Friday, June 28, 2019

60-day reimbursement policy clarification

A situation that recently arose in a CSE department highlighted an aspect of the University's travel policy that I want to be sure everyone is aware of.  The 60-day window for requesting a reimbursement in a timely manner starts at the conclusion of the business component of a trip.  This means that if someone adds personal travel days on the end of a business trip, the 60 days start counting from the conclusion of the business portion of the trip, not from the return date of the overall trip.  This is because taking personal time after a business trip is not relevant to the University's requirement of requesting reimbursement within 60 days of a business trip.

This came up in an RCO audit, and the policy owner verified this as a correct interpretation.  Please be sure travelers are aware of this, because, to be frank, the policy itself is not clear as it is now worded.  Future revisions to the policy will make this clear.  In the meantime, we are now on notice that this is how the policy is to be implemented, and, as you know, violation of the 60-day requirement results in a reimbursement being taxable income to the traveler and the charges cannot go on sponsored projects.  And, I can assure you that central is monitoring and enforcing late reimbursements not being allowed on sponsored projects absent an extraordinarily compelling extenuating circumstance.  DJP