Topics Map > Employee Handbook > 1.11 Travel & Reimbursement
Topics Map > Operational Support Resources > 4.6 Financial Services > 4.6.2 Travel & Expense Reimbursement
Travel & Expense Reimbursement
Travel & Expense Reports (TERs) are reviewed and approved in accordance with UW travel policies, as detailed in the UW-Madison Policy Library. Prior to booking and conducting travel, Extension employees are expected to complete campus training(s) and familiarize themselves with relevant travel policies. They should also discuss upcoming travel plans with their supervisor and secure approval, where appropriate. Lastly, employees should obtain a funding string for their travel reimbursement from the appropriate funding authority, i.e., the budget owner who authorizes expenses on the account.
Additional resources:
Expense Reimbursement Office Hours Hosted by OFS: Join any time during the hour to ask a question and get an answer. There is no commitment to participate for the full amount of time.
- Thursdays 1:30pm - 2:30pm via Zoom
Create an Expense Report in Workday: Job aid with steps on how to create an expense report as an employee.
UW-Madison Travel Policy Training: on-demand Canvas course that provides an overview of travel policies.
How to Create a Google Map: step-by-step instructions for creating the attachment required for mileage reimbursements when a comparison map is needed.
Lodging and Meal Per Diem Calculator: pre-trip planning tool that calculates lodging limits and meal per diems by destination.
Justification Requirements
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Write the justification assuming the reader does not have background knowledge of your work.
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In Workday, write a high-level overview ("title") of the report within the memo field on the header tab.
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Travelers should enter their business justification within the memo field on each expense line within the expense report:
- Who – traveler’s name and job title
- What – specify the purpose of the trip (conference, meeting, etc.)
- When – dates of travel; when combining personal and business travel, clearly state which dates were personal and which were business.
- Where – location of travel; it’s also helpful to specify the address of your HQ location
- Why – how travel benefits UW/Extension/sponsored project and why the traveler’s attendance was necessary
Day Trip Meals
- If claimed, travel must have occurred over a meal time.
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Day trip meals within your HQ city are not reimbursable.
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Generally, employees are not eligible for day trip meals when travel occurs within 50 miles of their HQ office, unless there was a business meal, e.g. the employee met a prospective partner over lunch.
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Meal Per Diem
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Meal per diems are only able to be requested during overnight travel. If only traveling for the day, a day trip meal allowance may be used if appropriate.
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When requesting per diem, the traveler must attach an agenda of the conference, meeting, or event.
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The location for per diem is determined based on where the traveler went to bed that night. The last day of travel is determined based on where the traveler woke up that morning.
Airfare
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Airfare should be booked via Concur or Fox World Travel.
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When combining personal and business travel, an airfare cost comparison is no longer required for flights departing before or after the business travel dates. The traveler may choose flights on any dates they prefer; however, only the business dates are eligible for reimbursement of lodging, per diems, etc.
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Travelers should clearly state which dates were personal and which were business in the justification of their TER.
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Airfare should be broken up into two expense lines - one line using the expense type "Airfare" with the cost of the airfare only, and the other using the expense type "Travel Agency Service Fee" for the service fee charged to airfare purchases. These two expense lines should equal the total airfare the traveler paid.
Mileage Reimbursements
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When requesting mileage reimbursement, travelers must enter starting and ending addresses in Workday.
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Extension colleagues who work remotely must have a Remote Work Agreement on file and must have an HQ office location designated in the agreement. The HQ designation cannot be a home address; it must be an Extension location (typically one nearest the employee's remote work location/home address). Mileage must be claimed at the lesser cost of travel from their 100% remote work location or the HQ Extension location designated in their Remote Work Agreement. A comparison map of travel costs from the two locations must be provided if claiming reimbursement for travel from a home/non-HQ address.
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Policy UW-3019 (vehicle use)
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Policy UW-5087 (remote work)
Lodging Limits
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The University will not pay lodging costs when travelers are within 50 miles of their home or headquarter city, unless the travel is for a multi-day event with an evening business-related activity that makes returning to the employee's home impractical.
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If lodging exceeds the nightly allowable rate because it was a conference hotel, attach documentation to support the hotel as a conference location, e.g., screenshot of the conference website.
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If lodging exceeds the nightly allowable rate due to a lack of nearby lodging within the rate, attach documentation of this, e.g., screenshot of Concur search results.
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If lodging exceeds the nightly allowable rate due to an approved medical accommodation, avoid using language about a medical condition, disability, or ADA – instead, we advise this vague confirmatory language: “Approval for the accommodation for X, Y, Z [list expenses or expense type] is on file.”
Attachments
- The following formats are preferred for all attachments: PDF, PNG, GIF, or JPEG.
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When attaching an email message, do not attach .eml or .msg files.
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Attach receipts for purchases. Receipts must be dated, itemized, include the name of the vendor, and show the dollar amount paid, excluding WI sales & use tax.
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If attaching a multi-page document with a significant amount of text, it is helpful to highlight relevant data, so it is clear for those approving the TER.