Purchasing Categories | Procurement

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Buying Goods & Services

Purchasing Categories in Oracle Procurement

For a detailed table of purchasing categories, taxability, and usage examples, see the Purchasing Category Essential Guide.
Remember to review commodity-specific guidance for approvals and special requirements.

Column	Guidance
Restrictions (Restricted Categories)	Restricted: These are considered higher-risk items that cannot be purchased using a PCard, regardless of their value (unless Procurement Services grants an exception). They must be purchased using Oracle Procurement and often have specific ordering processes, preferred suppliers, and/or mandatory approvals to ensure compliance with university policies. Unrestricted: These are considered lower-risk items that can typically be purchased with a PCard or in Oracle without prior review or approval. They usually do not have specific ordering requirements and are generally straightforward to procure within established guidelines.
Approvals/Purchasing Instructions	This column links to commodity-specific guidance, which provides information on the specific ordering process, preferred suppliers, and/or mandatory approvals for that purchasing category to ensure compliance with university policies.
Ship to Locations (Tab)	Ensures all purchase orders include accurate and approved ship-to addresses to facilitate smooth delivery and compliance with university protocols.
Taxable/Non-Taxable Indicator (Visible in Oracle)	To better understand taxability, it is important to review the UC Sales & Use Tax Manual, Section 4: University as Purchaser, starting on page 125. Where there are known issues with tax in Oracle procurement, it is recommended to use PCard for payment. The selected purchasing category drives tax. The requisitioner selects the appropriate purchasing category on the request forms. Each category includes a tax status indicator: “T” for taxable and “N” for non-taxable. Categories for catalog and punchout items are mapped based on the UNSPSC provided by suppliers and cannot be changed. Visit the Research Equipment Partial Sales Tax Exemption webpage to learn about the reduced sales/use tax rate on equipment purchased for research. In the distribution section of the requisition/checkout page, checkboxes indicate qualified tax reductions and exemptions. Use tax will be applied if an item is taxable based on the purchasing category, but the supplier’s invoice doesn’t include sales tax.