GENERAL TRAVEL QUESTIONS

Best practice is to capture (screen shot or print out) the price of the airline ticket without personal days at the same time as booking the actual flight. Other option is to contact a CTP full service agent to determine if the additional days cause an increase in price, any overage cost can be charged to the traveler’s personal credit card and the business expense for the airfare can be charged to the SHSU (ghost card/departmental card.) If travel dates are past and a cost comparison is required, then estimate 2 weeks from the current date and select the same day of the week travel would have taken place to arrive and depart the location for SHSU business.

Airfare and agency fee expenses on the ghost card will be booked to the departmental FOAP based on the information entered in Concur.

Expense on the travel card will be booked back to the department as a Journal voucher.

1. Personal days inculded with business travel requires the need for a cost comparision to verify conservation of funds.

2. When traveling out of state, it is typically cheaper to fly, so travelers should provide a cost comparision of a flight vs mileage to drive to specific location.

3. Fuel cost vs reimbursement of mileage in personal vehicle. Traveler will be reimbursed the lesser of the two options.

Signatures are determined by the location of travel and what is being requested. Instate – Director or Chair and Dean; Out of State – Director and VP, Academic – Chair, Dean, and VP.; Foreign – Same as out of state approval including President’s approval.

Expense report will need approval on the FOAP line indicated by initials of preparer to verify the change of FOAP is not a data entry error.

The traveler is required to sign the expense report to confirm the expense are true and accurate. A second signature (supervisor) is required if the amount of the expense exceeds the approved requisition by 10%.

Agency fee has a designated field on the expense report when paid by personal card/travel card.

Enter $0.00 in the airfare & agency fee fields, then enter the specific airfare & agency fee amount on the ghost card field designated for Ghost Card Airfare & Agency Fee Amount at the bottom of the form. Travelers will need to provide the invoice itinerary from CTP/Concur for verification of airfare purchase.

Affirmation, Waiver and Liability Release Form; Daily Itinerary while in foreign country; Emergency contact list. Office of International Programs reviews that documentation is attached to requisition.

Documentation that states the conference room rate provided by the conference organizer. Best practices is to screen shot/print the list of hotels on the registration page at the time of booking the hotel reservations.

Lodging rates can be found at www.gsa.gov for the per diem rate look-up by location. Travelers on state funds are limited to the GSA per diem for the lodging rate (nightly rate) at the location of rest. Travelers on local funds can exceed the GSA by 50% for the per diem lodging rate at the location of rest.

An exception signed through the appropriate VP is required for expense that exceed policy (over 50% of the lodging rate when traveling on local funds). If the expenses are not approved, then the traveler will be limited to the policy and the hotel taxes will be adjusted to the correct amount based on the allowed nightly rate.

Yes. Conference hotels can booked through the conference website. The traveler can book outside the Concur/CTP tool for conference hotels.

Yes. Meals that meet the requirement of a business meal must provide receipt, list of attendees, and an approved FO-19 form.

No. Meal receipts should not be submitted with the expense report. Meals must be documented as a total per day on the expense report. The first and last day of travel are limited to 75% of the GSA rate determined by the destination city.

Commute mileage is only taken into consideration for Non-Overnight travel on local funds. State funded travel is limited to the distance from Headquarters.

List of required receipts: Itemized Hotel Bill, Car Rental, Registration Fee (when not paid by Pcard), Airfare with ticket number, Fuel, Parking, and Tolls.

Tolls and parking receipts can be itemizes on a log, providing the date, amount, and location. EZ Tag statements can also be provided as documentaion for tolls.

New employees will need to be set up in Banner as a vendor. Email travel@shsu.edu to request set-up by providing the employee’s name and SamID.

Yes. Requisitions are required for in-state overnight, out-of-state and foreign travel locations providing approval to be away from headquarters and allows expenses to be allocated correctly on the expense reports.

1. If a student has their own requisition, then the expense needs to be itemized on the expense report.

2. If a student is traveling with faculty/staff and was included in the facutly/staff requisition, then all student expenses are totaled together and documented on the student field of the expense report.

1.If a student is traveling without faculty/staff.

2.If a student is going to be reimbursed for their expenses related to SHSU business.

Release & Indemnification Agreement form should be attached to the Banner Requisition. Medical Emergency Form is kept at Department level with availablily to faculty/staff leader.