Hampshire College

Travel and Reimbursement Form

The College requires travelers to file a Travel and Reimbursement Report within thirty days of trip completion. Employees on extended work assignments off campus must file expense reports every 45 days. Please use one report per traveler per trip. Any and all expenditures and reports are subject to audit and review.

The following information is required on the form for reimbursement:

• Travel dates
• Business purpose of the activity
• Identification of those in attendance
• Destination or establishment where the activity took place
• Account number
• Amount to be reimbursed
• Traveler’s signature: The traveler must sign and date the expense report certifying to the best of his/her knowledge that the information contained on the form is accurate and that all claimed expenses are allowable and incurred in the conduct of official College business. Signing, stamping, or initialing another person’s name is not allowed.
• Approver’s signature: The Approver must have authorization to sign for the account being charged. The Approver cannot be the traveler. The Approver should not report to the traveler. Signing, stamping, or initialing another person’s name is not allowed.

Expenses in a Foreign Currency

Expenses incurred in a foreign currency must be converted to U.S. dollars by the traveler. The exchange rate at the time the expense was incurred and the U.S. dollar equivalent must be provided on all receipts. Written documentation must include the exchange rate and date. This may be in the form of a receipt of currency exchange, credit card statement with exchange rate listed, etc. If neither is available, the College preferred web site at which the conversion may be calculated is http://www.oanda.com/convert/classic. Please print out the information provided by the website and include with the original receipts.

Substantiation

The IRS requires that requests for reimbursements to individuals be substantiated with original receipts for all expenditures. Original invoices and receipts must not be altered. For on-line purchases, a screen print of the confirmation screen or e-mail acknowledgement is acceptable. Where there are no original receipts, a Missing Receipt Affidavit (see section below) must be completed and submitted. A canceled check is not acceptable in lieu of receipts. Like a credit card statement, a cancelled check merely indicates that an item was purchased. It does not provide complete documentation to ensure that the expense activity was legitimate for College business purposes. In addition, only the submission of the original receipt (or a completed Missing Receipt Affidavit) ensures that the item is submitted for reimbursement only once.

Therefore, individuals who charge travel expenses (such as airfare or conference fees) to a personal credit card will be reimbursed for those expenses AFTER the trip has been completed when substantiated by original receipts and boarding passes.

Reimbursements are made by check, payable to the employee or other approved traveler incurring the expense, and will be mailed directly to the employee’s campus PO box or the payee’s home address for non-employees.

The IRS uses the business purpose to determine if reimbursement of a trip is taxable income to the traveler.

Documentation Requirements

The College requires travelers to submit the following documentation to substantiate expenses on their expense report form:

• Air/Rail – original receipt (if available). If electronic ticket, provide the original boarding pass with original receipt along with the web page receipt or confirmation letter with itinerary and amount charged to the traveler’s credit card.
• Hotel – hotel folio, reservation statement, or bill.
• Car Rental – car rental agreement receipt.
• Personal Car Usage – receipts for tolls and parking and daily mileage log.
• Meals/Entertainment – credit card receipt or cash register receipt (no restaurant tear tabs).

All receipts must include the name of the vendor, location, date, and dollar amount. Credit card statements or record of charge slips accompanying the monthly billing statement are not acceptable in lieu of receipts.

For purchases made on-line, provide the following attached to the request for payment form:

• Printed on-line receipt which includes the requester’s name, method of payment, credit card number (if applicable), and items purchased
• All packing slips received with the shipped item(s).

Missing Receipts

A Missing Receipt Affidavit must be completed for all original receipts which are not available. The form must be signed by both the traveler and the Approver with a complete explanation of the expense and the reason for the missing receipt.
In the event of a missing airline receipt (last page of ticket stub), the affidavit must be accompanied by some form of documentation. The agency issuing the original ticket must be contacted and a copy of the receipt requested. All agencies are required by the Airline Reporting Commission to keep copies of every ticket they issue. If the traveler is unable to obtain a copy of the airline receipt, a copy of the itinerary and one of the following must be included with the Missing Receipt Affidavit.

• Credit card charge slip.
• Record of charge and billing statement.
• Canceled check or other record of payment.

Incorrect or Incomplete Expense Reports

Expense reports that are incorrect or incomplete:

• Will be returned to the approver for corrective action.
• May result in reimbursement of a lesser amount.
• May result in delay of reimbursement.

Grant (Sponsored Program and Research Project) Travel

Domestic and foreign travel charged to a grant should follow the guidelines set forth by this policy unless the funding agency imposes additional restrictions. The terms of a particular grant or contract should be referred to for guidance on which expenditures are allowed. Federally funded grants are subject to the guidelines set forth in the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-21, Section 48, Travel Costs. The authority for determining which travel expenditures are reimbursable under a particular grant or contract rests with the principal investigator or grant manager.