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Financial processes for ministries

Processes and resources to support ministries navigating the IM/IT minor capital funding process.  

Capital funding allocation management

Ministries are now responsible for managing how they spend on approved capital projects against set capital funding allocations.  

Each fiscal year, your ministry must prioritize existing and new IM/IT projects within a yearly capital allocation that is approved by the Deputy Ministers’ Committee on Digital and Data (DMCDD). Regular engagements with the DIO give you the opportunity to adjust allocations when needed to address new or upcoming initiatives.  

The capital allocation planning cycle 

Understand how capital is allocated to ministries and your ministry’s responsibilities during this process. The cycle has four stages.  

Stage 1: DMCDD sends proposed allocations to ministries 

The capital allocation planning cycle happens on a yearly basis. Planning occurs about one year ahead of the applicable funding cycle. For example, planning activities for the 2024/2025 funding cycle occur in 2023/2024. 

The DMCDD starts the capital allocation planning cycle by sending your ministry a notional allocation amount for the upcoming fiscal year. This amount is based on your ministry’s historic average capital spend, project forecasts and known initiatives.  

Stage 2: Ministries submit their prioritized project lists 

After you’ve received the notional allocation, the DIO engages with your Ministry Chief Information Officer (MCIO) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to discuss and validate the allocation. At this stage, the DIO will determine if there are any initiatives or funding needs within your ministry that we aren’t aware of.  

Your ministry must send the DIO a list of prioritized in-progress and new IM/IT projects for the upcoming fiscal year. Notify the DIO of any new or upcoming initiatives that may have an impact on your ministry’s capital needs in the upcoming fiscal year. 

Your ministry can work independently to prioritize its projects. Choose the process or method for prioritization that works best for your ministry and meets your requirements.  

Contact your DIO portfolio contact to connect with other ministries and collaborate on prioritization strategies and best practices.  

Your list must be reviewed and approved by your MCIO. We also strongly recommend that your Deputy Minister is informed of your allocation and list of prioritized projects as early as possible.  

Prioritized projects are not approved projects. To receive capital funding approval, your project team must submit a business case and receive a funding letter from the DMCDD. 

Stage 2: DIO finalizes allocation 

After conversations with your ministry, the DIO recommends adjustments to DMCDD who determines a final allocation for your ministry.  

How to submit your prioritized project list 

The information we require in your list of prioritized projects:  

  • Statement acknowledging your internal prioritization process 
  • Proof of MCIO approval 
  • Project name 
  • Rough cost estimates for the upcoming fiscal year (for new projects) 
  • Current forecasts for in-progress projects 
  • Brief description of each project, if available 

Your list doesn’t need to show how prioritized projects are ranked internally in your ministry. 

Stage 4: Business cases developed for prioritized projects 

Your ministry must now identify and work with project teams to develop business cases for new prioritized projects. In-progress projects do not need to resubmit business cases for the new fiscal year. 

Explore guidance for project teams.

Stage 5: In-year changes to allocations 

The DIO completes a formal review of allocations at the end of the second quarter (Q2) of each fiscal. To prepare for this review, your ministry must forecast its expended spend for the remainder of the fiscal year. Inform us of any concerns or changes to your projects or spending, especially if you don’t expect to use your full allocation. This allows us to move unused funds to support other priorities across government.  

The DIO reviews each ministry’s Q2 reports and provides a recommendation to the DMCDD for in-year adjustments to allocations. 

If you need to request an urgent change to your ministry’s allocation outside of this review schedule, your MCIO should contact the DIO.

Ministry information sessions 

Once a month, the DIO runs a ministry information session for ministry contacts. During these sessions, the DIO provides updates on the entire IM/IT envelope and changes to the funding process. The information sessions are also an opportunity for ministry contacts to participate in feedback and engagement activities on behalf of their ministries and project teams. Each session includes time for questions and answers.   

Ministry contacts should automatically receive an MS Teams meeting invitation. If your contact hasn’t received an invitation or if you have any questions about the information sessions, email us.

Project administration for approved projects

Once projects are approved, ministries are responsible for some project setup activities on behalf of their project teams. Delays in completing these requirements can result in delays for project work.  

Register projects in the Capital Planning System  

Projects worth $1,000,000 and greater 

Ministries must register approved projects with a total value equal or greater than $1,000,000 in the Treasury Board Capital Planning System. These projects receive a unique LCTZSSA# identifier that allows Treasury Board to track project cash flow.  

To register a project, submit a New Project template to the DIO by email. The DIO will submit your template to Treasury Board on your behalf. Unique identifiers are issued on a quarterly basis. You must submit your completed template as soon as possible after the project receives funding approval.  

Projects under $999,999 

Projects with an overall value up to $999,999 don’t need to register to the Capital Planning System. Instead, use LCTZSSA0177 when asked to provide a Capital Planning System number (CPS#) in reports to the DIO. 

Request Work-in-Progress (WIP) asset numbers 

The DIO uses Work-in-Progress (WIP) asset numbers to track project spending. Every project needs a WIP asset number.  

Cost recovery

Throughout the fiscal year, your ministry must recover capital costs from the DIO. Cost recovery occurs on an ongoing basis for the lifetime of every project, until the project is completed and the asset is transferred to your ministry.

Step 1: Incur costs 

Your project team spends money on an approved IM/IT project, receives invoices and pays those invoices from an appropriate operational standard object of expenditure (STOB).  

Step 2: Submit a journal voucher (JV) 

Your ministry must submit journal vouchers (JVs) to recover costs from the DIO. Use the following account coding on your JV forms: 112.32111.34805.2000.3200000.  

In each JV submission must include:   

  • An Excel version of your JV   
  • A single PDF document with all your scanned invoices 
  • A completed Capital Invoice Worksheet, for JVs with more than 5 invoices  

We recommend that you submit your JVs monthly so that we can record project costs soon after they’re incurred. This makes it easier for your ministry and the DIO to go back and review project spending. To give the DIO enough time to process JVs, aim to send your JVs to the DIO at least one week before the end of each month.  

Send JV submissions for DIO approval. Additional instructions for how to complete your JV submissions are available in the JV Submission Instructions.

Once the JV is approved and processed, your ministry receives payment. 

Your ministry is responsible for retaining all source documents and invoices that support the amount being transferred to the DIO. To avoid duplicating documents, please do not include backups for backup documents unless it is specifically requested (for example, contractor time sheets and expense receipts). The DIO may request further information later to support requests from central agencies.  

Reporting

Every project must submit regular updates to the DIO to report on the status of their project. These updates provide information on each project’s health and progress towards desired outcomes, success metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs). Your ministry must track and report to the DIO on the status of all your ministry’s IM/IT projects. 

This includes reporting to the Ministry of Citizens’ Services on your quarterly year-to-date spend and financial forecasts, in compliance with the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act.

We require ministries to submit portfolio-level financial forecasts at the close of each of the following months: 

  • Q1: June 
  • Q2: September
  • Q3: November, December
  • Q4: January, February, March (year-end report) 

Forecasts are due on approximately the seventh business day of each listed month, except Q4. Year-end reports (March Q4) have a deadline after the close of Adjustment Period 1 (ADJ-1). Work with your DIO portfolio contact to understand your requirements for these forecasts.

The DIO will send out reminder emails 3-4 weeks prior to the due date. Some quarters may have specified emphasis on what needs to be reported. 

Change requests

Ministries and project teams must submit change requests to update the scope, financial arrangements or timelines of an approved project. You can’t overspend your capital allocation or move approved funding between projects without an approved change request.  

How to submit a change request.

Financial processes for project completion

Once a project is complete, it’s transferred back to your ministry to be put in production.

Asset transfers 

A project is considered complete when it’s ready to be used and moves into a production environment. Your ministry must also have recovered all applicable project costs from the DIO. At this stage, the Work-in-Progress (WIP) is transferred to your ministry’s Corporate Accounting Services (CAS) account coding as an asset and becomes the responsibility of your ministry. Your ministry is now responsible for funding the amortization and ongoing support and maintenance for the asset.  

In compliance with Core Policy Chapter I.4, your ministry should use professional judgement and consult with the Office of the Comptroller General to determine the appropriate timing to transfer a WIP to an asset. Once you’ve identified that a WIP is ready to transfer to an asset, you must contact the DIO to request an asset transfer.  

The DIO also conducts quarterly reviews of existing WIPs and identifies those that should be transferred or written-off. If the DIO identifies that one of your WIPs is ready to transfer, you must contact the DIO to request the transfer by the end of the quarter following the review. If not, the DIO will transfer your WIP to the CAS account coding that was on your last journal voucher (JV). 

How to transfer your WIP to an asset 

To transfer a WIP project to an asset, you must send an email to request an asset report. This report summarizes the total capital project spend recorded to the project’s WIP asset number. You must review and confirm the amount in the asset report. Once this is done, complete a WIP Asset Number Completion form and submit it to the DIO by email.

Contact your ministry contact if you have any questions about transferring an asset.   

Only one major transaction can occur for each asset in a single monthly accounting period. For example, if costs were added to a WIP in one period, the asset cannot be transferred to your ministry until the following period.  

Review additional project completion information for project teams.

Amortization

Ministries are responsible for the amortization of their assets. Amortization starts when the asset is ready for use or brought into use. 

Amortization is a way of spreading out the cost of a long-lasting asset over its useful lifespan. The useful lifespan refers to the time period that the asset is expected to be usable. Amortization is a useful accounting practice, as it allows the Province to connect the cost of the asset with the benefits it provides.  

The process of amortization starts when the asset becomes available for use and continues until the asset is either disposed of or has no remaining value.  

Project write-downs and write-offs

Use a write-down to reflect a partial impairment in the value of an asset. Use a write-off to reflect full impairment in the value of an asset. Writing down or writing off an asset is recognized as an operating expense and is ministry’s responsibility to act on, in accordance with Core Policy and Procedures Chapter I.7.  

If your project is: 

  • An asset under your ministry’s ownership, follow your ministry’s process to write-down or write-off costs 
  • A WIP under the DIO’s ownership, follow the process for cost reversal, as outlined in the JV Submission Instructions

Financial core policy

Relevant financial core policy: 

Ministry templates, forms and documents