1.1. To provide direction to Ermha staff on the reimbursement of staff and client related expenses.

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1 PURPOSE 1.1. To provide direction to Ermha staff on the reimbursement of staff and client related expenses. SCOPE 2.1. All Ermha staff DEFINITIONS 3.1. Staff For the purposes of this policy Staff refers to all Ermha employees, including paid employees, students, volunteers and MadCap employees CabCharge A single use charge card to pay for taxi fares SCHADS Award Industry award covering Ermha staff Authorised Delegate For the purposes of this policy, an Authorised Delegate is either the CEO or an Executive Director. 4. POLICY 4.1. Staff will be reimbursed for their reasonable out of pocket expenses incurred in the course of their authorised duties. An employee must, wherever possible, obtain authority from their authorised delegate in advance to incur expenses The default method of reimbursing staff is through electronic funds transfer (EFT) Staff can claim a (petty cash) advance to pay for an Ermha related expense. Any advance must be authorised by the Manager Finance beforehand and the advance must be reconciled as soon as practically possible. Any advance over $1,000 must be approved by the Chief Executive Officer Staff will use and fully complete the Payment Request form and have the form properly authorised Expenses should only be authorised if expenditure has actually been incurred Staff will support expenditure incurred by a form of proof of purchase. Wherever possible, this will be evidenced by a tax compliant invoice and receipt, however this may be waived for claims of less than $10. Un-receipted claims are generally not acceptable and will be rejected unless a reasonable written explanation is provided. Page 1 of 5

2 PROCEDURE 5.1. Expense Claim Procedures Staff will: Keep all dockets and/or receipts for work related expenses as proof of payment. Check at the point of purchase that dockets/receipts are clear, correct and tax compliant. Complete a Payment Request form. Attach relevant dockets/receipts to the back of the Payment Request form. Obtain authorisation for applicable items from a financial delegate. Give the expense claim form to Finance for processing Taxis Guidance on other expenses Staff must not charge the cost of home to work taxi journeys to Ermha without the approval of their Manager Staff will obtain valid invoices and/or receipts for travel in taxis for business purposes if they are to be reimbursed for the cost of the journey. Furthermore, their Payment Request form must make it clear where the journey started, the destination and the purpose of the visit Staff should use available Cabcharge vouchers where possible to pay for taxis required for official purposes. On the completion of a journey, staff must complete all relevant sections of the Cabcharge voucher, ensuring the business related nature of the journey is clearly stated Meals Staff can claim the cost of a meal if they are travelling for business purposes and are required to stay at least one night away from their home. The cost of the meal should be reasonable. As a general rule the cost should not exceed the following parameters: breakfast $25, lunch $35, and evening meals $ Staff may apply for a set living away from home allowance at an agreed daily rate in lieu of reimbursement. The allowance will be set at a rate in line with the SCHADS award Sufficient details must be given on the Payment Request form for the authoriser to establish that the above tests are fulfilled. The claim must be accompanied by an itemised receipt Meals with clients are only allowed if the Service Level Agreement with the funding agency allows that particular type of support. Page 2 of 5

3 5.4. Private Cars Used for Ermha Purposes Staff should utilise pool vehicles and taxis for business related travel where practical Staff should utilise public transport if that is more practical and cost effective than travel by car. Ermha will reimburse Myki costs incurred Staff should have authorisation prior to using a private car for business related travel. Where their own private car is used for business purposes the employee is paid an allowance based on a cents per kilometre basis issued by the Australian Taxation Office for the business use of their private car. In this situation the allowance will be included in their Statement of Earnings, a copy of which is provided to the Australian Taxation Office Staff must be alert of any impact on their car Insurance policies when their private cars are used for business purposes Business related travel includes the following: Travel to and from home to a destination other than the normal place of business. Travel to and from the normal place of business to a business related destination All travel to and from the normal place of business to home is not considered business use under any circumstances All payments made to a staff member for the use of a private motor vehicle paid on a cents per kilometre basis will be processed through the payroll system and the total amount paid will be shown in the allowance box on the staff member s annual Payment Summary. PAYG tax will not be deducted from payments of this type it is up to the employee to claim a deduction on their tax return to avoid the payment of tax on the allowance received. The Australian Taxation Office will normally allow a deduction without substantiation of the expenses incurred, up to the allowable rate per kilometre, for a maximum of 5,000km travelled in a financial year. Please seek independent taxation advice if required Travel from home to a destination other than the normal place of business will only be reimbursed if the kilometres exceed the normal travel from home to work e.g. the difference in mileage Road tolls and parking reimbursement Staff may claim reimbursement of tolls and parking costs that relate to Ermha business by providing evidence of expense to an authorised delegate Ermha will not pay for additional fees/costs incurred if the original payment is made by the employee after the due date Professional subscriptions Page 3 of 5

4 Ermha will consider payment of the annual membership or subscription fee to one professional association for employees, where it can be demonstrated that the association is directly linked to the employee's position Staff must submit the usual requisition form for Ermha to pay the membership or subscription fee, each time the fee is due. Where circumstances necessitate the staff member paying the subscription or membership fee themselves, they may an application for reimbursement using the same form. Requisition forms must be approved by their Director The following criteria must be met: 1. Demonstrated link between the staff member s position and the professional association; 2. The association must be a recognised body for that profession, and 5.7. Personal Mobile Telephones Staff may claim expenses incurred for the use of personal mobile phones in the conduct of Ermha business. Ermha will not pay overdue costs or fines incurred Ermha will analyse the use of personal mobile phones for work purposes through monitoring the number of approved reimbursements Ermha will assess approved reimbursements to consider whether an Ermha mobile phone should be issued to a staff member Ermha mobile phones provided to staff for business use are governed by HR 309 Mobile Telephone Policy and Procedure Fines Staff are responsible for parking in appropriate areas and respecting parking restrictions All Staff are personally liable for any fines they may incur even if the fine was incurred whilst travelling on Ermha business including but not limited to; parking and speeding fines Other expenses Other expenses that have not been specifically identified above are claimable as long as they are incurred in the performance of Ermha business and meet the policy directives in paragraph 4 of this document. FORMS AND ATTACHMENTS Request for Payment form RELATED DOCUMENTS BUS 700 Delegations of Authority Page 4 of 5

5 HR 309 Mobile Telephone Policy and Procedure HR 310 Motor Vehicle Policy and Procedure REFERENCES Social, Community, Home Care, and Disability Services (SCHADS) Industry Award VERSION CONTROL VERSION NO. DATE APPROVED: SHORT DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT REVIEW DATE 1. 26/06/2014 New Policy 01/06/2015 Page 5 of 5