Individual Consultants
Information on consultant invoicing and the UNICEF Consultant Portal
Who is an Individual Consultant for UNICEF?
Consultants are engaged by UNICEF to provide specialized services for a variety of functions within programmes and operations. Consultants often have skills or knowledge that are not readily available within UNICEF and are engaged for temporary assignments with defined deliverables to be completed within a specified period of time.
Individual consultants are considered to be in business for their own benefit and do not hold an employee-employer relationship with UNICEF.
Consulting opportunities
Explore consulting opportunities with UNICEF.
Consultant invoicing
Consultants are paid on the basis of invoices or agreed-on installments upon UNICEF's acceptance of work. All individual consultants with purchase orders (POs) should use the UNICEF Consultant Portal to submit their invoices to UNICEF.
When creating an account in the UNICEF Consultant Portal, consultants must use the personal email address that is listed on their vendor record. Do not use your unicef.org email address for portal registration. Only individual consultants with valid contracts/purchase orders (POs) from UNICEF should register in the portal.
If you are unaware of the email address you have listed in your vendor record or if your vendor record requires an update, please contact the consultant focal point at your UNICEF office.
The new consultant portal is being rolled out in phases. Your UNICEF office will inform you accordingly.
How to submit an invoice
Register
Make sure you are registered in UNICEF Consultant Portal. If not, start your registration here.
Fill in the the Invoice Template
Download the template in the format that best suits you and fill it in with your data.
Submit your invoice
Upload and submit your invoice.
Step-by-Step Guides for Individual Consultants
Videos
How to fill the consultant deliverable invoice template
How to fill the consultant travel invoice template
How to submit the consultant self-service portal case
Registration FAQ
Registration FAQ
Only individual consultants with valid contracts/purchase orders (POs) from UNICEF should register.
The new consultant portal is being rolled out in phases. Your UNICEF office will inform you accordingly.
To submit your invoice, start by registering on the UNICEF Consultant Portal. Ensure you register with the personal email address provided for your vendor record. If you are unsure of your registered email address, contact the consultant focal point at your UNICEF office.
Note that only individual consultants with valid contracts/purchase orders (POs) can submit invoices directly through the portal. For other cases, contact the consultant focal point at your UNICEF office.
Individual Consultants with POs will use the portal to submit their invoices to UNICEF. After submission, UNICEF will review your request and you will be able to monitor the progress of your submission, including the history of past submissions, directly in the portal.
Confirm that the email address and password you are using for login are the same ones you registered with. In case of further issues, please contact [email protected]
Please use the portal to reset your password.
Yes, as the portal has changed you will need to one-time re-register on the new portal.
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Freemail.hu
However, a consultant can log in to the portal and see all the notifications received.
Invoice Submission FAQ
How do I prepare an invoice?
There are two invoice templates: the Deliverables Template and the Travel Template (for travel included in the contract/ Purchase Order (PO)).
If travel expenses are in the same currency as the contract/ PO, you can use the Deliverables Template for all items.
However, if travel receipts are in different/ multiple currencies, it is recommended to use the Travel Template for any travel-related items.
Invoices must be submitted using the UNICEF Consultant Portal.
Contact the Consultant Focal Point at your office for support.
General reasons for not being able to see the PO in the system may include:
- The email address used for portal registration doesn’t match UNICEF’s vendor record.
- The contract/ PO has expired or has not been fully released in UNICEF’s system.
No. Once you have prepared your invoice, submit it directly to UNICEF through the portal. Your supervisor will be notified and will perform the review after a preliminary check.
Deliverables should be shared directly with your supervisor prior to submitting your invoice. Please note that any invoice submitted prior to deliverables being accepted and approved by your supervisor cannot be processed and will be rejected.
If travel is a separate item in your contract/ PO, you must attach receipts with your invoice. If travel receipts are in different/ multiple currencies, it is recommended to use the Travel Template for any travel-related items. For any conversions, please use the applicable UNORE at the date of the receipt. The invoice template for travel is designed to support the calculation.
Contact the Consultant Focal Point at your office for support.
Contact the consultant focal point at your office for support. They will discuss the request with the contract manager/ supervisor.
With support from the supervisor, the invoice should be approved within five working days, after which the payment will be processed with the office’s regular payment run (2–5 times per week, depending on the office). You can monitor the progress of your submission directly in the UNICEF Consultant Portal.
If you do not receive your payment within 10 working days after approval, contact [email protected] for support.
Partial payments are first to be discussed with your supervisor. With your supervisor’s agreement, the invoice can be submitted through the UNICEF Consultant Portal.
No. All travel receipts must accompany an invoice.
Submit the additional information/ amendment/ documentation via the existing open submission on the portal. Do not create a new submission as this will delay the processing due to additional checks.
Review the explanation provided by UNICEF in the submission.
If the invoice was rejected by your supervisor, please contact your supervisor directly.
For clarification on any reasons mentioned in the rejected case, please contact [email protected]
Please contact your consultant focal point or supervisor for further information.