BUSINESS MEALS/ SALES TAX:  Please note that when taking a prospective candidate out for a meal that WI Sales Tax is Non-Reimbursable.  When you arrive at the restaurant mention that you are a UW Madison Employee, provide a copy of both your UW Madison I.D., and the UW Madison Tax Exempt Card, and the restaurant should deduct the WI Sales Tax from your bill.   

UW BUSINESS MEAL POLICY/ MEAL & ALCOHOL MAXIMUMS:  Payment & Reimbursement for Business Meal costs is limited to the following per person which INCLUDES TIPS: (Breakfast $20.00, Lunch $21.00, Dinner $35.00).  Amounts in excess of the allowable per person limits or expenses for alcohol may be charged to UW Foundation Funds. Alcohol reimbursement cannot exceed $50/person. The overall payment/reimbursement made with both UW and WFAA funds, including alcohol, may not exceed $150/person, including tip.  In addition, Tips are limited to the maximum amount of 20%.  

 II.  General Instructions for using the E-Reimbursement Tool:

  1. Enter the Business Purpose, indicate Job Candidate Hosting.

  2.    Next, enter a Description.  This is essentially the title of the report, such as “Theory Candidate M Miller 12/12/2018”.

c.    Then, enter the Default Location.  Click on the spy glass, and on the next page click on Search Criteria.  Type in the first letters in the Expense Location Box, and click the green Search button (such as Mad for Madison).     

d.   Then, click on Reference.  This will be listed as In State.

e.    Next, enter your Date of Departure, and Date of Return.

f.   You will need to add any meal related attachments.  All attachments, (either PDF Files, or Scans) including but not limited to meal receipts and a  agenda for your meeting with the Candidate. These MUST be uploaded to the e-reimbursement system.  

g.   Enter your Accounting Defaults. For example, this needs to include your Fund (101), Department (486000), Program (2).  Or, you can leave that blank and the Approver will adjust your funding accordingly.

h.   Next, enter a complete Justification.  This is a description of your Business Meal: “Business Meal with prospective Music Theory Candidate xxxx, to discuss potential job duties, expectations of the department, background information, etc., on December 12, 2018.  Those in attendance included:  Director Susan Cook, Job Candidate, Professor Martha Fischer, and Assistant Director Wendy Johnson.”    Click on Add Notes, write in your explanation, and then click the green DONE button at the top righthand corner.

i.     You need to Add Expenses, by clicking on the green +Expense Report Action button.  Make sure the date corresponds with your expense date. 

(1)   Include the Expense Type under All Types which should bring up all of the expense categories.  (For a meeting with a candidate click on “Meals Hosted”).

(2)   Then, enter the Description of the expense, such as “Hosted Meal costs at Sardines with prospective Music Theory Candidate xxx”.   

(3)   Then, click on Payment. Click on  Personal Funds  to  reimburse you for your expenses.  

(4)   Next, enter the Dollar Amount that you paid.

(5)   How Many People.  Enter the number of people attending this meal.

(6)   Expense Location – Make sure it’s the actual expense location.

(7)   Finally, click on Save at the top of the form.  (This will save your document on the system; if you don’t click it, you’ll lose all of the information that you previously entered).

(8)   To add a new expense, click on the “+” button all the way on the left side of the screen.  Otherwise, you may accidentally eliminate the previous expense that you just saved.  

j.        From there you’ll continue to enter expenses until you’ve completed your reimbursement document.  Once you’ve entered all of this information, and clicked on Save, then you’ll be prompted to click on Review and Submit in the right-hand corner of the screen. 

When you complete that step, an e-mail will be sent to the School of Music Business Office. As the assigned approver for the School of Music, either the Accountant, or the Financial Specialist will be assigned the task of approving each individual’s E-Reimbursement, or returning it to the faculty member for further information, or adjustments.  From there, the entire E-Reimbursement package is sent to the Auditor at the L&S Dean’s Office, and eventually to UW Accounting Services where your reimbursement is processed.  Reimbursements are directly deposited into the Faculty Member’s bank account within 3 – 5 business days. 

If you have further questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to the accounting staff or folks on the third floor. A number of us have been through the process now and can provide assistance.

Gary Barnes
Accountant