Purchasing Card FAQs

How do I process meal expenses (CONUS and OCONUS) in ERS?

1. Select Travel Allowances from the Company Card Transactions page or the Expense List page;



2. Select the Assign Itineraries link from the Assigned Itineraries page;



3. On the Available Itineraries page, select Create a New Itinerary;



4. Enter the Itinerary Name (same as expense report will assist in identifying the itinerary) and then select "Save & Add Rows";



5. Create an itinerary row with the departure location, date and time and the arrival location, date and time of your destination.



6. Select Save & Create Another Row.



7. Create an itinerary row for each change in overnight location.



8. If an itinerary is for 1-day travel there must be two itinerary rows: one for departure from home location and arrival at destination; one for the return trip to home location.



9. When you have entered all locations, select OK.



10. Select the Fixed Allowances link near the top of the page.
    

A grid will display showing the per diem amount for each day in the itinerary.

In compliance with the University Travel Policy, for any partial travel days the application will prorate that day’s per diem based on a 24-hour day, and the meal allocation will correspond to the hours of the day a person is on travel status:

If any meals were provided during travel by a conference, a business group meal, or another source, select the checkbox corresponding to the provided meal to remove that meal allowance from the daily per diem.  In the event all meals for a day are provided, no meal per diem can be claimed for that day.  However, the incidental per diem amount ($3 for US travel, variable for Non-US travel) may still be claimed at the traveler's discretion.

Individual meals purchased with a PCARD are not provided meals, do not select the meal provided checkbox.  Per diem meals corresponding to individual PCard meals must be included to net against the amount deducted for the PCard meal. 

When all provided meals have been identified, select Save & Go to Expense List.  Each day of per diem expenses will be entered on the Expense List page as a Fixed Meal.

If a PCARD Meal Expense is a group meal:
• edit the expense entry;
• change the expense type to “Group Meals/Mtg (attendees required)”;
• complete all required information.

If a PCARD Meal Expense is an individual meal:
• edit the expense entry;
• select the Deduct From Reimbursement checkbox located below the Comments box.
• select Save & Go to Company Card Transactions.
Repeat the steps for all individual PCARD meals.

The individual PCARD Meal Expense amounts will be subtracted from the total CASH reimbursement amount.

A payroll deduction will occur IF the total of the PCARD meal expenses plus non-reimbursable PCARD expenses exceeds the total CASH reimbursement (the amount a traveler is entitled to for per diem allowances plus cash expenses).

Out-of-pocket Meals: For individual meals purchased with cash or personal credit cards, do not create any expense entries.

All individual meal expenses are reimbursed based on standard per diem rates assigned to each location.  The traveler is eligible for the meal per diem in effect for the location where he or she spends that night.  For the final travel day, the per diem in effect will be that of the prior night's stay.

How do I reduce per diem reimbursement to actuals?

1. Per Diem Allowance: total all Fixed Meal entries on the Expense List page.



2. Actual Expense: total all individual PCard Meal Expense entries and add any out-of-pocket meal expenses.



3. Amount of Reduction: subtract the Actual Expense amount from the Per Diem Allowance amount.

1. From the Expense List page, select Add Expense;



2. Use the Reimbursement Reduction expense type located in the “Other” category;



3. Enter the Amount of Reduction (from the above calculation) as a negative and provide a description;



4. Select Save & Go to Expense List.

How do I process OCONUS lodging charges on my PCard?

1. Mark the box next to the appropriate transaction(s) and click Add Selected Transactions to Report which will move the selected transaction(s) to the section below the Unassigned Company Card Transactions.



2. To edit a transaction assigned to a report, click on the Expense Type of the transaction.

1. The default expense type will be Hotel/Motel on the Company Card Transactions page.
   


2. Use either the Hotel/Motel or the Non-Reimbursed PCard Expense expense type.
   


3. Itemization is still required.
   


4. Select the Deduct from Reimbursement checkbox.

How do I process OCONUS expenses using actuals?

1. Edit the transaction and change the expense type to OCONUS Actual Lodging.
   
   
2. Itemization is still required.
   
   
3. The Deduct from Reimbursement box should not be selected.
   

1. If the expense is an individual meal, change the expense type to OCONUS Actual Meals. The Deduct from Reimbursement box should not be selected.
   
   
2. If the expense is a group meal, select the Group Meal expense type and complete all fields. The Deduct from Reimbursement box should not be selected.

Why do I mark Deduct from Reimbursement on some PCard charges ?

1. The expense is a personal, non-business expense, and should not be paid by the University;
   
   
2. Any non-group CONUS meal -- by policy CONUS meals are reimbursed using per diem;
   
   
3. Any OCONUS non-group meal or OCONUS lodging expense that is not being claimed as an actual. If the traveler used a PCard for an expense reimbursed as per diem, the Deduct from Reimbursement box MUST be checked so the University is not paying for the same expense twice.

NOTE:   If the  Deduct from Reimbursement box is checked, the amount will be offset against any reimbursement due. If no reimbursement is due to the employee, the non-reimbursable amount will be deducted from the employee’s pay.

When do I use Non-Reimbursed PCard Expense vs. Non-Reimbursed Other Expense?

• If the transaction is on a purchasing card, the Non-Reimbursed PCard Expense expense type should be used for any non-business expense that may be included on the receipt.
  
  
• If the expenses were paid by cash or personal credit card and personal expenses are listed on a receipt that also includes business transactions and the traveler is including those personal transactions in the report use Non-Reimbursed Other Expense for the personal amount only. The personal expenses do not have to be included.

How do I process a PCard meal on a lodging receipt?

• If the meal is part of a hotel receipt and the traveler is claiming per diem, the meal needs to be marked non-reimbursed; in the itemization, select the expense type PCARD Meal Expense for the meal(s) and check the Deduct From Reimbursement box.
  
  
• There may be times that a Group Meal is the only charge on the lodging receipt (no room charges) if the traveler had a lunch or dinner meeting in a hotel dining facility. In this case, at the Company Card page, the Hotel/Motel expense type should be changed to Group Meals/Mtg (attendees required). If the traveler is claiming per diem for the day, the appropriate meal provided box should be checked on the Fixed Allowances page. Complete all fields.