Expense Reimbursement Policy
Expense Reimbursement Policy
Overview
Purpose: The Bowdoin College Employee Expense Reimbursement Policy (formerly the Travel Policy) provides specific guidelines for College travel and other employee business expenses. This reimbursement policy is an accountable plan as defined by the IRS. As such, expense reimbursements made to employees must meet the following rules:
- Expenses must have a business connection
- Employees must adequately account for expenses within a reasonable period of time (generally within 60 days of when the expenses were incurred)
- Any amount paid to an employee that is more than the business related expenses that have been adequately accounted for must be returned to the College within a reasonable period of time (generally within 120 days after the expenses were incurred)
As long as these three rules are met, expense reimbursements will not be included in an employees W-2.
Scope
This policy applies to all employees of the College. It covers expenses paid for with personal funds or charged to a Corporate Credit Card. Departmental policies, grants or other funding sources may impose additional restrictions beyond those required by this policy.
Certain travel by faculty to professional conferences is covered by a separate policy administered in the office of the Dean for Academic Affairs. The Faculty Professional Conference Travel Reimbursement Form (pdf) should be used for this travel .
Travel arrangements for any administrative or staff job candidates must be approved in advance by Human Resources. A separate policy issued by the Dean for Academic Affairs' office exists for faculty recruitment.
Who to Contact
For travel related questions, contact the Procurement and Risk Manager in the Treasurer's Office at 725.3115. For policy interpretation, contact the Director of Human Resources at 725.3838.