While business and personal travel can be combined, UCAR funds can only be used to pay for the business portion of expenses. All other expenses are paid by the traveler.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

Pay for Business and Personal Expenses Separately When Possible

Travelers should only request reimbursement for expenses related to the business component of the trip. This is easier to do when business and personal expenses are paid for separately and especially when business expenses are paid via the Travel Card (T-Card).

Note Personal Days on Travel Request and Expense Report

Travel requests and expense reports each have an area to note whether personal travel is included and, if so, the days. Entering this information helps approvers and travel auditors understand each trip’s timeline and expenses when approving requests.

Know Who's Paying for the Airfare

In order for UCAR to pay for the airfare, the number of days of personal travel must be less than or equal to the total number of days required for the business travel.


Obtain an Airfare Comparison Quote Before the Trip Starts

If UCAR is paying for the airfare (see above), an airfare comparison quote is needed to document what transportation would have cost for the business-only trip. One must be obtained from either Concur or Cain Travel prior to the start of the trip and be attached to the expense report.


Helpful Hints When Obtaining Airfare Comparison Quotes

  • To obtain an airfare comparison quote from Concur, simply search for flights for the business-only trip. Then, click the Print/Email link to the upper left of the flight matrix (grid). For a quote that’s ready to attach to the expense report, print the quote and select “Save as PDF” as your printer.
  • Attach airfare comparison quotes to expense reports using the Airfare Comparison expense type.
  • Learn how to search for flights in Concur.



Prorate Expenses that Contain Both Business and Personal Portions

Sometimes it’s not possible to pay separately for the business and personal portions of an expense, such as for lodging, rental cars, and airport parking. When this happens, prorate the expense in proportion to the number of days used for business versus the number of days used for personal travel.

For Expenses Paid via the T-Card

Add each expense to the expense report. Assign the business portion to the appropriate expense type and assign the personal portion to the Personal/Non-Reimbursable expense type, itemizing when needed.

For Expenses Paid Personally by the Traveler

Only add the business portion of each expense to the expense report by selecting the appropriate expense type. Do not include the personal portions on the expense report.


Incremental differences in cost due to personal travel, such as a rate increase for additional guests to stay in the hotel room, are to be paid by the traveler in full.



Enter Per Diem Itinerary

There are two ways to enter the per diem itinerary:

Option #1 - Reflect the Business-Only Trip

Enter the per diem itinerary for what the business-only trip would have been, regardless of the actual travel days.

Example

Susan’s conference begins Sunday night and ends Wednesday afternoon. She begins her trip on Friday so she can see the sights while she’s there. However, she would have began her trip Sunday morning if she didn’t include personal travel.




Option #2 - Include All Days of Travel (Even Personal Days)

When including all days of travel, consider the first and last days of travel as business, even if they weren’t, and enter the business destination as the destination for the personal days. This is necessary for Concur to correctly calculate 75% of per diem for the first and last days of the trip. Then, exclude per diem entirely for the personal days.

Example: 

Susan’s conference begins Sunday night and ends Wednesday afternoon. She begins her trip on Friday so she can see the sights while she’s there and receives per diem for this day since it’s her first day of travel. She excludes Sunday’s meals completely because, even though her conference begins Sunday night, she’s receiving per diem for Friday even though it’s a personal day.




Be sure to use the meal checkboxes to deduct meals provided during the business travel days.



When Driving Rather than Flying

  • Obtain an airfare comparison quote before the trip starts to document what a faster means of transportation would have cost for the business-only trip.
  • The combination of mileage, lodging, and driving per diem is reimbursable up to the total of business-only airfare (documented on the comparison quote) plus flying per diem.
  • Travel time in excess of estimated flying time, which includes travel time to/from airport and arrival time before flights, is charged as Paid Time Off (PTO) or Leave Without Pay.