What is the CSF reimbursement file?
It is the financial file through which a company claims reimbursement of the training actions delivered under its special training contract. It is filed with the CSF management unit that received the funding application, by 31 December of year N+1 at the latest, according to OFPPT’s CSF page.
OFPPT, the Office de la formation professionnelle et de la promotion du travail, is Morocco’s public vocational training office. Through special training contracts (contrats spéciaux de formation, CSF), it reimburses part of what companies spend on their employees’ continuing training; the CSF management unit (Unité de gestion des CSF) is the office that handles a company’s files. Year N is the financial year in which the training takes place. The procedures manual distinguishes three files, which should not be confused:
File | Content | When | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
Administrative file | Identification form (F1), trade register extract, signatory’s powers, bank identity certificate | Access to the system, from October N-1 | Certificate of access to the CSF |
Technical file | Training plan, summary sheet (model 1), action sheets (F2), provider sheets (F3) | Before the training | Special training contract |
Financial file | Proof of delivery and of payment for each action | After the training, by 31 December N+1 at the latest | Transfer order |
This article deals with the third. The overall process, from the plan to session evidence, is described in our article OFPPT CSF application step by step, and the full path to payment in our OFPPT training reimbursement guide.
The financial file covers planned training, unplanned training and functional literacy training. It does not cover training engineering: according to OFPPT’s CSF page, reimbursement claims for engineering actions are a matter for the relevant GIACs, the inter-professional advisory groups (groupements interprofessionnels à l’appui du conseil) set up by employers’ professional organisations, usually by sector.
The May 2006 manual and its Amendment No. 2 of 2 June 2014 remain the reference in force; confirm with OFPPT the list of documents that applies to your financial year before the first filing.
Which documents prove that the training took place?
Four documents for training entrusted to an external provider, two for in-house training. Each has a format set by the manual; none can be produced after the event.
Document | Manual reference | Drawn up by | What is checked |
|---|---|---|---|
Original invoice | Model 4 | Training provider | Signature, provider’s stamp, position and full name of the signatory, company’s stamp |
Attendance sheet | Model 5 | Provider and company | Signature of each participant, stamps of the provider and of the company, drawn up during the training |
Summary evaluation sheet | Form F4 | Training provider | One sheet per action, prepared and validated by the provider |
Certificate of delivery | Model 6 | Company | Certifies that the actions submitted for reimbursement were delivered |
Three points matter in practice:
- The attendance sheet is kept on the day. Amendment No. 2 (avenant n° 2) of 2 June 2014 specifies that it is drawn up at the time of delivery and kept in the training file of the company and of the management unit, for checks on delivery. It is the document we most often find weak in files taken over mid-year: a half-day without signatures, a missing stamp, a participant replaced without a trace.
- The evaluation sheet has changed in nature. The 2006 manual asked for the sheets completed by the participants; Amendment No. 2 asks for one summary evaluation sheet per action, validated by the provider. Individual evaluations remain useful to draft it, and in case of inspection.
- In-house training has its own documents. For an action delivered by the company’s own staff, the manual asks for the original attendance sheet, signed by the participants and stamped by the company, showing the topic, the days of delivery and the identity and signature of the trainer; the amendment adds a certificate from the company.
The evidence produced by an ACG session, namely QR-code attendance, tests, end-of-session evaluations, numbered certificates and the report, feeds directly into these documents. The sequence is described in before, during and after training. Confirm with OFPPT the attendance sheet format it accepts: stamped paper model 5, or a printout from electronic attendance records.
Which documents prove payment?
A copy of the means of payment and a bank document proving the debit. The manual’s list provides for only three methods of payment: cheque, transfer, bill of exchange.
- By cheque: copy of the cheque and the bank statement, or entry, showing the debit.
- By transfer: copy of the transfer order and the debit advice.
- By bill of exchange (effet de commerce): copy of the bill and the debit advice.
Each copy is marked “Conforme à l’original” (certified true copy) and stamped by the company. Amendment No. 2 relaxes one point and tightens another: the debit advice can be replaced by the bank statement or any document establishing the debit, but electronic transfer orders and bank statements must bear the bank’s stamp.
Two consequences for your finance department. First, the invoice must be paid before filing, since the file proves a debit. Second, the payment must be traceable to the invoice: a single transfer covering several invoices is documented with a statement and a reconciliation, prepared before filing.
Under third-party payment (tiers payant), the company attaches a copy of its request to use the procedure, signed and stamped, and the bank account details of the training provider. The effect of this procedure on cash flow is covered in our article what training costs are reimbursable by OFPPT.
What should you check before filing?
A cross-check: each item of data must be identical on the approved action sheet, the invoice, the attendance sheet, the certificate and the proof of payment. The model contract annexed to the manual requires it (art. 10): otherwise, the discrepancy must have been justified by a notice, which the management unit accepts or not.
Data | Action sheet (F2) | Invoice (model 4) | Attendance sheet (model 5) | Certificate (model 6) | Payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Title or topic | Reference | Identical | Identical | Identical | — |
Dates of delivery | Reference, or modification notice | Identical | One line per day | Identical | Before filing |
Venue | Reference, or notice | — | Identical | — | — |
Provider | Reference, or notice | Issuer | Stamp | — | Payee |
Participants | Planned headcount | Headcount invoiced | Names and signatures | Headcount delivered | — |
Amount | Approved retained cost | Amount excluding VAT, and VAT | — | — | Amount debited |
Three checks complete the table:
- Headcount. Reimbursement is made in proportion to the participants who actually attended against the participants planned (model contract, art. 14). Compare the attendance sheet with the action sheet before filing, to anticipate the effect of absences.
- Modification notices. Any cancellation or change of days, venue, provider or timetable had to be covered by a notice (model 3), at least 24 hours before the start under Amendment No. 2. Without a notice, the action is not reimbursed (art. 11). Check that each discrepancy in the table is covered by a dated notice.
- Signatories. The invoice identifies the position and full name of its signatory; the certificate is signed by an authorised person in the company.
Why is a file returned or a reimbursement reduced?
For a missing or non-compliant document, the file comes back on the spot; for a substantive discrepancy, it is the reimbursement of the action that is reduced or refused. The table links each cause to its consequence and its prevention.
Cause | Consequence under the manual | Prevention |
|---|---|---|
Missing or non-compliant document | File returned, with a note of the missing documents | Checklist per action, reviewed by a second person |
Copy without the “Conforme à l’original” mark or the stamp | Non-compliant document | Stamp and mark applied when the copy is made |
Change not reported by a notice | Action not reimbursed (art. 11) | Notice sent before every change, even a minor one |
Absent participants | Reimbursement in proportion to those present (art. 14) | Named invitations, reminders, replacements reported |
Data that do not match the action sheet | Discrepancy to be justified, accepted or not (art. 10) | Cross-check before filing |
Non-delivery found on inspection | Reimbursement reduced or cancelled, amounts received repaid | Evidence produced during the session, complete action file |
Filing after 31 December N+1 | Consequence of late filing to be checked with OFPPT before the deadline passes | File action by action, without waiting for the end of the year |
Inspection is worth anticipating. The manual provides for checks on documents and on site, during or after the training, covering the display of the plan, attendance sheets, the programme, evaluation sheets and copies of supporting documents. Among the actions it targets first are those of companies using the system for the first time and training delivered in-house. Law No. 60-17 on the organisation of continuing training confirms this framework: checks on documents and on site (art. 26), the duty to produce all useful documents (art. 28), possible cancellation of the action (art. 29) and repayment of amounts unduly received (art. 31).
How do you file, follow and archive the file?
Action by action, without waiting for the end of the financial year, with a tracking table and a single archive per action.
- Assemble the proof of delivery and of payment for each action as soon as it closes.
- Check that the data match, then have the file reviewed by a second person.
- File with the management unit that received the funding application, keeping a full copy.
- Obtain the acknowledgement of receipt, issued for a complete file; it is the starting point of the processing period. Amendment No. 2 sets thirty calendar days between this acknowledgement and the transfer order, any delay having to be justified by the management unit.
- Reconcile the transfer order and the detailed list of the actions reimbursed with the file you filed, and ask for the reason for any rejection.
- Challenge if necessary: the manual provides for a reasoned appeal to the regional CSF committee within fifteen days of notification.
- Archive each action’s file (attendance sheet, programme, evaluation sheets and copies of supporting documents) for five years from delivery, under the model contract in the manual (art. 9).