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DEFINITIONS

Reimbursable travel expenses: Travel expenses that are ordinary, reasonable, and necessary to accomplish the official business purpose of University trips such as transportation expenses, subsistence expenses and registration fees.

Subsistence Expenses: Expenses for meals and incidentals.

Long-Term Travel: 30 days or more

Outside the Continental United States: Alaska, Hawaii, and any U.S. possession, including Puerto Rico.

SUMMARY OF POLICY

  • All official travel shall be properly authorized, reported, and reimbursed in accordance with University travel regulations.
  • Expenses for domestic travel (less than 30 days) will be reimbursed on the basis of actual expenses for transportation, lodging, meals and incidentals.
  • For foreign or long-term travel, per diem is allowed for lodging and subsistence expenses. Contact your Regional Office for full information.
  • University travel policies apply to all University academic and staff employees, interviewees, guest speakers, and all other persons whose travel expenses will be reimbursed by University funds.
  • All official University travel shall be authorized by the employees' supervisor prior to the trip being taken.
  • Travel Expense Vouchers must be completed within 21 days after completion of the trip. However, when travel is local, frequent and continuous, travel expenses may be submitted monthly.

REIMBURSEMENT RATES

  • Lodging Expenses:Reimbursement based on actual expense. Submission of the original itemized hotel bill showing a zero balance or proof of payment is required. Credit card receipts are not acceptable.
  • Transportation Expenses:Reimbursed based on actual expense. Original receipts are always required for airfare, rental cars, and rail. Miscellaneous local transportation expenses (i.e. taxi, shuttle) of $75.00 or more also require a receipt.

Subsistence Expenses for Travel of 24 Hours or More:
Actual expenses for meals and incidentals will be reimbursed up to a maximum of $79.00 per day.

Subsistence Expenses for Travel of  Less than 24 Hours, but More Than 12 Hours:

  • Subsistence Expenses incurred during travel that lasts more than 12 hours but less than 24 hours may be reimbursed for actual expenses up to a maximum of $42.00 per day.
  • Subsistence expenses incurred within the vicinity of an employee's headquarters or residence shall not be reimbursed (i.e., lunch expenses).
  • An exception may be allowed for certain meals that are part of an event, e.g., actual luncheon costs at an organized conference or working meals served at a meeting site which is not covered by the conference fee. In this case, a copy of the conference agenda and subsistence obligation must be submitted with the Travel Expense Voucher.

OUTSIDE THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES & FOREIGN TRAVEL:

  • Foreign travel shall be reimbursed in accordance with the Federal Maximum Travel Per Diem Allowances.
  • Per Diem rates are designated by location (city or area) on a monthly basis. Current foreign per diem rates may be obtained through the the following website: http://www.state.gov/m/a/als/prdm/
  • All expenses should be converted to US Dollars through the website referenced above. If expenses were charged to the corporate card or personal card, the statement showing the conversion rate must be attached to the travel voucher.

TRAVEL CARD PROGRAM APPLICATION AND INFORMATION 

  • The Travel card is to be used only for approved and appropriate business travel and business entertainment expenses.  Travel card expenses are automatically paid to the bank, as transactions take place.

CASH ADVANCES POLICY AND INFORMATION

  • Cash Advances are allowed when the travel requires special handling, such as foreign travel, group travel for athletics, bowl games, student groups, etc.

UC Travel Advances Utilizing the Central Travel System (CTS) / YCAL State Airfare Purchases:

  • This system is used to purchase airfare that is directly charged to a University account, so that travelers do not bear the burden of the expense. The use of the CTS or State-Rate eliminates the need to charge individual corporate cards or request exceptional cash advances.
  • Airfare purchased through this system is considered a travel advance and must be accounted for and itemized on a travel voucher (box 20) within 21 days after the trip has taken place.
  • To use this system, contact any authorized travel agency and identify the CTS account number. The authorized list of agencies may be obtained at: http://travel.ucdavis.edu/agencies.cfm

UC TRAVEL EXPENSE VOUCHERS:

  • Complete the Travel Expense Voucher within 21 days of completion of the trip. If the voucher is not submitted in this time frame, the traveler must provide a brief explanation in the remarks section of the voucher.
  • Original receipts (required for transportation and lodging) must be taped to 8.5" x 11" sheets of paper.
  • Itemize all travel-related expenses, provide account(s) to be charged, departure and arrival times/dates, personal car license number, name and contact information of the person who prepared the voucher, and traveler's original signature.
  • If a trip is funded by two different accounts (such as a workgroup account and regional account) it is only necessary to submit one voucher. Do not split the expenses and submit two vouchers.
  • All travel advances must be itemized on the voucher and deducted from the total.
  • US Bank Visa expenses must be itemized in box 18. If the "Pay Corporate Visa" box is checked but the expenses are not itemized in box 18, a payment will not be made to US Bank. The total amount of expenses charged to the Corporate Card must be indicated in box 18-A.
  • List US Bank cash advances (include ATM fee in this figure) in box 18-B. The finance fee will be automatically calculated.
  • If the total US Bank Visa expenses are less than the total travel expenses and if the voucher shows a balance due in section 24, this amount will be reimbursed to the traveler through the UCD financial system.
  • If the total expenses are less than the total cash advances (including fees if applicable) the traveler must write a personal check made payable to UC Regents for the difference and submit it with the Travel Expense Voucher. (If the cash advances were obtained using the Corporate VISA card, the cardholder is responsible for reimbursing US Bank directly.)
  • The County Director or authorized supervisor must review and sign all Travel Expense Vouchers.
  • Forward (do not fax) approved Travel Expense Vouchers with original signatures and supporting documentation to the Regional Office.

TIPS

  • Original receipts are required for airfare, car rental, rail, lodging, and each miscellaneous expense of $75.00 or more.
  • No materials or supplies may be purchased in excess of $100 while in travel status.
  • Receipts for lodging must be itemized to show a "zero" balance due (reflecting that the bill has been paid by the traveler). Credit card receipts are not acceptable.
  • University employees may not be reimbursed for expenses paid on behalf of other persons, unless group leader status has been approved in advance. Contact your Regional Office for the advance approval process required.
  • Reimbursements for mileage of privately-owned vehicles:

1) The origin and destination of each trip must be indicated on the Travel Expense Voucher. If a summarized number of miles report is indicated for a period of time (i.e., monthly) on a Travel Expense Voucher, a daily log of the miles driven and the origin and destination points must be submitted.
2) Mileage driven between the employee's residence and headquarters ("commuting expense") shall not be reimbursed.
3) If traveling from the employee's residence to a meeting or field site, the number of miles in excess of the number of miles traveled to headquarters may be reimbursed.
4) Mileage from an employee's home to a common carrier (airport or train station) when beginning or ending a trip may be reimbursed.
5) Any miles driven for personal business during the course of the day when on University travel should be documented and subtracted from the number of miles submitted for reimbursement by the University.

  • Employees should utilize the University agreements with car rental agencies and hotels (see web site referenced below). Loss damage waiver insurance is included when using these UC car rental agreements. Additional insurance should not be purchased.
  • When renting cars outside the UC agreement, optional insurance expenses will not be reimbursed. (Exception: for foreign travel, optional car rental insurance is a reimbursable expense.)
  • When processing travel documentation for foreign travel, the foreign per diem rates and currency conversions should be obtained from the links provided on the Travel @ UC Davis web site at http://travel.ucdavis.edu/. If information from another sources is used, include the site where you got the information in the Remarks section of the Travel Expense Voucher and attach a printout of the conversion from the website used.
  • UC is now able to take advantage of the State of California discounted airfare agreements. Special BTA accounts have been established at all Davis travel agencies. For further information, including fare rates, available city pairs, and participating travel agencies, see the UC Davis Accounting and Financial Services web site at http://travel.ucdavis.edu/ycal.cfm.
  • Travel packages from Internet vendors should not be purchased for University business travel unless it is confirmed in advance that each aspect of the trip (hotel, transportation, rental car, etc.) will be itemized separately thus providing adequate documentation for reimbursement.

REFERENCE/WEBSITE LINKS

UCD Policy & Procedure Manual, Section 300-10 Travel:  UCD Manuals /Policy and Procedure Manual (PPM) / 300-10, General Travel Policy

UC Travel Agreements
Rental Car: http://travel.ucdavis.edu/agreements/carrental.cfm
Hotel: https://supplychain.ucdavis.edu/travel-entertainment/travel/preferred-booking-program

UCD Travel Guide (including Corporate VISA Card information)
http://travel.ucdavis.edu/

CTS Travel Agencies
http://travel.ucdavis.edu/agencies.cfm

ANR Administrative Handbook, Section 212 Travel 
https://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/75890.pdf

Foreign Per Diem Rates 
http://www.state.gov/m/a/als/prdm/

Currency Conversion Rates
https://www.oanda.com/currency-converter/en/?from=EUR&to=USD&amount=1

UC ANR is Smoke & Tobacco-Free 

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