Travel & Expense Reimbursement Policy AUSTRALIA

Transcription

1 Travel & Expense Reimbursement Policy AUSTRALIA 1 POLICY STATEMENT William Demant Holding - Pacific Region, hereafter referred to as The Company aims to provide guidelines relating to business related travel and associated expenditure undertaken by employees as part of their employment. This policy aims to provide a fair and reasonable set of guidelines for employees travelling either domestically or internationally with regard to: Booking flights and accommodation Reimbursement of business related expenses Kilometre reimbursement The Company may vary the policy or procedure at its discretion and advise the appropriate employee(s) of these changes. 2 APPLICABLE TO This policy applies to all individuals employed with any employment entity of the Company within Australia and to all contractors engaged directly with the Company. The employment entities are as listed: Oticon Australia, Sonic Innovations, Bernafon Australia, Interacoustics. This policy also applies to all travel (domestic and international), work functions including social functions (both on and offsite), Christmas parties or business related conferences and seminars. 3 ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES Employee It is the Employee s responsibility to ensure: All travel bookings (flights, accommodation and car rentals) are booked through the Company s travel booking system, Egencia. Compliance with this and other applicable policies when booking travel, including those of the service provider. A base ticket category is purchased (i.e. non-flexible/non-refundable ) and flight changes must be kept to an absolute minimum (e.g. early meeting finishes does not mean changing to earlier flights). All travel is planned carefully and authorised well in advance, adhering to minimum booking periods wherever possible to take full advantage of discounted airfares & accommodation. Travel requirements must not be added at the last minute so as to avoid exorbitant airfare costs. That this policy is read and understood and expense accounts are submitted accurately and promptly. That an Employee Reimbursement Claim form be submitted for approval and payment within thirty (30) days of the end of trip, with their direct Manager. No self-approvals are allowed. Page 1 of 8

2 Approver (Line Manager) It is the Approver s responsibility to ensure: Their employees business trips are planned carefully and authorised in advance. In addition, they must ensure expenses are in full compliance with this and other applicable policies, keeping department budgets in mind. Consideration is given to bookings marked out of policy to ensure valid reasons are supplied by the employee for their selection of flights or accommodation & transportation. Their employee s read this policy carefully and are responsible for ensuring that expense accounts are submitted accurately and promptly. All Employee Reimbursement Claim forms are approved by the employee s line manager, no self-approvals are allowed. Group Travel Coordinators The Company aims to empower all employees with the responsibility for coordinating their own travel arrangements. It is acknowledged that assistance will be required from time to time and as a result the Company has nominated a small group of employees, to undertake additional responsibilities, to provide support for the Company s travel booking system. The responsibilities of the Group Travel Coordinators include: To assist employee s with setting up an Egencia profile To apply corporate credit card details to employee profiles where applicable To assist with any escalated issues employee s may experience with the booking system To assist with international, multi-city itineraries Airline Frequent Flyer Programs Travelling employees may retain frequent flyer programme benefits. However, participation in these programmes must not influence flight selection resulting in incremental costs to the company as defined in this policy. The company encourages employees to join the Virgin Australia or Qantas frequent flyer programs, however membership of these programs is at the employee s own expense. Airline Lounge Membership Employees who are required to travel frequently as a requirement of their position, will be eligible for membership to one airline lounge and is subject to approval from the relevant Managing Director. Frequent travel is defined under this policy as a minimum of once per month or 12 times per year. Page 2 of 8

3 4 TRAVEL BOOKINGS FLIGHTS & ACCOMMODATION Our aim is to provide employees with an efficient travel solution enabling access to global travel providers that can cater to local needs. Through the facilitation of a corporate partnership, the Company is able to deliver to employees a simple and hassle free system, avoiding upfront expenses being incurred by employees. The Company s travel booking system is facilitated by Egencia. Flights It is important for all employees to have a clear understanding of the Company guidelines when making flight selections. The table below specifies these guidelines for both domestic and international travel. These guidelines have been incorporated into Egencia, the travel booking system, to assist with flight selections within policy. For international, multi-city itineraries please contact a Group Travel Coordinator. Flight Class Domestic Travel Trans-Tasman Travel (between Australia and NZ) International Travel Economy Economy Economy Economy # International Travel (> 12 hrs direct) Minimum booking period At least 7 days prior to departure At least 7 days prior to departure At least 14 days prior to departure At least 14 days prior to departure Airline choice* Yes Yes Yes Yes Allowable variance to best fare of the day AUD $50 AUD $100 AUD $250 AUD $500 * Flexibility to book flights with choice of airline, ensuring that the fare is within the allowable variance of the best fare of the day. Any flights that are out of policy will be flagged in the approval process. # The global WDH travel expectation is that all employees travel via Economy class. Any deviations from this will require approval from the relevant Managing Director. Accommodation For accommodation the Company has set some guidelines for what hotels usually cost in various cities. All accommodation bookings must be booked through the Company s travel booking system, Egencia. Employees are expected to use reasonable judgement when selecting accommodation. As a guide no more than $200 per night (except in Sydney, Perth and Brisbane - $250 per night) would be considered reasonable. These rates will be subject to regular review. It is standard practice for a hotel/ service provider to request a credit card to be presented upon check-in, to cover any incidentals during the stay eg. breakfast, minibar etc. These costs will be reimbursable in accordance with this policy. Page 3 of 8

4 What happens if I book out of policy? If any part of an itinerary is out of policy, the employee will be required to submit a reason to their immediate manager before it is sent off for approval. In the approval that goes to the Approver/ Manager, the system will also show alternative fares that could have been purchased. The Approver will be expected to keep department budgets in mind upon approval. Cancellations Where flights and/or accommodation are cancelled due to unavoidable circumstances and needs to be rescheduled for an alternative date there may be additional fees incurred by the Company as result of variance in fares. In these circumstances, the employee s line manager must be notified immediately and authorisation obtained for any changes. Where flights and/or accommodation are cancelled due to unavoidable circumstances (no reschedule), the Company will incur a cancellation fee. This will not be passed onto the employee. In circumstances where an employee fails to check-in for their scheduled flight and/ or accommodation, with no reasonable explanation, all costs of the flight and/ or accommodation in addition to cancellation fees, will be the responsibility of the employee and not reimbursable to the Company. Partner Travel The company will not reimburse travel and entertainment expenses incurred by an employee s partner/ spouse/ dependents accompanying an employee on business. The company s travel insurance will only provide coverage for the employee. 5 BUSINESS TRAVEL INSURANCE Insurance Provider: ACE Insurance Limited Contact No.: Online: aceassist.com Oticon Australia, Sonic Innovations, Interacoustics Bernafon Australia 01ET ET ACE Business Travel Insurance provides coverage for the common risks that staff encounter on domestic trips, along with the complex exposures that arise when employees travel internationally. ACE Insurance provide a team of medical, travel and crisis management specialists who are available to assist 24 hours 7 days a week. Employees covered under this policy can access these support services anywhere in the world. Coverage Medical, Evacuation and Additional expenses Cancellation and Disruption Baggage and Travel Documents Political and Natural Disaster Evacuation Accidental Death and Disability Rental and Personal Vehicle Excess Alternative Employee / Resumption of Assignment Kidnap and Ransom / Extortion Hijack and Detention Personal Liability Extra Territorial Workers Compensation Search and Rescue Expenses Page 4 of 8

5 6 TRANSPORTATION - GROUND Airport Transfers & Parking Reasonable cost-efficient methods of transportation to and from airports should be used and receipts obtained. Hotel / Airport shuttles or Airport express should be used where practical. Wherever possible pre-booked parking at airports should be utilised. Taxi & Private-Hire Car Usage (tax invoice and ABN) Local transportation costs incurred for business purposes are permissible and will be reimbursed by the Company. With the emergence of a variety of services in the taxi and private-hire car sector, the Company supports the use of the following options: Taxi Private-hire car (including Uber services) Within Australia, the use of these services will only be reimbursed if the service provider can provide the employee with a tax invoice stipulating the registered ABN. The employee s line manager will be required to approve the use of the transport costs incurred, keeping in mind department budgets and any variations to policy. Motor Vehicles Rental Cars All car rentals must be booked through the Company s travel booking system, Egencia. The Company s preferred car rental provider is Avis. Where Avis is not available, please choose the cheapest option. Employees are requested to book a rental car practical for the traveller s purpose. It is the policy of the service provider for a credit card to be presented, in person, upon vehicle pickup as a security bond. Personal Vehicle Usage When using a personal vehicle for business purposes, employees will be reimbursed per kilometre travelled, which covers depreciation, insurance and fuel. The rate will vary from time to time to ensure compliance with modern award provisions. Claims for reimbursement will be provided in the following circumstances: Kilometres travelled from the employee s normal workplace to an alternative workplace and then back to the normal workplace Kilometres travelled from home to an alternative workplace with the distance from the normal workplace to the alternative workplace to be claimable Where tolls and parking fees are incurred as part of business related travel The mileage and destination points should be stated clearly on the Expense Reimbursement Claim form. Employees cannot claim normal trips between home and the workplace, even if: minor work-related tasks are undertaken between home and the workplace eg. Dropping mail in the postbox travel between home and the workplace more than once a day employee is on call there was no public transport near work Employees who receive a travel or motor vehicle allowance or have been provided with a Company maintained vehicle, will not be eligible to claim kilometre reimbursement. Page 5 of 8

6 7 OTHER EXPENSE ITEMS Telephone & Internet Usage Business phone calls and personal calls to home of reasonable amounts are both reimbursable. Where the traveller has been supplied with a company provided mobile telephone, this should be used in preference to the hotel telephone. Hotel internet connection costs will be reimbursed provided the usage constitutes a valid business expense where the accommodation package with the hotel does not provide a free WIFI / Internet service. Ensure data roaming is turned off (mobile phone) during overseas visits to avoid additional data usage charges. For those employees with a company provided mobile phone telephone, it is important to contact IT Service Desk prior to travelling overseas. IT will ensure the appropriate international settings are applied and provide advice to the employee with regard to data roaming settings for and internet access. Refer to the Computer, & Internet Use Policy for further information. Meals Employees will be reimbursed for main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) whilst travelling for work purposes. Employees are expected to use reasonable judgement in selecting meal options. As a guide, no more than AUD $80 per day should be spent on food and beverage. The consumption of alcohol needs to be responsible and in compliance with the Company s Alcohol and Drug policy. Exact cost of meals, including tips, must be shown in the Expense Reimbursement Claim form. In the event that a traveller entertains during their trip, the expense needs to split between Travel and Entertainment based on a simple method of total cost divided by the number of attendees, specifying no. employees. i. Travel items internet usage, individual meals, parking, taxi ii. Entertainment group meal/ business meal with clients & employees, Reimbursements will only be put through upon presentation of tax invoices. Any other meal expense in the employee's base city should be explained fully and approved specifically by their line manager. Miscellaneous expenses Gratuities for bellhop, taxi and meals, etc. are not reimbursable unless it is local customary practice and should be appropriately documented on receipts. As a guide we would anticipate this to be around 10%. All gratuities will need to be approved by the line manager. Laundry as a guide where an employee is travelling for a minimum of 5 business days, reasonable laundry services will be reimbursable. The following list of expenses are deemed private in nature and not reimbursable by the Company. They include, but are not limited to: - Fines and penalties - Scams, frauds and illegitimate schemes - Interest on overdue amounts and late payment penalties - Child and pet minding expenses - Personal subscriptions and memberships - Entertainment expenses ie. movies and health clubs Page 6 of 8

7 8 BUSINESS MEETINGS & ENTERTAINMENT Business Meetings & Events Expenditure on business meetings and events requires pre-approval by the relevant Managing Director and must be reasonable given the type of meeting and the attendees. Alcohol should be limited and in accordance with the Alcohol and Drug policy. When expenditure is made in connection with business meetings the following information will need to be provided at the time of requesting approval: Entertainment Date and time of the meeting Place (name and location) Specific business reason for meeting and nature of the business discussion or business activity A copy of the meeting agenda must be attached List of proposed participants to establish business relationship of the persons in attendance Anticipated cost of the event The Company requires that business entertainment be conducted for the benefit of creating lasting business relationships or team planning activities. Restaurant and entertainment expenses must be kept to reasonable amounts. Where it is anticipated that expenditure will exceed the pre-set limits, authorisation from the Senior Manager is required. As we aim to project a professional image to our clients and suppliers, entertainment should be conducted at appropriate venues with appropriate professional behaviour maintained for the duration of the event. 9 PROCEDURES & REFERENCES Receipts and Record Keeping for Reimbursement It is the employee s responsibility to complete the expense claim form, obtain their Manager s approval and ensure that all tax invoices/ receipts are attached before providing this to the Accounts Payable team to process. Original receipts (not copies) must be submitted with the expense claim form to document actual expenditures Payments are processed weekly and therefore need to be received by the AP team by midday Tuesday for processing on Thursday. The Company will not be held responsible for any charges incurred on employee s personal credit card as a result of late submission of expense claims. Exchange Rates Expenses submitted must be translated to Australian dollars using: The actual exchange rate at the time of the currency exchange or; The actual rates billed by the credit card company a bank statement can be provided to show actual expense incurred. Page 7 of 8

8 Lost Tax invoices/receipts All expenses on the Expense Reimbursement Claim form without proof of tax invoice or receipt will not be reimbursed. 10 RELATED RESOURCES TOOLS AND LINKS Egencia video guides: Expense Reimbursement Claim form Additional support can be obtained through contacting the Group Travel Coordinators at Policy History The Company may vary the policy or procedure at its discretion and advise the appropriate employee(s) of the changes. Date Introduced: 31 August 2015 Version number: Version 1.0 Functional Owner: DGS People & Culture Policy Approval: Pacific Management Group Date of Next Review: August 2016 Page 8 of 8