CTF Reimbursement Guide

Save your receipts! Receipts should have the employee’s name, the date and time, the amount, and the last four digits of the credit card.  

• If not all of the information is readily visible, include a credit card statement.  
• If paying with cash, specifically for a taxi, include a note with the date and fee. You will need to include these receipts when you submit your travel voucher/reimbursement form at the end of your trip.
• If paying with a personal check, you must attach a copy or scan of the cancelled check, both the front and the back sides, showing that it was paid by your bank.

Traveling With Family Members

If you travel with a family member or another guest, please remember that the district will not reimburse you for cost associated with any person other than yourself.  You will want to make sure to have itemized receipts for your own costs that you will include with your travel voucher when you return from your trip.

Many conferences offer lower "early bird" rates for early registration. Try to get these if possible.

Book refundable or insured economy flights.  

• Employees can purchase travel insurance covering flight cancellations in case of conference cancellations.
• No early check-ins can be reimbursed.  
• Luggage can be reimbursed.  
• Seat upgrades will not be reimbursed unless meaningful documentation is provided.

The lesser amount of either

• Flight or ground transportation plus car rental, or
• Mileage to and from the conference from De Anza College

will be considered for reimbursement. Be sure to check the nuances of this policy in the district Travel Guidelines and Administrative Procedure 7400 (Travel Guidelines).

The standard car rental is a compact automobile; however, a larger car can be requested if more than two employees share a single automobile.

• Generally, rental agencies provide insurance coverage at a premium. The district recommends electing such coverage. 
• Use long-term parking and the least expensive taxi or ride-hailing service option. (You may include reasonable tips.)

You do not need to keep receipts for per diem reimbursement.  Per diem is based on IRS guidelines which are routinely updated in the district Travel Guidelines.

• Be sure to check if your location is on the “high cost” list. 
• Do not claim per diem for meals provided as part of the conference program OR for virtual/online conferences. 
• Be sure to include a conference program with your reimbursement paperwork so that Accounts Payable can determine per diem eligibility.  
• Meals eligible for per diem claims include breakfast (if departure from the employee’s residence is before 7 a.m.), lunch, and dinner (if return to the employee’s residence is after 6 p.m.). 

Hotel stays are allowable when traveling for a multi-day event or outside a 75-mile radius of the district.

• Self-parking is reimbursable.
• No Airbnb or condo rentals are allowed.  
• Stay at the conference hotel when possible, as these discounted rooms will generally be the best value.

Employees are encouraged to stay at good standard (e.g. major hotel chains), clean, and safe hotels, while selecting non-premium accommodations.

• If a conference hotel is not available, stay at a similar hotel in close proximity.

If possible, travel on the start and end days of the conference.  

• As a general rule of thumb, if a conference starts after noon or ends before noon, same day travel should be possible.  
• If start/stop times, long travel times, or other documented reasons require staying a night at the beginning or end of the conference, be sure to confirm with your dean/manager that they find your reservations reasonable.  
• If you choose to arrive before or stay later than your conference for personal reasons, you will be expected to pay for your own lodging (and rental car if applicable). 

If you have been approved for secondary funding for your activity through your division or department budget or campus grants, you should plan to turn in all receipts for reimbursement on the Professional Development trip voucher that was sent to you.

• The manager of the secondary funds should fill in the amount of reimbursement and the appropriate budget code/FOAP at the top of the trip voucher, and sign the bottom.
• The trip voucher and receipts then go to the Office of Professional Development to complete the processing and obtain the final signatures.

If your division or department has already paid for part or all of your approved conference expenses with a district purchasing card or Direct Pay Request, the Office of Professional Development will process the necessary paperwork to transfer the expense to the appropriate conference and travel budget.

• You must obtain a copy of the budget query or a budget report showing the transaction of the expense that has been charged to the department budget and turn that in with the matching receipts for processing with your trip voucher.