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Frequently Asked Questions
General
An Accounts Payable Check Request is completed for Non-Duke Reimbursement; however, all of the detail regarding the travel is required. If the reimbursement is related to a job applicant the reimbursement is on an AP check request if the applicant has not formally accepted the job. Once the applicant formally accepts the job the reimbursement is processed by Employee Travel and Reimbursement.
Contact Employee Travel & Reimbursement.
If you elect not to receive the workflow emails in your email inbox and you use Microsoft Outlook, you can use the built-in filter options to have them routed to a separate folder. Please review the step-by-step instructions on how to do this using Microsoft Outlook 2010.
Online Expense Reports: Corporate Card Transactions
You received the email notification because you were set up as an initiator of expense reports for employees who have corporate card charges that need to be addressed. Access is often given by organizational unit which means you can see all individuals in the organizational unit whether or not you operationally have responsibility to create expense reports on their behalf. If you believe this was in error, please contact your business manager. He/She can submit information to have this access changed/modified as appropriate.
Cardholders will receive an approval email notification once the expense report is approved by reviewers at the department and funding source level. No reminders will be sent, only this initial notification.
The link displays a list of your transactions and the transactions of card holders in your “My Employees” list that have not been included in an expense report. The link only takes you to a list of all your outstanding transactions. To create expense reports in order to clear the transactions, you’ll need to create an online expense report. Please watch the “Manage Corporate Card Transactions” training video located in the Online Expense Report Video Series.
Yes, they are two different types of expense reports. Corporate Card charges associated with travel for Duke employees should be included in a travel expense report. Non-travel related corporate card charges are travel related charges for non-Duke employees, students, and in situations where the travel cannot be reassigned to the appropriate Duke employee should be included on the Corporate Card non-travel expense report. Please note: Travel expense types are available in the corporate card non travel expense report.
The “change” button on the Manage Corporate Card Transaction list is only available if you have been set up by your business manager to “reassign” Corporate Card transactions. It is not needed to create an expense report.
To change the expense type associated with a specific transaction, an expense report has to be created and the expense dropped into the expense report. This happens in the “Enter Receipts (Step 2)” of the expense report process. For detailed instructions, please use this video link and watch video 4a included in this video series.
Since the employee is not listed in your My Employee list, you will need to create a corporate card non-travel expense report to clear the transaction. Please note: Travel related GL accounts are included in corporate card non-travel expense reports.
No, an out-of-pocket expense cannot be included in the corporate card non-travel expense reports. Instead, you’ll need to create an out-of-pocket expense report for the cash reimbursement. Corporate Card Non-Travel expense reports do not allow inclusion of both corporate card transactions and out-of-pocket expenses.
No. A single corporate card transaction cannot be split and reassigned to multiple people. If the card holder is one of the travelers, best practice is to include the transaction as part of their travel expense report with detailed notes describing the other travelers. If the card holder is not traveling, include the transaction on a corporate card nontravel expense report with detailed notes describing information about the travelers.
Please send an email to corporatecard@duke.edu or call 919-681-0648.
1. Provide detailed notes in SAP explaining the number, value and reason for the purchase.
2. Fax IRB data disclosure forms (names, SSN, home address) to Employee Travel & Reimbursement.
3. Please include a copy of the Trip Summary Report with the fax so the documentation can be properly matched with the corresponding expense report.
If gift cards are being given for other reasons, fax names, SSN, and home address as this information may be required for tax purposes.
For the "Credit Card Imports" tab to display transactions, it must be refreshed. Select the "Credit Card Imports" tab. In the bottom right hand corner of the screen, select "Refresh". Once refreshed, transactions will display.
Once a corporate card non-travel expense report has been approved and posted to the Ledger, it cannot be changed. To clear a charge, create a new corporate card non-travel expense report as dates can overlap.
International SOS
International SOS provides you with worldwide quality health care and emergency assistance services 24 hours a day designed to supplement and integrate with Duke University services, procedures and policies. You should always attempt to activate Duke University on-site emergency contacts first, who will assist you. If they are not available, then proceed to contact International SOS.
International SOS provides you and your parents with peace of mind when you travel away from home on a Duke program. One phone call connects you to the International SOS network of multilingual specialists for immediate help in an emergency. International SOS services are designed to help you with medical, personal, travel, security information and legal referrals. Call International SOS at any time to speak with a physician or security specialist about simple or critical matters.
Carry the International SOS >membership card with you at all times. It includes the telephone numbers of the three major worldwide International SOS Alarm Centers. In the event of an emergency, call one of the emergency phone numbers listed on the card<.>
In order to utilize any of the medical or travel services listed under contract, call any SOS Alarm Center from anywhere in the world by calling directly, calling collect or calling the toll-free number. To ensure a prompt response when calling, you should be prepared to provide the following:
- Your name, location, age, sex, and nationality
- The department with which you are associated
(for example, student/employee on Study Abroad program in ______ ; doing research for _______ Dept.; DukeEngage program; etc.) - Your International SOS membership number
(Found on your ISOS card) - The telephone number from which you are calling (in case you are disconnected)
- Your relationship to the member (if the person calling is not yourself.)
- Name, location, and telephone number of the hospital or clinic (when applicable)
- Name, location, and telephone number for the treating doctor, and where the doctor can be reached
(when applicable) - What if I have pre-trip questions about my travel destination or questions about the current status in that location?
In addition to calling the Alarm Center for any pre-trip questions you may have, you can access Country and Security Guides from the website. Use your membership number as your member login. In addition to the information covered at the Pre-Departure Sessions and on-site orientation conducted by your program, the SOS comprehensive guides provide both medical, security and general travel advice, such as information on the standard of health care, how to pay for medical care, the availability of medications, safety of the blood supply, embassy/visa information, dialing code information, cultural etiquette and financial and voltage/plug information.
No, your membership is already active. Simply carry the card at all times while traveling on your Duke program. Whenever you need service, contact one of the emergency phone numbers listed on the back of the card. You do not need to report specific trip dates to International SOS each time you travel. However, you can create a personal on-line account with SOS into which you can save medical, family and emergency information. Unless you input your information into an account it will not be available for staff in the event of an emergency. Medical and personal information can only be accessed by an SOS doctor.
You have the option to sign up for Email Alerts. You can choose to sign up for medical and/or security alerts by logging on and signing up. Medical alerts are issued when there is an unusual health risk that, in the opinion of the SOS Medical staff, may negatively impact travelers or expatriates visiting a country. Security alerts are issued when SOS Security professionals have identified a security risk in a specific country.
Call the nearest International SOS Alarm Center for legal referrals. If you are in a situation where you require legal assistance, on-site staff should be informed of this immediately.
If you require a prescription that a local physician cannot obtain, or you need to replace lost, stolen or depleted medication, International SOS will, when permissible by local law, send the needed medication to you. (Additional Fees will apply)
In most cases, Duke University staff should be able to assist you via our on-call emergency staff. However, if you are in a situation or location where you cannot reach Duke staff, call the nearest International SOS Alarm Center. International SOS will immediately take steps to evaluate the care you are receiving and determine what actions must be taken to ensure your safe and speedy recovery. SOS will notify Duke University staff immediately if you have not already done so.
If you are hospitalized in an area where adequate medical facilities are not available, International SOS will obtain approval from Duke University to evacuate you to a medical facility capable of providing the required care. A physician supervises evacuations, and when necessary, a medical specialist or nurse will accompany you during the evacuation. An air ambulance will be used when required.
When your condition is stabilized and International SOS has determined that it is medically advisable to bring you home or to a facility near your permanent residence, International SOS will again obtain approval from Duke and arrange the repatriation under medical supervision.
After a line of credit is opened in your name, International SOS will guarantee and pay all costs associated with your medical care. You are responsible for the costs of medical care. This is why we require you to have international health insurance. International SOS will also medically monitor and evaluate your condition and ongoing medical expenses during your hospitalization. In situations where medical care is critical, by activating SOS you authorize medical care as necessary, and acknowledge that you will be billed for such care.
International SOS will render all assistance possible to the University to obtain clearances and arrange transportation for the return of mortal remains. In such an event, Duke University will be the point of contact for the family in this situation.
Call an alarm center listed on the back of your membership card, and a security specialist will assist you.
The SOS Security Division will assist Duke University in the event of threatening situations such as civil and/or political unrest, insurrections, revolution or similar situations by providing information, guidance and resources in the event personal safety and security can no longer be assured. Note that security evacuations are not guaranteed and may not be available in countries considered “Extreme” security risks by SOS (a list is available through the SOS website under Security Risk Ratings).
Online Expense Reports: General Information
No. The new online travel tool is just a new way to enter the data.
Users have a variety of ways to organize their employees. By moving the cursor to the right side of each heading, lists can be sorted in ascending or descending order using the information contained in that heading. By selecting “Filter” on the right side of the page, users will be given a new line. Data inputted into that line will be found in the employee list. For more details, please view the video entitled “How to Customize and Filter Video” can be found on the ET&R Training webpage.
Trips can be deleted up until the point when they are approved for payment "posted" for payment by either the employee or an initiator with access to the employee under their "My Employee" tab. From the Expense Report tab, highlight the trip in question and select the "Delete" button. This will delete the trip and pull it out of workflow for those in the approval chain. If you need to delete a trip once it has been approved for payment, please contact Employee Travel at onlinetravel@duke.edu.
Anyone with access to the financial statement can view the Expense Report Summary PDF once it has been posted.
Click “Change” on expense report that has overpayment. Change receipt amount that was overpaid to the correct amount. In the comments section, include the check number that the employee wrote to Duke to return the amount that was overpaid. Then click “Save and Send for Approval” to submit the changed report for approval. Print a copy of the Expense Report PDF and send that along with the check to ET&R. The copy of the Expense Report will be helpful to ensuring the check that is received is applied appropriately. The check should not be deposited to the department code charged with the overpayment. The department code will be credited when the changed expense report is approved by ET&R and posted to the general ledger (FI).
For more information on any of these topics, please view the online training videos, which can be found on the ET&R Training Page.
No, based upon Internal Revenue Service regulations, all expenses related to relocation/moving are considered taxable income to the individual employee. Therefore, any payment by Duke University or Duke University Health System to cover relocation/moving costs for new faculty and staff should be issued as a supplemental payroll payment to the new faculty or staff member.
For Corporate Card transactions:
To break out NC Sales tax, select the Enter Itemization button found in the Enter Receipts section of the tool when a transaction is highlighted. Select the NC sales tax expense type which will post the sales tax to Duke’s General Ledger Account 146100. Departments will not need to identify the funding source for the NC sales tax (typically 1001000). SAP will ensure the sales tax is accounted for appropriately. For detailed instructions, please watch video 4c in this Online Expense Report Video Series.
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For an Out-of-Pocket Expense Report:
When itemizing sales tax in an out-of-pocket expense report, you will have a two line entry; one for the sales tax and one for the remainder of your receipt total. In the Enter Receipts section, click New Entry to add another line for the sales tax itemization. For the Expense Type, choose General Ledger Account 146000.
No, there are not any plans to give temporary employees access to create expense reports.
We will be discussing the need for additional training and will post sessions on the ET&R website. In the meantime, we have a series of online training videos. We also have a PowerPoint guide.
Use the PDF chart for guidance on reassigning transactions.
All transactions will continue to appear in WORKS, but once the transactions are uploaded into the online travel system, the transactions have a “view only” status in WORKS and WORKS administrators cannot make any changes to the transactions.
You can process the credit just like you would the expense. In the Enter Receipts section, pull the credit into the expense report and make sure it is posted to the same expense type as the original transaction. If the credit is related to a travel expense, you can open the travel expense report to which it applies and pull in the transaction. If the original charge was addressed through a corporate card non-travel expense report, you will need to include the credit in the expense report that includes the date of the credit. We would suggest including the expense report (trip) number in the comments field of the expense report that includes the credit so that the credit can be linked with the expense.
GL accounts are associated with the schema for travel expense reports unless there is a specific GL listed beside the expense type in the expense type listing. For corporate card non-travel and out-of-pocket reimbursements, GL accounts are listed beside the expense type. In the event that a GL is not listed beside an expense type, the expense will map to the domestic travel GL.
In the Expense Report tab where expense reports are listed, you can highlight the expense report you want to modify and select the “Change” button. This will reopen the expense report. Be sure to include attachments for any new receipts. In Step 2, the Enter Receipts section, you can pull in the new corporate card transaction or add any out-of-pocket expenses for travel expense reports. Please note: Do not change any information that has previously been included in the expense report and posted to Duke’s GL.
No, all transactions with a Bank of America post date of 10/18/13 or later will need to be cleared in the Duke@Work online travel system. Works administrators are responsible for clearing the remaining transactions with post dates prior to 10/18/13 in Works. After the older transactions are cleared from Works, Works administrators’ user access will be changed to provide view only information.
Yes, dates defining the range of a travel expense report can be changed as long as those dates are not included in a different travel expense report.
Please follow these steps:
- Highlight the expense report in the “Expense Report Listing”
- Select the “Change” button
- When the expense report opens, go to Step 2 “Enter Receipts”
- Highlight the transaction to be deleted in the Expense Report section.
- Select the “Delete” button that will display when the transaction is highlighted. Deleting the transaction will move it back to the “Available Credit Card” listing. Take this action for each receipt that needs to be removed from the expense report.
- Select “Save as Draft”
- Select “Cancel”
- From the “Expense Report Listing,” select the “Delete” button to delete the expense report.
The Online Expense Report tool allows corporate card non-travel expense reports to have overlapping dates. An example of when this is appropriate to use is when you have forgotten an expense in an already submitted corporate card non-travel expense report. Overlapping dates or times cannot be used for travel expense reports. If corporate card transactions need to be included in a corporate card non-travel expense report once it is created, users can change the existing report to add the corporate card transactions or can create a new corporate card non-travel expense report with the same dates. Please note: Once a corporate card non-travel expense report has been approved and posted to the ledger, it cannot be changed. The Change button will be grayed out. To clear a charge, create a new corporate card non-travel expense report as dates can overlap.
Instead of creating expense reports for an individual transaction, bundling is recommended in order to minimize the number of reports that route for approval. Bundling will allow you to include multiple transactions into one expense report. You have options on how you bundle:
- One option is to bundle corporate card non-travel expense reports based upon dates.
- Another option is to bundle corporate card non-travel expenses by funding source.
Depending on the frequency of use, transactions can be “bundled” on a weekly, biweekly or monthly basis.
Please contact your Department Payroll Representative and have them initiate a Personal Data Change iForm to update this default.
Expense report date ranges can be created based upon the receipt date associated with transaction that appears in Duke@Work. The receipt date is based upon when a vendor batches and sends in credit card transactions to be processed by Bank of America (Duke’s credit card vendor). This receipt date may or may not align with the actual date physically printed on the paper receipt.
In preparation for the upcoming write off on April 15, 2014, ET&R will be running the “Outstanding Transactions” report each Friday until the write off is complete. These email notifications will be sent to initiators, TRaC Reps, and Business Managers. The first attachment (cc1) will list outstanding transactions that have not been included in an expense report. The second attachment (cc2) includes a list of expense reports that include corporate card transactions which have not been routed for all levels of approval.
This occurs when your elements are hidden. To unhide the elements, right click on your screen. Next click “User Settings”, then click “Invisible Elements”. This will allow you to restore the hidden elements.
The error message maybe caused by the desktop/laptop Java security setting. There are two options to work around the error. Please contact your local support if you have questions about which option is recommended for your area or if you need assistance.
Option 1
Leave your Java security setting at “High” and add the https: url to your “Exception Site List”
Go to Start->Control Panel->Java.
Click on the Security tab.
Click the Edit Site List button.
Click the Add button, and add the following url https://sweb.duke.edu:8081 , then click OK.
Once added, you will see the url link in the Exception Site List.
Option 2
Change your Java security setting to “Medium”
Go to Start ->Control Panel ->Java.
Click on the Security tab and slide the Security Level bar to “Medium”
After receiving the SAP popup window, please clear the Cache in Firefox. Below are directions on clearing the Cache.
1. When presented with the “SAP Popup Window” in Firefox, close the Firefox window using the red X in the upper right corner.
2. To clear the Cache follow the menu path: Firefox -> History -> Clear Recent History.
3. Confirm that the “Time range to clear:” is set to “Everything”. Confirm the “Cache” box is checked, then click “Clear Now”.
4. On the next attempt to open a previously approved expense report, you should be presented with the correct pop up window.
NOTE: You may have to go through the “Clear Cache” steps twice before being presented with the correct popup window.
–For a travel expense report, put city and state/region.
–For a non-travel expense report, put purpose.
The following are reasons why ET&R would return an expense report:
-Missing documentation
-Receipts
-Additional information outlined for specific expense type
-No clear business purpose
-Unallowable expense
-Exception to policy that requires Management Center Approval
-Expense reports that should be processed via another payment method
-Receipts
-Additional information outlined for specific expense type
-No clear business purpose
-Unallowable expense
-Exception to policy that requires Management Center Approval
-Expense reports that should be processed via another payment method
Online Expense Reports: Cost Assignment
Please contact your Department Payroll Representative and have them initiate a Personal Data Change iForm to update this default. For detailed instructions on completing the Personal Data Change iForm in these situations, go to the Travel and Reimbursements Training page.
ET&R recommends using the cost assignment that applies to a majority of the items included in the expense.
You will receive an error message indicating that the cost assignment is invalid when you select either “Accept”, “Accept and New Entry”, or “Check” within the selected line (highlighted in red below). For more guidance, see the Cost Assignment Video.
If you do not select one of these three highlighted buttons, the system will not validate the cost object you entered. The “Accept” and “Check” buttons that are located outside of the highlighted line will not conduct the validity check.
Online Expense Reports: Receipts & Attachments
Have the employee keep a log of expenses that can be submitted in lieu of a receipt. The log can be included as an attachment. When entering the receipt for the expense, uncheck “Paper Receipt” and type “log” in “Short Info” field. If there is a paper receipt available, it must be submitted.
Yes. White-out the routing number or other personal information on canceled checks, statements, receipts, etc. before scanning.
Attach the correct attachment and provide a note in the comments field indicating which receipt is correct.
No. Once an attachment is uploaded, only ET&R has access to delete an attachment.
Unselect the paper receipt field anytime a paper receipt is not included. In instances were receipts are lost or missing please complete the Lost Receipt Form and select the “Paper Receipt” field. In instances where receipts are not available for Corporate Card purchases, please adhere to the current Corporate Card polices.
The PDF can be viewed through the Duke@Work portal by the employee and by any initiator who has access to that employee’s expense reports. The approvers will have access to the PDF of receipts within each expense workflow in his/her Universal Worklist.
Currently the mileage log is only available to the individual who initiates the trip. Therefore, a mileage log must be scanned and attached to the trip as part of the supporting documentation.
No, attachments/receipts cannot be deleted. Users can attach the new attachment/receipts and include a note for all the approvers indicating which attachment includes the correct information. Users can also choose to delete the entire expense report (including attachment/receipts) and recreate the expense report.
No, it is not necessary to have the cardholder sign the missing receipt form.
The message you’re receiving should be a “warning” message only (i.e. yellow triangle). This serves as a prompt to ensure the initiator recognizes he/she is including a transaction that falls outside of the travel dates. You can proceed with completing and saving the expense report.
Yes, receipts are visible through a PDF link accessible through the Universal Worklist.
No, not as part of the standard operating process. It’s the responsibility of departmental and funding source approvers to look for this during the review process.
Online Expense Reports: Workflow & Approvals
If you elect not to receive the workflow emails in your email inbox and you use Microsoft Outlook, you can use the built-in filter options to have them routed to a separate folder. Please review the step-by-step instructions on how to do this using Microsoft Outlook 2010.
First, you must have initiator access to the employee associated with the expense, or, you must be the employee. Then, review the step-by-step guide (pdf) for instructions on how to access the workflow history for this expense.
Employees should utilize OIT’s website to manage their contact information in the Enterprise Directory. The following link will allow the employee to login and update his or her information: http://oit.duke.edu/
Once on OIT’s website, select the “OIT account self-service” link under “Popular Services”.
After logging in, select the “Manage Directory Listings” option. Then, select the “Change your preferred email address” option to add the preferred email address contact information.
Highlight the expense report in gold and click “Change”. Go to “Review and Send” and select “Save Draft” instead of “Save and Send for Approval”. This action will cancel the previous work flow initiated for this expense and remove it from the approver’s Universal Worklist Inbox. Also, immediately send the approver a courtesy email requesting that he/she disregard the email notification received about the expense. Then, make your changes to the expense and resubmit it for approval by choosing “Save and Send for Approval” in section 3, the “Review and Send” section.
When an expense is returned, the workflow associated with that expense is “completed”. A new workflow is created when the person initiating the expense resubmits the report for approval by choosing “Save and Send for Approval”. Remember the “gold” highlights the information that is being viewed.
You can forward a workflow to the appropriate Duke employee for approval. When you forward a workflow you forgo your right to approve and reassign the approval rights to the person to whom you forward the trip. Once they approve the expense, it will route to the next step in the workflow process.
If an approver inputs a comment/memo in the space provided above the action buttons (see below) and then executes the forward button, the comment/memo is not made part of the workflow. The only time the comments/memos are picked up in the workflow from this box, is if the approver executes the approver, reject, or return buttons.
To add a memo, before an approver forwards, the user will need to use the Add Memo function to the right of the screen, submit it (which makes it part of the workflow) then forward the work item.
Comments entered into the online tool by initiators are viewable on the Expense Summary PDF (not under “View Memo”).
Comments entered by employee/approvers as part of the workflow process are viewable by clicking “View Memo” (not included on Expense Summary or in UWL detail).
If a trip is returned for correction or rejected, the initiator can view the approver’s comments by clicking the “View Comments” button within the workflow.
Yes, an SAP job runs every 10 minutes, which generates an email to the person. The new approver would not get the email until 10 mins after the work item appeared in their UWL (Universal Worklist).
Online Expense Reports: Schemas
We do not recommend it. You can have non-travel expense reports on a daily basis and we strongly encourage departments to create non-travel expense reports that contain a date range no longer than a week.
No. It is used when the sole purpose of the trip is development or student recruitment.
The schema choices are the same as they were on the paper travel expense form.
Yes. These are considered different trip types.
Choose the activity type that is the majority of the trip.
No, you can’t split a transaction into two different expense types unless it is a transaction that allows receipt itemization. For example: a hotel folio can be itemized and split between expense types.
No. Schemas can’t be changed. You can move corporate card transactions back to the “buffer”.