Is there a rule about when (i.e. how long after the completion) an event must be submitted to the USCF for rating? I’ve “heard” that you have 7 days. I know that in practice players expect events to be submitted within 24 hours (sometimes they expect events to be sumbitted up to 23.99 hours faster than that). I wonder if there is an official USCF rule/policy on this point?
The requirement is submission within 2 weeks. and I’ve had folks wonder why a tournament was not rated already - well their section was done but the rest of the event was still going on.
When I have events that take a while to submit usually it is related to membership issues.
If you really want “entertainment,” have someone write a check payable to USCF for dues. Then, even if you submit the rating report online right after the event ends, you still have to mail the check for the membership, wait for USCF to receive it, wait longer for the check to clear, and then finally the rating report can be processed. All while dealing with the incessant questions of why the event hasn’t been rated yet … Yup, been there, done that, didn’t have fun. 
Actually, it’s one week (as I previously mentioned when you incorrectly said it was 2 weeks in a previous thread)
secure2.uschess.org/TD_Affil/whatnext.php
“TDs are expected to submit their events within a week of when they end.”
“Reminder: Tournament Results should be submitted within a week”
Micah, how/where did you find that page? The link works, but I can’t seem to “find” the page otherwise.
Go to part 2 of the Frequently Asked Questions for the USCF TD/Affiliate Support Area. secure2.uschess.org/TD_Affil/faq-partb.php. The link is near the bottom and is titled “What Next?”
“should” is not the same as “must” and there are many reasons why it doesn’t say “must”.
Technically there is no specific requirement at all.
And, of course, one can “submit it for rating” without the tournament actually being rated depending on how one wishes to define the term, which is undefined in any of the rules, TD certification standards or even on your favorite page.
Enjoy your hunt.
Yes and I was referring to the guideline which is to submit tournaments within one week of when they ended, not two weeks like you said.
Good point. In this day of being able to deposit checks using pictures taken from apps - I wonder if there is a reasonable and effective way to speed up this process.
At all the tournaments I have worked, we process memberships online with a credit card (so that they go through immediately), and if the player in question paid with a check, we just cash that check along with all the entry fee checks, and reimburse ourselves for the credit card charge. We have never had a problem doing it that way. Our rating reports are usually accessible online within an hour or two after the tournament has finished.
What do you do if they make the check payable to “USCF” and you don’t notice it before the tournament is over? Just stick it in with all the other checks and hope the bank doesn’t notice?
– Hal Terrie
A couple of decades ago that did work. Most of the time. Since the tournament report was mailed in, if it didn’t work then the checks were just mailed to the USCF along with the report.
Even before on-line submission became common I would ask for the checks to be made to the organizer (instead of the USCF) just to make sure that only a single check needed to be sent to the USCF and one check in a batch wasn’t misplaced during the processing at the office.
DING, DING, DING, we have a winner!!! I am willing to do many thing for an organizer, but purchasing hundreds of $$ worth of memberships on my credit card, and then waiting to get reimbursed
is not one of them.
Rob Jones
They’re usually writing the check right in front of us, and we tell them who to make it out to. Haven’t had a problem yet. Far more common is for advance entries to make their checks out to me instead of the Wisconsin Chess Association. But that’s not really a problem either – I just cash those checks and use the cash to make change and/or pay prizes at the tournament. In any case, the first thing I do with any check that I receive is to look at it and make sure it’s filled out properly.