Staff Travel & Associated Expenses

Transcription

1 This is an official Northern Trust policy and should not be edited in any way Staff Travel & Associated Expenses Reference Number: NHSCT/11/449 Target audience: This policy is primarily aimed at those staff working in the Trust staff travel payments office. Sources of advice in relation to this document: Please see Point 32 Page 17 Replaces (if appropriate): N/A Type of Document: Directorate Specific Approved by: Liam O Kane, Assistant Director of Finance Date Approved: 13 October 2011 Date Issued by Policy Unit: 1 December 2011 NHSCT Mission Statement To provide for all the quality of services we would expect for our families and ourselves

2 OPERATIONAL PROCEDURE Staff Travel & Associated Expenses Petty Cash 5/6/2008

3 Northern Health and Social Care Trust Staff Travel and Associated Expenses Procedures Contents Para Topic 1 Introduction 2 Purpose or aim of the policy 3 Policy statement 4 Target audience 5 Responsibilities 6 Legislative compliance 7 Limits of this procedure 8 Standing Financial Instructions 9 Issue and amendment of travel and associated expenses procedure 10 Controlled stationery 11 Maintenance of standing data 12 Submission of claim forms 13 Payment methods 14 New travel claimants 15 Receipt of travel forms 16 Processing of claim forms 17 Input to travel expenses computer system (TEX) 18 Payment of travel claims via LAPS 19 Excess mileage (taxable) 20 Subsistence 21 Late night duties allowance Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 3

4 22 Attendance at place of employment outside normal hours 22a Call outs including emergencies 23 Non Executive Directors (NEDs) 24 Interview expenses 25 Courses 26 Authorised Mileage Rate (AMR) Miles 27 Monthly closedown procedures 28 End of year procedures 29 Filing of processed travel claim forms 30 Leased car reimbursements 31 Staff performing duties for another trust 32 Sources of advice 33 Review 34 Equality, Human rights and DDA 35 Alternative formats Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 4

5 1. Introduction The Trust is required to establish and maintain an appropriate procedure for the payment of travel and associated expenses. 2 Purpose or Aim of the policy The purpose of the operational procedure on staff travel and associated expenses is to provide detailed guidance on the operational aspects of processing staff claims. This excludes consultants and junior doctors - details of which are contained in a separate procedure. 3 Policy Statement The application of this procedure will assist staff in the processing of the staff travel and associated expenses claim forms. Note medical consultants and junior doctors are covered in a separate procedure. 4 Target Audience This policy is primarily aimed at those staff working in the Trust staff travel payments office. 5 Responsibilities It is the responsibility of each member of the staff travel payments office to adhere to this procedure at all times. The payments manager will ensure that all staff working in the staff travel payments office have a copy of this procedure and are familiar with its contents. 6 Legislative compliance The Standing Financial Instructions apply at all times and these notes should be read in conjunction with them. 7 Limits of this Procedure This procedure covers the actions necessary from the receipt of a staff travel expenses claim form (or other authorised payments document) by the travel expenses staff to the payment via the salary or wage, payable order or payment by BACS to claimant. In addition to this procedure reference should be made to the manual relating to the Travel Expenses System (TEX). 8 Standing Financial Instructions (SFI) The Standing Financial Instructions apply at all times. Staff involved in the payment of accounts must read and understand the relevant Standing Financial Instructions which are: Non-Pay Expenditure 9 Issue and amendment of travel and associated expenses procedure All staff should endeavour to ensure that procedure notes are kept up to date and represent the most effective working practice. Suggested amendments should be made to Payments Manager and if appropriate the procedure notes will be revised during the annual review. All staff must adhere to these procedure notes at all times. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 5

6 10 Controlled stationery Staff travel claim forms are not treated as controlled stationery. 11 Maintenance of standing data New mileage rates are advised by circulars which are issued by the DHSSPS. The band 5 officer will update the computer system with the new rates immediately so that the appropriate rates are calculated and applied as soon as possible. 12 Submission of claim forms Travel should only be undertaken where it is essential. Staff completing travel or associated claims must note and comply with the declarations contained on the respective forms. Staff must ensure that they have proper insurance which covers business use, and that the vehicle is roadworthy, has been regularly serviced and where appropriate is fully compliant with the Ministry of Transport test requirements. Claims must be completed promptly and submitted as soon as possible after the end of the month to which they relate and no later than 3 months. All claims older than 3 months have to be approved by an assistant director/director. Separate claims should be used for each month. No claims can be submitted in advance. Receipts for meals, car parking etc. must be submitted with the claim. 13 Payment methods All staff travel and associated expenses are checked, calculated and then recorded on the Travel Expenses computer system (TEX) by a band 3 officer and a spot check is performed by the manager on a number of claims each month. The TEX system is interfaced with the Payroll system so that staff receive payment via their respective salary or wage as appropriate. The exceptions to this are: Non-employees who are paid through LAPS Staff who have left the service and have been removed from the payroll system. Under these circumstances, the Payroll department requisition a payable order/manual cheque to be processed and sent to the claimant. 14 New travel claimants When a staff member claims travelling expenses for the first time a written request is made for a copy of the Vehicle Registration Certificate (VRC) and the current insurance certificate. A new VRC is also requested when a claimant has a change of vehicle. The travel expenses staff examine all VRCs and insurance certificates, and relevant details are recorded. Additional information other than claim details is needed to create a staff record. The following information is obtained from HRMS as follows: 1. Staff and block number 2. Date of Appointment 3. National Insurance number Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 6

7 4. Start date 5. Cost centre 6. Job title 7. Conditions of service i.e. AFC or HMDS The TEX is updated with this information. 15 Receipt of travel forms Travel claims are date-stamped when received by travel section. The claims are checked to ensure that they have been signed in accordance with the Authorisation Framework. All staff claims are processed in order of receipt. The staff numbers on all travel claim forms are checked. There are various categories of travel claims: Blue form all staff for business mileage (excluding Home Care workers, who use a pink form which is supplied by the Home Care offices). White All staff for journeys home to base outside normal working hours. Orange Staff who have a transfer of base and are entitled to excess mileage. Purple form all staff claiming fees, mileage, subsistence etc for courses and conferences Peach staff with lease cars All travel claim forms are checked to ensure that: The correct form is used, The form is fully completed, i.e. that all information requested is stated on the form note is essential that the staff number is clearly stated on each form, Both the claimant and their head of department have signed the claim form. Any claim forms that are incorrectly completed are recorded and then returned with a standard returns letter to the claimant s head of department for completion. 16 Processing of claim forms Each journey is checked for mileage claimed. The mileage claim is checked against mileage charts, where applicable. Incorrect stated mileages are amended up or down as appropriate. Claims are checked for passenger miles, subsistence, car park charges, etc. In most cases the mileage payable is the lesser of Home to Home or Base to Base. Mileages and other expenses are totalled and noted in the relevant columns at the bottom of the claim forms. The travel claims should be signed in the for official use only section by the member of staff who has calculated the claim form. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 7

8 Excess mileage, course and leased car claims are exceptional (see separate paragraphs below). 17 Input to travel expenses (TEX) computer system The travel expenses computer system (TEX) is accessed by inputting a password and a user ID code. Staff numbers are obtained from the travel system by entering surname of claimant. Option 1 Input claim details is chosen. If there is more than one month claimed on one form they must be input as separate claims on the computer. The employee s unit and staff number is input from the claim form. At this point details shown on the screen are checked against the form. Any changes in details as shown on the claim forms are made to TEX at this stage. If no changes are required then the date of the claim is entered. At this point the computer will show if a claim has already been made for this period. Care should be taken to ensure that there are no duplicate claims. The registration number and the engine capacity of the claimant s car will be displayed on screen. These are checked against the details on the claim and any changes prompt the request for a copy of the registration book to be forwarded to the Travel section. On receipt of same, amendments are made to the computer records. The type and number of miles as detailed on the summary section of the claim form is input to the computer. Any monetary values e.g. subsistence, car parking fares, are input also at this time. Each claim is input individually and a claim reference is generated from TEX; this should then be written on the claim form. All staff travel expenses are paid via salaries or wages payments. This is facilitated by an interface between the TEX and HRMS. The interface is performed on the dates stated on the salary information timetable. 18 Payment of travel claims via LAPS In the exceptional cases, where travel claims cannot be paid via HRMS, e.g. leavers, volunteers, committee members then these claims are grouped into batches. A batch would normally consist of between 10 and 50 claims but this varies according to the number of claims and expenses processed. LAPS is accessed as follows: 1. Log on to Finance System 2. Log on to LAPS 3. Enter ID and password 4. Access procedure Key the information in as follows: a. Trader number Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 8

9 b. Month of travel c. Total amount for payment d. Remittance code (used to notify staff member of number of miles) e. Analysis code The computer generates the batch number and payment references in sequence. The payment reference is written on to each claim. Travel claims are then filed in payment reference order. Payments via LAPS include course fees, speakers fees, accommodation, hire of rooms, catering expenses, leavers, volunteers and committee members. These are filed in payment reference number. 19 Excess mileage (Taxable) Human Resources advise Travel section, in writing, of staff eligible for excess mileage payment and the period to which it relates. Section of the AFC handbook states: Change of base of work resulting from amalgamation of NHS employers or from acceptance of another post in consequence of redundancy. Employees who are required to change their base of work as a result of a merger of NHS employers or their acceptance of another post as an alternative to redundancy may be reimbursed their extra daily travelling expenses for a period of four years from the date of transfer. The excess shall be calculated on the basis of the bus fares or standard rail travel or if the employee travels by private motor vehicle on the basis of the public transport mileage rate On receipt of the claim form, check that it is signed by both the claimant and their head of department and that HR approval is held on file. Confirm that the dates claimed are correct and calculate claim. These claims may have to be calculated in conjunction with the staff member s business mileage claim. Follow Input to Computer procedure above. 20 Subsistence Night Subsistence (paragraphs 18.3 & 18.4 of AFC Handbook) Short overnight stays in hotels, guesthouses and commercial accommodation When an employee stays overnight in a hotel, guesthouse or other commercial accommodation with the agreement of the employer, the overnight costs will be reimbursed as follows: The actual, receipted cost of bed and breakfast up to the normal maximum limit set out in Annex N (of AFC handbook); plus A meals allowance, to cover the cost of a main evening meal and one other day-time meal, at the rate set out in Annex N (AFC handbook) Where the maximum limit is exceeded for genuine business reasons (for example, the choice of hotel was not within the employee s control or cheaper hotels were fully booked) additional assistance may be granted at Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 9

10 the discretion of the employer. Short overnight stays in non-commercial accommodation (paragraphs of AFC Handbook) When an employee stays for short overnight periods with friends or relatives or in a caravan or other non-commercial accommodation the flat rate sum set out in paragraph 3 of Annex N (AFC handbook) is payable. This includes an allowance for meals. No receipts will be required. Employees staying in accommodation provided by the employer or host organisation shall be entitled to an allowance to cover meals which are not provided free of charge up to the total set out in paragraph 2 Annex N (of AFC handbook) Where accommodation and meals are provided without charge to employees, for example on residential training courses, an incidental expenses allowance at the rate set out in paragraph 6 of Annex N (AFC handbook) will be payable. All payments of this allowance are subject to the deductions of appropriate tax and National Insurance contributions via the payroll system. Travelling overnight in a sleeping berth (rail or boat) The cost of a sleeping berth (rail or boat) and meals, excluding alcoholic drinks, will be reimbursed subject to the production of vouchers. Short-term temporary absence travel costs (paragaph 18.9 AFC handbook) Travel costs between the hotel and temporary place of work will be separately reimbursed on an actual cost basis. Long-term overnight stays (18.10 AFC handbook) After the first 30 nights stay in the same location the entitlement to night subsistence shall be reduced to the maximum rates set out in paragraph 4 of Annex N (AFC handbook). Meals allowances are not payable to these employees. Those who continue to stay in noncommercial accommodation will continue to be entitled to the rate set out in paragraph 3 Annex N (AFC handbook) Day Subsistence (paragraphs AFC handbook) A meal allowance is payable when an employee is necessarily absent from home on official business and more than 5 miles from their base by the shortest practicable route on official business. Day meals allowance rates are set out in paragraph 5 of Annex N (AFC handbook). These allowances are not paid where meals are provided free at the temporary place of work. A day meals allowance is payable only when an employee necessarily spends more on a meal/meals than would have been spent at their place of work. An employee shall certify accordingly on each occasion for which day meals allowance is claimed, but a receipt is not required. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 10

11 Normally an employee claiming a lunch meal allowance would be expected to be away from his/her base for a period of more than 5 hours and covering the normal lunch time period of 12pm to 2pm. To claim an evening meal allowance an employee would normally be expected to be away from base for more than 10 hours and unable to return to base or home before 7pm and as a result of the late return is required to have an evening meal. Employees may qualify for both lunch and evening meal allowances in some circumstances. There will be occasions where, due to the time of departure, there will be the necessity to take a meal but the conditions relating to the time absent from the base are not met. This and any other exceptions to the rules may be allowed at the discretion of the employer. The scope and level of any other payments will be determined by the employer according to local needs on a vouched basis. 21 Late night duties allowance (paragraphs AFC) An employee who is required to work late at night in addition to a day duty may be paid an evening meal allowance at the rate set out in paragraph 7 of Annex L (AFC handbook). It will be for the employer to determine who will be entitled and in what circumstances. Late night duties allowance will be subject to deduction of appropriate tax and National Insurance contributions via the payroll system. 22 Attendance at place of employment outside normal hours (paragraph AFC) This paragraph applies to employees who are required to return to or to attend their place of employment outside their normal hours of duty. This will be in circumstances where they would be entitled to overtime or time off in lieu. In these circumstances any expenses in excess of the expenses they incur as a result of their normal attendance at work and which are actually and necessarily incurred in travelling to and from home shall be reimbursed. This will be on the basis of the public transport mileage rate (Annex L AFC handbook). Claims for expenses should not be met when no additional expenditure is incurred, for example when the employees concerned have a season ticket, or where the time lapse between two consecutive periods is sufficiently short for it to be considered reasonable for the employee to remain at or near their place of employment. 22a Call outs including emergencies Call outs to facilities other than base are paid at Standard/Regular user rate and are non-taxable. Call outs to base are paid at Public Transport Rate (PRT) and are taxable. Staff who may qualify for tax exemption must complete the Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 11

12 relevant separate certificate which permits the claim to be processed without application of taxation. 23 Non Executive Directors (NEDs) Claims for NEDs are paid at Board Members rate. Home to base travel is taxable. Mileage in performance of duties is tax-free. Journeys from home to another destination the lesser of rule applies i.e., Mileage equivalent to the lesser of home to destination or base to destination is tax-free Mileage above base to destination is taxable In Summary Home to The Cottage and return taxable Initial journey from another place (E.g. NED s office) to The Cottage taxable The Cottage to another destination (Other than home) and return to The Cottage non-taxable Home to another destination lesser of rule applies Onwards journeys to a second destination (Including to The Cottage but excluding home) non-taxable 24 Interview expenses Human Resources certify all claims for interview expenses. Human Resources advise Travel section of the department to which the vacancy relates and whether the candidate was successful. HR also advise if subsistence, bed & breakfast or other expenses are payable; if not they delete from travel claim. Interview expenses are only reimbursed if the successful candidate accepts the appointment. All unsuccessful candidates are entitled to interview expenses. Payment is calculated from point of entry into Northern Ireland at PTR. 25 Courses i Course Fees Course approval forms may be received into Travel section and are filed awaiting claims. Requests for payments of course fees, catering charges and hotel accounts may come with approvals or by memo. Travel section check that the payment is in order and code using HRMS (computer system) and coding manual. Payment is made either by BACS or payable order. Course expenses claim forms received by travel section will be checked for a relevant approval. Ongoing course approvals are not attached to claim but refiled awaiting future claims. Books for ongoing courses can be claimed up to a limit of 50 and these are noted on the course approvals. Home-to-Home and Base-to-Base mileages are calculated and the lesser is paid. Mileages are paid as follows: Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 12

13 AFC - Full rate for courses lasting 1-5 days PTR for courses lasting more than 5 days ii Professional accountancy and training scheme The Trust procedure Professional Accountancy and Training Scheme sets out details in relation to this scheme. Annex 1 - Study entitlement states: Reasonable study costs are paid for by the Trust for the first attempt at an exam. These cover Subscription fees to accountancy body College/university registration fees All required study material required by method of study If day release travel allowance Reasonable revision aids The Trust will not pay for: Any re-sits Revision courses Subscription fees following unsuccessful re-sits in the same year. Note: the trainee is required to contribute 100 per annum towards the costs of the scheme. If day release travel allowance is paid at PTR. iii Post entry training e.g. HND, HNC etc Reference should be made to the Guidance for Supporting Staff to Access Post Entry Education produced by Organisation Development Team. iv BSc Honours Written approval is required. All staff changed to Standard users for duration of course (Excess mileage is payable at PTR and liable to tax). No subsistence is payable A book allowance of up to 50 is payable. (a) When at college, you will be entitled to mileage allowances as follows: Home College less home to former base, i.e. the excess (same for return journey). This is payable at public transport rate and is taxed. Entitlement is up to a maximum of 40 miles return each day. As this is excess mileage, there is no entitlement to mileage allowance should your home be closer to the college than to your former base. (b) When on placement (i.e. not attending college) you will be entitled to: (i) Home placement less home to former base, i.e. the excess (same for return journey). This is payable at public transport rate and is taxed. Entitlement is up to a maximum of 40 miles return each day. As this is excess mileage, there is no entitlement to mileage allowance Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 13

14 (c) (d) (e) should your home be closer to the location of the placement than to their former base. (ii) Mileage done when on placement (i.e. business mileage) on calls/visits is payable at standard rate in accordance with the terms and conditions of the General Council Handbook. If you are a designated regular car user you will cease to be so approved for the duration of the Course. The College or University at which the Course is held will be regarded as your base for the duration of the Course and you will be responsible to the Course Tutor. All travelling expenses claim forms should be signed by the Course Tutor and countersigned by the Head of Department. v Diploma in Social Work The Social Services Training Unit will provide instructions as to how the staff expenses are to be paid. General guidance for courses vi Course duration lasting up to 5 days No separate approval is needed for courses lasting up to 5 days in duration. The signed and authorised claim form is sufficient and mileage is paid at the Full Rate (home to home or base to base). No lunch payable if the course is held at a facility with subsidised canteen. Overnight accommodation is paid per the DHSSPS circular unless otherwise instructed by relevant Director/Assistant Director. vii Course duration more than 5 days A copy of the approved course application form should be sent to the travel section. The signed and authorised claim form is processed and mileage paid at Public Transport Rate (PTR) for the lesser of home-to-home or base-tobase mileage. No lunch payable if the course is held at a facility with subsidised canteen. Overnight accommodation is paid per the DHSSPS circular unless otherwise instructed by relevant Director/Assistant Director. Note there are some courses where approval states either 50%, 75% or 100% is payable and this is then applied by the Travel section staff 26 Authorised Mileage Rate (AMR) Miles Staff in the travel section do not, as a rule, process AMR miles. The exception would be where staff calculate the AMR miles and in such circumstances these will be recorded on TEX. 27 Monthly closedown procedures The travel expenses supervisor performs the monthly closedown procedures. Reports are no longer printed; they are now stored to an excel file for future reference. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 14

15 28 End of year procedures A print is generated by TEX at financial year-end under Reports Tax. Two copies are requested, one held by travel section and the other forwarded to the Tax Office. When End of Year procedure is run using option 12, a self-assessment report is produced for all employees on travel system with a tax liability. The profit element is notified to employees via P60s. A Classification Report print is requested on TEX. This prints all staff who have claimed travel/mileage, their travel classification, the number of miles travelled and the number of days of car usage. This print is reviewed by travel expenses supervisor to ensure that staff employed under AFC terms and conditions are meeting the requirements of their classification. The Standard user print is checked for staff travelling over 3,500, 1,250 miles and using their car 3 days a week (interpreted as 130 days per year), or 1,000 miles and spend an average of at least 4 days a week (interpreted as 180 days per year) on such travel, including the duties performed during the visits. (See paragraphs of AFC handbook). Staff meeting these criteria are automatically changed to regular user status from 1 April. Staff are then notified of their new classification. The Regular user print is checked for employees not meeting the above criteria. These staff are notified of their change to standard user. A letter and schedule are sent out for completion by the claimant if they consider the reclassification to be incorrect. This must be forwarded to their Assistant Director for submission to the Payments Manager for revision of status if appropriate. The General Finance Manager reviews all reclassifications. 29 Filing of processed travel claim forms Once staff travel claim forms are recorded on TEX, reference numbers are generated and the claims are then filed in order according to the claims reference number. 30 Leased car reimbursements When a leased car claim is received, (cars leased prior to October 1996), follow the processing procedure and reimburse at 7p per mile. Car leases taken out from and including October 1996 are administered by Fleetcare and no mileage is payable. 31 Staff performing duties for another Trust If staff have claimed travelling expenses while they were working for another Trust, a notification to raise invoice form should be completed and sent to the Debtors Billing Office at Braid Valley site. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 15

16 32 Sources of advice If you require further advice or assistance, please contact the staff travel expenses office. Where possible, please use the tie line, by prefixing the extension number with Name address External Telephone numbers with extensions Sandra Elder ext 6322 Nigel Kane northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6325 Rachael McMillan northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6323 Joan Kennedy northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6324 Susan Wylie northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6315 Juli-Anne Steele northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6309 Harold Kerr ext 6325 Wendy Muir northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6319 Jennifer Lyle northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6313 Brian Montgomery northerntrust.hscni.net ext 6347 Travel expense forms for business and course mileage are available on Staffnet. In addition, Guidance on staff travel and associated claims information is also available on Staffnet. 33 Review This procedure will be kept under review, and its operation and effectiveness will be examined on an annual basis and revised if appropriate. 34 Equality, Human Rights and DDA This policy has been drawn up and reviewed in the light of Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act (1998) which requires the Trust to have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity. It has been screened to identify any adverse impact on the 9 equality categories and no significant differential impacts were identified, therefore, an Equality Impact Assessment is not required. 35 Alternative formats This document can be made available on request on disc, larger font, Braille, audio-cassette and in other minority languages to meet the needs of those who are not fluent in English. Staff Travel Expenses procedure 14/10/11 16