60 Day Reimbursement Policy

Policy Overview

It is the policy of Harvard University to reimburse individuals for necessary and reasonable travel, entertainment and business expenses incurred while conducting official Harvard University business.

The purpose of this policy is to ensure sound business practices and proper reporting of travel, entertainment and business expenses in compliance with external regulations, including tax regulations under the Internal Revenue Code, federal cost regulations under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-21, and sponsor guidelines.

Expense Reporting by Employee

The following procedures are intended to provide for the timely and accurate reporting of University travel, entertainment and business expenses to ensure compliance with the accountable plan rules to which the University must adhere:

• All employee claims for reimbursement of approved travel and business expenses must be received in the Travel and Reimbursement Office preferably within thirty (30), but no later than sixty (60) days (allowing 10 calendar days for approval and processing time in UIS and 20 calendar days in OAS) after completion of a trip, the date of an event or the incurrence of a business expense .

• To ensure the timely settlement of monthly GE Corporate Card charges, claims for the reimbursement of prepaid expenses for airfare, hotels and conference fees charged to the GE Corporate Card may be made in advance of the trip, event or business expense having taken place.
• Claims for the reimbursement of prepaid expenses for airfare, hotels and conference fees, etc. made Out of Pocket cannot be made in advance of the trip, event or business expense having taken place. Travelers should consider this prior to making their arrangements. Alternatives to paying Out of Pocket include obtaining a GE Corporate Card and booking flights through the Harvard Travel Office to be billed directly to the department. Managers may choose (at their discretion) to place the transaction on their own GE Corporate Card but, in doing so, will become personally responsible for compliance with the 60 Day Policy.
• Educational reimbursements must be submitted within 60 days of the receipt of grades.

• Any claim for reimbursement submitted more than sixty (60) days after the completion of the trip or event will be considered taxable income (and will not be grossed up) and will be included on Form W-2 (and subject to withholding of employment taxes) or on Form 1042-S (and subject to section 1441 withholding), as applicable, unless an approved reasonable exception has been obtained. A reasonable exception depends on the facts and circumstances of the situation and typically involves unforeseen circumstances that provide reasonable cause for the submission of travel and expense reimbursements beyond the 60 day period. Examples of reasonable exceptions include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Personal illness
• Death in the family
• Unanticipated leave of absence
• Travel outside of the country for an unexpected extended period of time

An exception request must be made using the Reasonable Exception Request Form, approved by the Director of Finance (Penny Kaligian), and submitted along with the claim for reimbursement.

• Any claim for reimbursement submitted beyond ninety (90) days after the completion of the trip or event will be processed as taxable income, without exception, and will not be grossed up.

• All claims for expenses left unreported for six months or longer after they are incurred will not be reimbursed.

Expense Reimbursement for Non-Employees

The University will reimburse non-employees (including students, post-doctoral fellows, graduate research assistants, job applicants, lecturers, consultants and other individuals) for business related travel, entertainment and business expenses when the schools and centers have agreed to do so.

Generally, non-employees traveling or incurring business related expenses for the University are required to comply with this policy and payment will be made in accordance with the procedures outlined above. Travel expenses that are properly substantiated, documented and reported on an approved Universal Expense Form will not be reported by the University to the IRS as income. Amounts, which are over and above the substantiated business expenses, or are not accounted for within a reasonable period of time, are reportable to the IRS on Form 1099.

If you have engaged the services of an independent contractor, travel expenses should be part of the overall fee reflected on the vendor's invoice. Do not process a travel reimbursement request for an independent contractor unless this treatment is necessary to meet the requirements of an external sponsor. In those cases, that information should be indicated on the Universal Expense Form (UEF).

For More Information

To see a complete copy of the University’s 60 day Reimbursement policy, go to http://vpf-web.harvard.edu/ofs/travel/pdf/policy.pdf. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact your local Web Voucher (WVR) Coordinator or Financial Partner.