Travel Policy & Procedure
Issuing Office: Controller’s Office
Policy Number: FY09-CON-002-01
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Policy Name: Employee Travel Policy & Procedures
Original Date Issued: December 5, 2008
Revision #: 01
Date last Revised: August 26, 2009
Purpose of Policy
To support employee travel while on official UMass Boston business with procedures that ensure travel reimbursements are processed according to the Travel Policy set forth by the President’s Office and the Board of Trustees (T92-031, Appendix B) and within the procurement guidelines established by the UMass Boston Office of Contracts and Compliance. This policy also provides standards and guidelines for the effective utilization of the University’s Employee Expense Reimbursement System.
Applicable to:
This policy pertains to all employee travel expenditures by University of Massachusetts Boston employees on official UMass Boston business, regardless of source of funds.
Travel expenses for non-university employees, such as consultants, speakers, lecturers, visiting professors, candidates for positions, and students are reimbursed in accordance with contract for services and vendor payment procedures.
Definitions:
Account Signatory - The individual(s) who have primary authority for financial approval for their respective departments and accounts. This signature must be documented in the Signature Authorization log located in the Controller’s Office. Additional signatory approvals may be required by internal control procedures such as the Principal Investigator for a grant or project.
Chart String / Chartfield – A combination of numbers and/or characters that represent a University Fund-Department-Program for accounting purposes.
Department Head – The person who has operational and fiscal responsibility for a department or higher organizational level.
Domestic travel - Travel within the United States and its Territories (Guam, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands).
Expense Preparer – An employee who has been trained and approved to enter travel and employee expense reimbursements online in the PeopleSoft Expense Module on behalf of a department’s employees.
Foreign or international travel - Travel outside the United States and its Territories (Guam, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands).
Official Travel – Official travel is defined as movement on official UMass Boston business of the University from one's home or normal place of employment to another destination, and return from there either to one's normal place of employment or to one's home. Commuting between one's home and regular place of employment is not official travel (see procedures for expenses eligible for reimbursement).
Official UMass Boston Business - Actions that are necessary, appropriate, and reasonable to meet the programmatic requirements of the University of Massachusetts Boston.
ORSP – Office of Research and Sponsored Programs. ORSP provides a secondary level of approval for external grants and sponsored programs.
Out-of-Pocket Expenses – Amounts paid or committed by the traveler from personal funds.
Per Diem – A daily allowance; usually for meals, while traveling on UMass Boston business (see Domestic and International Travel sections).
Speed Type – A six digit number that is used in the University Finance System which represents the funding source for expenses, i.e.; a Chart String or Chartfield representing a combination of fund-department-program.
Travel Expenses - All travel expenditures regardless of the source of funds related to UMass Boston business.
Policy:
The University Of Massachusetts Board Of Trustees, Policy Doc. T92-031, “assigns to the Chancellor of each campus general responsibility for the approval and control of travel by employees, and the establishment of written procedures.”
To ensure appropriate approvals and management of employee travel, all travel expenses must be pre-approved and for official UMass Boston business only. Employee travel expenses may be paid via reimbursement (corporate travel card or out of pocket expense), travel advance or directly prepaid to the vendor by the University.
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