selected suppliers, you can reduce rogue spend and contract leakage within your organisation. Compliance can be monitored through the Management Information provided by your GPC Visa Bank.

The type and format of Management Information you receive will depend on the GPC Visa Bank you have selected to provide you with your GPC Visa programme. These electronic files will contain information that allows scrutiny of transactions and identify Cardholders who have used their GPC Visa, what they purchased, the Merchants they have purchased from, and how much they have spent. This information will provide a clear audit trail to monitor GPC Visa use and help to ensure compliance with policies and procedures. Merchants that can offer VAT invoice data will provide you with VAT evidence reports, removing the need for invoices. Furthermore, you can expand on this information by purchasing software tools specifically designed for this purpose.

9. What is the difference between a GPC and VISA Purchasing Card?

Functionally there is no difference. Both are accepted at any Visa accepting supplier globally.

10. Who provides the GPC?

There are six GPC Visa Banks with whom you can sign an Organisational Agreement.

11. Do we have to issue a tender for a GPC programme?

No. A major strength of adopting the GPC Visa is that OGCbuying.solutions has previously issued an OJEU tender to provide the wider public sector with the GPC Visa and they have selected Visa and six of the GPC Visa Banks to provide the GPC Visa as part of a five-year contract. The GPC is pre-tendered.

12. Where can you use GPC VISA Purchasing Cards?

You can use your GPC Visa with any of the 850,000 Visa Merchants in the UK, of which 14,000 have Standard VAT Summary or Enhanced Line Item Detail capability. You can use your GPC Visa at any of the 22 Million Visa accepting Merchants in the EU and many millions more worldwide.

13. What does MSC stand for?

MSC stands for Merchant Service Charge. (This is a charge applied by GPC Visa Bank). In return, the supplier receives payment within two and four working days of the transaction being authorised. In addition to this significant cashflow advantage, Merchants can also reduce credit control costs thereby reducing the need to chase for payment or re-issue invoices. The process also substantially improves the relationship between buyers and sellers.

The Merchant pays the MSC to the GPC Visa Bank as a percentage of the transaction value. (The MSC varies from GPC Visa Bank to GPC Visa Bank, and depends on the total amount of business and average transaction values of the Merchant.)

14. What is meant by authorisation?

The validation of a transaction according to the controls pre-set on the GPC Visa by the GPC Visa Bank.

15. Does a GPC Visa provided by my employer affect my own personal credit status?

No! The GPC Visa does not require any credit checks to be taken on the named Cardholder. Both are viewed as corporate tools rather than personal cards.

16. How do Suppliers become a Visa Merchant?

Supplier's can find out the potential benefits they could achieve by accepting the GPC Visa by visiting www.purchasingcard.info. They can also contact their own bank or one of the GPC Visa Banks for more information.

17. What does an integrated solution mean for a supplier?

This means that the card processing is electronically linked into the supplier's sales system to allow the invoice data to flow seamlessly into the card transaction.

18. Explain the different levels of transaction data that suppliers can provide?

All Visa Merchants are defined as being minimum credit card capable, also referred to as Basic or Level 1. This will involve the use of a terminal that will deliver only basic GPC Visa transaction data (i.e. name of cardholder, date of transaction, supplier name and total amount spent as a minimum).

Visa Merchants that operate terminals capable of Summary VAT (also sometimes referred to as Standard or Level 2) provides a consolidated description of the items purchased and will also show the VAT amount separately. A GPC Visa transaction through this type of terminal is acceptable as VAT evidence up to a value of £5,000 inclusive of VAT.

Visa Merchants that operate terminals capable of Line Item Detail (also sometimes referred to as Enhanced or Level 3) typically requires additional software to deliver the enhanced data with the transaction data, including evidence for VAT and providing line by line description of each item purchased along with itemised VAT amounts.

19. Should I advise my local VAT Office that I am using or accepting payments by GPC Visa?

Yes.

20. How do I know if I would get benefits from using or accepting GPC Visa?

There are a range of benefits of using the GPC Visa and these can be accessed by referring to the Business Benefits

21. Are there any statistics about how many users and suppliers there are related to GPC and VISA Purchasing Cards?

Yes. The GPC Visa Banks listed can provide you with such information. The supplier database www.purchasingcard.info is also a source of information on the suppliers that accept Visa payments

22. How can I allocate card transactions into my Accounts or Costing system?

There are a number of ways this can be achieved. Some of the GPC Visa Banks that issue the GPC Visa can also provide software products (either directly by the bank themselves, or by third party providers). These will allow you to use the card transactional data to create an electronic file which you can add/amend data. This file can then be used in a suitable format, to upload into your accounts systems.

These products automate many of the processes of cost allocation and greatly assist you in completing this essential task, whilst eliminating/ reducing the manual input normally required.

Providers and prices of these products will vary, depending on the sophistication of your requirements.

Further detail is included in the Programme Manager's Handbook and you can look up Further Information or contact your selected GPC Visa Bank.

23. Can GPC Visa be used with our e-commerce order system?

Yes. The GPC Visa is already an integral part of the UK Government's e-procurement agenda. As a consumer, if you want to purchase or sell over the Internet, GPC Visa payment is the most effective and efficient method of completing an online transaction. The same applies in business transactions. Whether you are buying or selling goods and services over the Internet, the GPC Visa provides the potential for a complete electronic end-to-end process.

You can gain more information from the KPMG GPC Annual Reports on http://www.purchasingcard.info/. This reinforces the GPC Visa as the most efficient and cost-effective tool for e-procurement. A common mistake in the past has been to see the GPC Visa as something separate to e-procurement. In many organisations, the GPC Visa is already an integral component of e-procurement systems.

24. How widely is the UK public sector using GPC Visa?

There are currently more than 500 public sector organisations in the UK using the GPC Visa. These include Central Government, Local Government, NHS, Education, Emergency Services, Charities, Non Departmental Public Bodies and all other UK Public Sector organisations.

25. What is meant by process efficiency?

This is the cost benefit of changing a system or process and is generally measured in staff resource time.

26. I keep seeing a figure of £28 mentioned as a saving figure - how is this calculated?

The £28 saving is based on the difference between the manual requisition, purchase order, and payment process costs, against the cost of the process using a GPC Visa. This saving is achieved on each GPC Visa transaction and has been verified by the National Audit Office (NAO).

27. If I implement a GPC Visa programme does this mean staff redundancies?

This is not an objective of a GPC Visa programme. Cardholders are frequently in front line operational offices and have been expected, in line with devolved responsibility, to carry out the day - to - day administrative functions that keep the office running. Typically this includes buying goods and services such as stationery, office services, computer consumables, training courses, books and magazines, canteen food stuffs and estate management supplies.

28. Can the GPC Visa only be used for low value purchases?

No, The GPC Visa is not restricted to low value transactions provided the appropriate controls are in place. Certain Central Government departments require that all purchases under £5,000 should be paid by GPC Visa.

29. Does the GPC Visa have a role in e-commerce?

Yes. With an on-line ordering system, payment can be made using purchase or credit cards. GPC Visa delivers an efficient financial payment function whether using physical or "virtual" cards.

30. I keep hearing the term of "back office software" - what is this?

Back office software is third party software designed to complement the GPC Visa programme and provides improved Management Information and accounting functionality. It can be provided through the GPC Visa Bank or from a third party supplier. It complements the GPC Visa by delivering additional Management Information on transaction activity and facilitates the upload into the general finance ledger system. Cardholders can view their past and present transactions. The software divides the purchasing activity into reports not normally available from the general ledger/purchase ledger systems and is therefore extremely useful to the Procurement and Finance Department teams.

31. What are Level 1, 2 and 3 transactions?

Level 1

All Visa Merchants are defined as being minimum of credit card capable, also referred to as basic or Level 1. This will involve the use of a terminal that will deliver only basic GPC Visa Card transaction data (i.e. name of cardholder, date of transaction, supplier name and total amount spent as a minimum).

Level 2

Level 3

32. What restrictions are there in using my GPC Visa?

The only restrictions are:

Cardholder Limits regulating Cardholder transactions
Merchant must have a Level 1 terminal to process the GPC Visa transaction.

33. Should I run a pilot programme?

A pilot programme of two or three months can be appropriate in some cases. It allows an opportunity to see the actual operation and define internal procedures and any training requirements. After these have been evaluated, a full plan for programme rollout can be implemented. If you intend running a pilot, then it is advantageous to include as many different departments as possible. Select staff as potential Cardholders, these people will undoubtedly become "champions" of GPC Visa and actively support the programme rollout.

34. If we don't have the paper controls how can audit be satisfied?

The National Audit Office accepts the framework for GPC Visa Some auditors may not be completely comfortable with a total paperless regime and may suggest some additional controls, such as the requirement for a Cardholder Transaction Log and appropriate segregation of duties.

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