Paying for Services

General Information

When you pay somebody for their work (such as serving as a DJ or performing for an event, designing a poster or web page, delivering a lecture, teaching a class, etc.), the money this person receives is considered taxable income by the Federal government. 

You cannot be reimbursed for this type of payment because of federal tax law.

Services 1: Current Dartmouth Student

Dartmouth students must always be paid through Payroll.

Make sure the student being paid has submitted required payroll paperwork to Payroll (I-9 form, W-9 tax withholding form, and direct deposit information if applicable). Information for student employees can be found in Student Employment.

There are two different procedures for paying Dartmouth students, depending on the type of work performed.

Situation A: Lump Sum Payment

If the work performed meets the following criteria, a Payroll "lump sum" payment can be arranged, and a student payroll timesheet is not needed:

  • The position is a creative endeavor or artistic in purpose (e.g., DJ, performer/entertainer, writer, graphic artist)
  • The position's primary duties are considered "on-call", unpredictable, or ad-hoc (e.g. Undergraduate Advisor, Camp Counselor, DOSC, Peer Advisor, Dartmouth EMS, Campus-Events Listserv Manager.

If the payment meets these criteria, complete the Current Dartmouth Student, Lump Sum Payment form. If you are not sure if the payment is eligible for the lump sum payment, ask us!

Situation B: Hourly Payment, Student Payroll Timesheet

If the work performed meets the following criteria, a Student Payroll Timesheet is required:

  • The amount of time working can be tracked in hours and minutes
  • The amount of time working can be verified

For the hourly payment, see the Current Dartmouth Student, Hourly Payment form.

If you are not sure if you are required to use the payroll timesheet for the payment you want to make, ask us!

Services 2: Current Dartmouth Employee

Payment to a Dartmouth employee for a performance or any other service must be processed through Payroll. Use the Current Dartmouth Employee, Payment form. This form provides all the information needed for us to start the process.

Services 4: Unaffiliated Honorarium

To pay a person not connected to Dartmouth for something that is not a performance, we need:

An honorarium is an ex gratia payment (i.e., a payment made without the giver recognizing himself as having any liability or legal obligation) made to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity, or for services for which fees are not traditionally required. This is generally used by groups to pay guest speakers at a conference to cover their travel, accommodation, or preparation time.

Services 5: Unaffiliated Contracted Service (not a performance)

To pay an independent contractor (speaker, web design, other misc. services), we need: