Receiving Policy (Sample 2)

Prepared By:

Approved By:

Revision Date:

Effective Date:

PURPOSE:
The purpose of this document is to establish a policy and procedures surrounding the receipt of inventory,
non-inventory items, and services into Company ABC by the company.

SCOPE:
This policy applies to all business units which receive products into inventory or receive non-inventory
products or services.

POLICY:
Management has controls established over the receipt of goods and services in order to ensure
appropriate financial reporting of such activities.

General

The physical receipt of all goods is the responsibility of the receiving department. The receiving clerk will
inspect all shipments arriving at the receiving dock to ensure that they are sent to the appropriate location
and are expected to be received by the company. The receiving clerk will also check to ensure that the
shipment is consistent with an open PO in terms of quantities, items, type, etc. prior to moving the goods
to their respective locations. The purchasing group is responsible for researching and resolving any
discrepancies between the POs and the goods received. The receiving clerk should sign all packing slips
as evidence that the above items were checked prior to accepting into receiving.
The AP team is responsible for researching any discrepancies between the goods received/PO prices
and the invoice prices/quantities invoiced.
It is Company ABC’s policy not to accept deliveries at any location other than the receiving area.
It is also Company ABC’s policy not to accept goods at a vendor’s site or in the field; however, situations
may arise where this is unavoidable. Should such instances take place, the employee accepting the
goods should inspect the goods as per the policy above, sign the packing slip, and forward the packing
slip immediately to the receiving team.

Inventory

After following the above policy, inventory items will be moved from the receiving dock to the respective
location (inventory, exception area, etc.).

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Non-Inventory
After following the above policy, non-inventory items should be delivered to the employee noted as the
requestor on the PO. The accepting employee should sign the non-inventory receipt log as evidence of
acceptance of the goods and should follow the company inspection policy noted above. Any goods not
meeting the requestor standards should be rejected and sent back to the vendor.

Services

Services are accepted by the PO requestors or their delegates. All services should be confirmed as
received to the AP team via email or signature on invoices.
Receipt of goods or services are entered into Company ABC by the receiving team or by the AP team
(services only).

Returned Merchandise Authorizations (RMAs)

All RMA returns should have a valid RMA number prior to being accepted by the receiving clerk. Any
returns without a valid RMA number should be refused at the receiving dock.
RMA products should be stored in the physical inventory RMA area.

PROCEDURES

Inventory

The receiving clerk will inspect all shipments arriving at the receiving dock to ensure they are sent to the
appropriate location and are expected to be received by Company ABC by checking the shipment against
a valid PO. The receiving clerk will also check to ensure that the shipment is consistent with an open PO
in terms of quantities, items, type, etc. prior to moving the goods to their respective locations and will
verify that there are no obvious signs of damage to the goods prior to receipt. The receiving clerk should
sign off on the packing slip as evidence of the inspection.
If the items do not match the PO or packing slip, the receiving clerk will move the items to a separate
location, materials review board (MRB), for further follow-up. It is the purchasing group’s responsibility to
research and resolve any issues with shipments in the MRB location.
The receiving clerk will then enter the goods receipt into the ERP system, sign all packing slips as
evidence that the above occurred, and forward the packing slip and any other support to the AP team.

Non-Inventory

Receipt of non-inventory items follows the same process as inventory items, except instead of moving the
received goods to their respective inventory locations, non-inventory items are delivered to the employee
noted as the requestor on the PO. The accepting employee should sign the non-inventory receipt log as
evidence of acceptance of the goods and should follow the company inspection policy noted above. Any
goods not meeting the requestor standards should be rejected and sent back to the vendor.
The receiving log and packing slip are forwarded to the AP team.

Services

Services are accepted by the PO requestors or their delegates. The AP team should receive confirmation
of all services via email or signature on invoices.

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RMAs

The receiving clerk should verify that any returns include a valid RMA number, and enter the receipt
against the RMA order. Any returns without a RMA number should be rejected by the receiving clerk.
RMA products should be stored in the physical inventory RMA area.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
The receiving clerk is responsible for the following:
− Verifying that all items received are correct, undamaged and have appropriate support (e.g.,
packing slip)
− Providing all documents (e.g., packing slips, receiving reports, non-inventory receipt logs, etc.) to
the AP team at least daily
− Maintaining communication with the purchasing group regarding any shipments that are sent to
MRB
− Ensuring non-inventory items are provided to the requestors timely
− Ensuring returns are appropriately authorized

Goods requestors are responsible for the following:

− Verifying that all items received are correct, undamaged and have appropriate support (e.g.,
packing slip)
− Signing the non-inventory receipt log after verifying that goods are correct, undamaged, etc.

Service requestors are responsible for the following:

− Verifying that all services received are valid, appropriate and consistent with the PO
− Maintaining timely communication with the AP team regarding the receipt of services

The AP team is responsible for the following:

− Verifying that all services are appropriately approved prior to receiving in the ERP system
− Validating that all support for goods is received from the receiving clerk

The purchasing group is responsible for the following:

− Reviewing all MRB goods to ensure that any discrepancies are followed up on and resolved in a
timely manner
− Maintaining regular communication with the receiving clerk to ensure that the purchasing group is
aware of all items in MRB

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