Travel
Policy
10-15: Adding personal travel days to a business trip
Effective: January 15, 2024
Approved by: Van Christensen
References:Utah Code 63A-3-107, Administrative Code R25-7.
Purpose
This policy outlines the conditions for adding personal days to a business trip and conditions for reimbursement.
Definitions
Agency – Any agency, board, bureau, office, department, or other administrative subunit of state government. This definition includes the executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
Concur – Software used by the state to manage travel, reimbursements, and p-card transactions.
Home base – The last location travelers leave from and the first location they return to. Travelers may leave from one home base and return to a different home base.
GSA rate – The generic term for the federal travel reimbursement rates, sometimes called per diem rates. Reimbursement rates for travel are determined by location and are established by the U.S. General Services Administration, Department of Defense, and the Department of State. Rates can be found on the U.S. General Services Administration website.
Reimbursement – Money paid to compensate travelers for money spent while traveling on official business.
Reimbursement request – The general term for requesting payment for travel expenses. In Concur, the state’s travel software, travelers add their expenses to a report. Travelers who cannot use Concur use form FI 51.
Traveler – Any person traveling on official state business for an agency or political subdivision. This definition includes employees, non-employees, board members, elected officials, vendors, volunteers, grant recipients, and award beneficiaries.
Travel policy – All policies labeled travel policy established by the GovOps Division of Finance.
Policy
A – Approval
1 – Travelers may include personal travel days as part of a business trip when approved by an appropriate authority as stated in travel policy 10-4: Travel requests.
B – Reimbursement
1 – When travelers include personal days as part of a business trip, they are eligible for reimbursement for travel expenses that are:
- allowed by travel policy,
- for the traveler only, and
- directly related to the business portion of the trip.
2 – The first day of business travel is the day the traveler would have left their home base if no personal days were added.
3 – The last day of business travel is the day the traveler would have returned to their home base if no personal days were added.
C – Airfare cost comparison
1 – Travelers must compare the cost of airfare for business days only to the cost of airfare with personal days added. This cost comparison must be completed at the time of booking.
2 – Travelers must attach evidence of the cost comparison to their reimbursement request. Evidence must include a list of airfare prices for business days only and a list of airfare prices with personal days added. Both lists must show the date.
2a – Travelers may get a cost comparison from the State Travel Office and attach it to their reimbursement request; or
2b – Travelers may create a cost comparison themselves using the booking tool in Concur. For example, a traveler could attach a screenshot of their computer screen showing the booking tool with airfare prices and the date in the bottom corner of the screen.
3 – Travelers must also attach the receipt for the booked flight to their reimbursement request.
4 – If the price of airfare is higher with personal days included, travelers must reimburse the difference in cost to the state with a personal check, cashier’s check, or credit card at the time the airfare is purchased.
4a – Travelers must attach written documentation to their reimbursement request in Concur showing that the payment was received by the agency.
4b – Agencies are responsible to ensure that travelers reimburse the state for the cost difference of personal travel days.
D – Rental vehicles
1 – Travelers must not use a vehicle rented through the state contract for personal travel days.
1a – Travelers who rent a vehicle for state business must book a different rental vehicle for the personal portion of their trip.
1b – Travelers must not rent a vehicle for personal use through the booking tool in Concur or through the State Travel Office.