Reimbursements

UCSB transitioned to Concur for expense reimbursement processing on February 1, 2022. All expense reports for travel and business meeting reimbursements must be submitted via Concur by a UCSB Employee.

Please Review Prior to Submitting a Report in Concur:

• Process Workflow (below)
• Training Overview

Enter your UCSB e-mail address and click “Next” on the landing page. You will be re-directed to “Sign in with UC Santa Barbara SSO”.

Non-UCSB Employees: If you are not an employee in the UCPath System, your reimbursement will need to be processed by your host as a “Guest” in the Concur system. If you WERE employed by UCSB, but your employment status has lapsed, you will also need to have your reimbursement processed by a staff member and will need to fill out the Guest Traveler Worksheet and possibly also the Declaration of Immigration Status form.

 Process Workflow

Requestor

1. Adds Physics Preparer Delegates:

   Note: A Preparer Delegate will be assigned to verify the Requestor's work. If minor corrections are required, a Preparer Delegate may make them for the Requestor. 

   • Debbie Ceder (dla@ucsb.edu) - General Physics
   • Individual faculty member hosting visitor - Non employee and non-student visitor reimbursements
   • Jennifer Farrar (jfarrar@ucsb.edu) - Non-employee grad student and prospective grad student reimbursements

2. Inputs reimbursement request/report.

3. Emails Preparer Delegate to review reimbursement request/report.

4. Submits request/report when Preparer Delegate verifies compliance.

Note:  If a Preparer Delegate does not review your request/report prior to your submission, you may need to recall a request or recall a report to have it verified first.

Advisor / Supervisor

Reviews and approves request

Physics Department Expense Approver

Receives and reviews the reimbursement request/report.

Note: Reimbursement is forwarded to Business and Financial Services (BFS) for payment processing. For split-funded reimbursements, request is forwarded to administering department(s) for additional funding sources prior to BFS.

 Resources

Prior Approval / (Travel) Cash Advance

Prior approval is recommended, but not required, for each trip.

You may request a (travel) cash advance for expenses incurred prior to a trip. You must create a new Request within Concur, upload original receipts and specifically request a cash advance within 30 days prior to a trip. If the Request exceeds 30 days prior to a trip, a Cash Advance may only be provided for expenses that have already been paid for by the individual. Notify your Preparer Delegate that you have created the Request prior to submission. Please allow for processing time.

Common Coding Info (Sub Accounts)

Sub 3: Travel, Entertainment and Business Expense
Any travel on department funding and all entertainment or business expenses regardless of fund source.

Sub 3: Purchase Reimbursements
Reminder: All purchases should be made via Gateway to the greatest extent possible.

Sub 4: Fabrication
Purchases for any item used in a fabrication.

Sub 5: All Travel Reimbursements on extramural funding
 

Maximum Daily Reimbursement Rates

For travel within the Continental United States, the daily maximum reimbursement rates are:

• $79.00 for meals and incidentals (this is not a per diem, but a daily maximum cap which cannot be exceeded - policy provides for ACTUAL costs of meals up to $79/day)

  Travelers must only request reimbursement for actual costs, up to $79

  Since receipts aren’t required, you may wish to keep a log so you know how much to claim detailing each meal each day

  Incidentals are tips and fees (e.g., baggage handlers, hotel staff, etc.)

  Other miscellaneous business expenses incurred while traveling (e.g., Internet service, meeting supplies, etc.) are reimbursable, but not calculated against the $79

• $333.00/night for lodging before taxes

• Allowable exceptions to the maximum lodging reimbursement maximums may be submitted via the Lodging Limit Justification Form.

Required Receipts

Per UC Policy, receipts are only required for:

• Airline Passenger Receipts*
• Rental car receipts**
• Lodging receipts (must be itemized to show nightly rates, applicable taxes, etc.)
• Conference Registration receipts
• Any single expense (including a meal expense) of $75 or more
• Any gift provided to a host costing $25 or more

*U.S. Flag Carriers must be used for travel on federal funds. Tickets classified as economy or coach class, including economy-premium, economy-plus, economy-elite or similar label as well as charges for seat selection are allowed without exception. Business and First Class are generally not allowed without additional documentation and approval in special circumstances defined by policy.

**UC rental contracts with Hertz, National, Enterprise, Dollar, and Thrifty include liability insurance. If you reserved the car through Connexxus, decline the additional insurance offered at the rental counter.

Additional details and required receipt information may be found on the Common Types of Supporting Documentation.

Submitting an Expense Report for a Guest

Reimbursements for non-UCSB Employees (not in UCPath) must be processed by a host as a “Guest” in the Concur system.

To begin the process, submit a ticket via Service Now:
https://ucsb.service-now.com/payment

• Select "Concur"
• Select "Request a New Guest Traveler" (you will need the traveler's legal name, mailing address, phone number, and email address)