Travel Policies
Required departmental approval PRIOR to booking travel: As required by CU policy, all employees planning business travel on behalf of the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience must fill out and submit a Travel Authorization (TA) form that is available online from the Business Office website: http://psych.colorado.edu/business-‐office.html The form is an interactive PDF, which can be completed using the free Adobe Acrobat Reader and emailed for submission. Provide an estimate of the overall travel costs including airfare, lodging, taxi/transportation, and if requested per diem for meals (estimate a general $70/day for meals). You will receive an email notification upon approval of the travel authorization, which is the go ahead to book travel reservations. CU Travel Card: If you have one, use your Corporate Travel Visa Card to pay for hotel and other related travel expenses, EXCEPT it cannot be used to pay for airfare or conference registrations. Save and turn in your receipts to the Psych Business Office. Employee Travel: Airfare: To book your airfare you may either use: (1) The online CONCUR Travel & Expense System Access by going to https://portal.prod.cu.edu/MyCUInfoFedAuthLogin.html à Log in using your Identikey and password à Click on the CU Resources tab à Under ‘Popular Links’ on the left, click on “Business Applications” and then “Concur XXXXXXX (2) Or, contact the University travel agent, Christopher Business Travel. NOTE: The agent assisted booking fee is $20. Provide them with your Speedtype Number. Christopherson Business Travel
5680 Greenwood Plaza Blvd, Suite 300
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
Business Hours: 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Mountain Standard Time)
Toll Free Phone: 1‐855‐462‐8885
Local Phone: 303‐694-8744
Fax: 303‐741‐6329
Emergency After Hours: 1‐800‐787‐2390 (must reference service code
AI79)
Int’l Emergency After Hours: 1‐818‐575‐4313 (collect call using service
code AI79)
Or Email: [email protected]
(3) Or, if you wish to purchase airline tickets personally (not in the CONCUR Travel & Expense System), you must obtain an airfare comparison quote in CONCUR or directly from Christopherson Travel on the same day you personally purchase your airfare (not after the fact!). If the total cost of the personally purchased airfare is less than the CONCUR/Christopherson comparison quote (+ service fee), you can 3/31/15
Travel Tips
proceed with personally purchasing the airfare. Upon completion of your travel, submit for reimbursement your itemized airfare receipt with proof of purchase along with the comparison quote. Without a comparison quote, you may not be reimbursed for personally purchased airfare. Personal Travel Combined with Business Travel: There is a specific policy and procedure for this type of travel. Here’s the excerpt from the Procurement Office Procedural Statement: Requires department approval. Only business-‐related cost of travel is allowable. Exclude non-‐business days from the M&IE expenses on the Itinerary. If air travel is involved, attach a comparison quote (printout from Concur Travel & Expense) to show if extended trip resulted in higher cost. If yes, the traveler is responsible for reimbursing the University for the difference in fare. (Attach validated Cash Receipt form to expense report.) **NOTE: If the quote ends up being less than what was actually paid in airfare here’s how this can be dealt with. If the airfare was paid out of pocket, the difference can be reconciled on the expense report. If the airfare was paid with a speed type than it must be reconciled by reimbursing the University back.** Non-‐Employee Travel: There are three options: (a) We as the employee can call Christopherson and book the airfare using a speed type, or (b) We can fill out the non-‐employee travel form and submit it to Christopherson to authorize the travel. With this form the Christopherson travel agent can proceed to book the travel arrangements, or (c) The traveler can pay out of pocket and get reimbursed. Additional Info: • Free Baggage: Frontier and United Airlines are providing free baggage with the purchase of State Airfare Price Agreement tickets. In order to avoid paying baggage fees, you can verify with your travel agent that you have purchased a ticket from the State of Colorado Airfare Price Agreement.
• If a third party entity is covering the cost of your travel, you still also need to register your trip with iSOS as a no cost trip (domestic or international).
• If you are traveling with a non-‐CU employee (i.e. family member) you may book airfare by calling Christopherson, but you will be personally charged a $20 service fee for the transaction. You cannot book personal travel through the online system.
International Travel: To book international airfare you cannot book online but must contact a Christopherson travel agent (see above for contact information). 3/31/15
•
•
•
Travel Policies
If your travel is supported by federal funds, you will need to comply with the Fly America Act. If you are unsure please contact the Business Office prior to booking. Export Control & your laptop/mobile devices. When traveling to or from another country with these items, keep in mind that they are subject to confiscation. These items are subject to export control and the law may require that you have an export license to travel with these items, internationally. If you have any questions about export controls please contact the Business Office prior to your trip. If we need to get an export license for you, this will take time.
The US government provides information on travel warnings and the World Health Organization provides health alerts. Rental Car: • Use contracted rental agencies: Avis, Budget, Enterprise/National or Hertz, per the automobile rental matrix and pay with your State Travel Visa Card (if you have one) or personal credit card. • Note: Four-‐wheel-‐drive vehicles may only be rented if the trip requires it to access a difficult-‐to-‐get-‐to location. Unless this is the case, travelers must rent two-‐wheel drive vehicles.
• Insurance: Decline insurance when using the State contracted agencies listed above since they provide liability coverage. In most cases, VISA provides Collision/Loss Damage Waiver. Call 1.800.VISA.911 prior to traveling to determine the specific insurance needs applicable to your trip.
• You will need to obtain a rental car receipt that shows actual itemized charges, not estimates, and proof of payment.
• Save (and submit for reimbursement) your gasoline receipts that pertain to the rental car.
DIA Parking-‐Price Agreements: Travelers who need to park at DIA, there are several advantageous price agreements for discounted airport parking. See link below: https://www.cu.edu/psc/payables/diaparking.htm
LAST and Final Step: Travel Expense Reimbursement Reports: The Business Office will create your travel expense report for you. Simply turn in your receipts along with a Travel Reimbursement Request Form http://psych.colorado.edu/business-‐office.html 3/31/15
Travel Tips
Explain anything unusual that may have happened. If you attended a conference be sure to include the conference/meeting program. This will help us calculate your meals per diem allowance that differs by travel location. Detailed information about meals per diem can be found here: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/category/21287 Any meals provided by a conference will reduce your calculated and allowed per diem based upon your travel destination. •
•
•
When the report is ready you will be notified. Logon to the CONCUR Travel & Expense System to review and submit your report.
After you submit your travel expense report, it will route electronically to your approver. You are done!
After your approver approves your report it will proceed to Travel Accounting at the PSC. Once they approve your report, look for a direct deposit of your approved reimbursement.
If you have any travel question, please do not hesitate to ask! Our email address: business-‐[email protected]
3/31/15