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Whether routine or infrequent, many employees will travel on behalf of the University to attend professional meetings and conferences, engage in research, travel with students, and provide instruction.
The University’s travel platform, Concur, provides a streamlined experience in managing all aspects of travel from requesting a travel card, obtaining authorization to travel, arranging travel, and submitting expense reports. Below are selected resources to assist you in remaining compliant with university policy and take advantage of traveler programs to improve your business travel experience.
Getting Started:
Review Policy. All travelers are responsible for being familiar with and adhering to UT FI0705 – Travel policy and related policies. Watch Traveling for the University to learn more.
Know Your Travel Account. When submitting a request to travel or an expense report, the traveler must know the appropriate account to charge for expenses.
Request a Travel Card. Consider requesting a travel card to offset out-of-pocket travel expenses. Watch the Travel Card Overview session to learn about card benefits, the request process, FI0531 – Travel Card policy and card management tips.
Required Travel Authorization. Employees are required to obtain pre-travel authorization via Concur for any international travel or if the employee is requesting a cash advance.
Arranging Travel:
Book with World Travel. Travelers are encouraged to book travel through Concur/World Travel to assist with compliance, benefit from university pricing discounts, and have 24/7 single-point-of-contact support. Learn more in the World Travel Booking session.
NOTE:
If the lodging rates under 150% of the CONUS/OCONUS rates are not available, contact World Travel directly to verify lack of availability of CONUS rates and book over-CONUS lodging with documentation for expense report.
Conference lodging rates are not tracked by Concur/World Travel and must be booked directly with the hotel vendor.
Travel cardholders are required to purchase airfare using Concur/World Travel Agent.
Pre-travel Reimbursement. Reimbursement for airfare earlier than six months prior to the trip date is only available when using Concur/World Travel. Reimbursement for airfare on a personal card is only available if Concur or World Travel are used for booking the ticket.
Traveling:
Mobile Apps. Consider downloading the SAP Concur Mobile to onboard receipts and connecting to companion apps such as TripIt, Uber and Lyft. NOTE: Receipts are required for all expenses over $10 and any toll amount.
Submitting Expense Reports:
Timeliness. Travelers should submit travel card expenses within 30 days of the travel end date with all travel expenses submitted no later than 120 days from the travel end date.
Travel Type Guides. Resources included below provide scenario-based examples for frequent travel types.
In-state Travel. Processing expenses for a single day trip, overnight, and mileage-only trips, including when and how to claim a travel allowance. Related: Concur Profile Setting Recommendations.
Out-of-state Travel. Claiming out-of-pocket and travel card expenses, as well as when and how to claim a travel allowance.
International Travel. Preparing for international travel with your campus office, including the free International SOS service, submitting a request to travel, and claiming expenses.
Conference Travel. Learn the details of preparing for conference travel, including collecting required documentation and requesting approval and guidance on claiming expenses.
Troubleshooting.
Exceptions to Policy, What They Are and Are Not. Travel expenses that do not adhere to university policy, must be submitted as an exception. However, not all expenses that trigger a compliance alert are true exceptions to policy. Join the policy experts to learn about exceptions and how to resolve non-exception alerts.
Lodging Alerts and How to Avoid Them. While lodging is a frequently claimed expense, creating the report line item can be challenging with unique lodging scenarios, receipt itemizations, and built-in compliance based on University travel policy.
Travel Allowance, Per Diem Alerts and How to Resolve Them. When claiming lodging and/or meals per diem, a Travel Allowance is required for compliance validation. This session will review best practices for completing an itinerary and how to address compliance alerts.
Tracking Expense Report Approval. The approval path is visible from within the report under the Report Timeline and includes all required approvals steps and the name of the person who will or did approve the item. The report submission status is visible on the report tile and page area.
Time to Reimbursement. Once an expense report reaches the Approved and in Accounting Review status, the processing team will complete the final compliance review within 10-14 business days. View the report Audit Trail to determine the expected time frame for this required step for all reports with the exception of those using the Mileage Only trip purpose. Mileage Only expense reports only require approval from the department head. Approved reports post to IRIS to issue employee reimbursement via direct deposit within 2-3 days.
Returned Reports. Travelers receiving a returned report should review the comments visible on the report or in the Report Header and adjust as directed. Questions should be sent to the auditor who returned the report.
Reimbursing the University. Travelers that encounter a scenario that results in the traveler owing the university, such as a personal charge placed on a UT travel card, that cannot be deducted from an active expense report should contact the Travel Support Team at travel@tennessee.edu for guidance.
Access Concur
Visit travel.tennessee.edu to access the UT Travel System, Concur, using your UT NetID credentials and DUO two-factor authentication.
Stay Informed
Subscribe to the new travel listserv that to receive information on system changes, training opportunities and traveler tips.
Book with World Travel
Use the Concur Travel module or contact a World Travel agent anytime at 877-210-8189 or during regular business hours at UT@worldtrav.com.
Seek Assistance
Browse for answers to most frequently asked questions in the UT Travel knowledge base.
Review Training and Support offerings or the complete curriculum guide for more in depth travel information. Look for titles with an asterisk (*) to get started.
If you have questions or need additional assistance, please contact travel@tennessee.edu.