This page provides reimbursement expense guidelines for working from an alternate location, including hybrid and full remote work agreements.
- Overview
- Guiding Principles - Travel
- Guiding Principles - Entertainment
- Guiding Principles - Office Supplies and Internet Services
- Examples and Scenarios
- How to Process Reimbursements
Overview
These guidelines are intended to provide clarity regarding what is and is not reimbursable in the environment of remote work agreements. If you have questions regarding these guidelines, please contact the Travel Help Desk at travelhelp@ucdavis.edu (Campus community), or the UCDHS AP Help Desk at hs-aggietravel@ou.ad3.ucdavis.edu (Hospital and School of Medicine community).
Guiding Principles - Travel
- All employees should be good stewards of the University’s resources and be mindful of the costs associated with travel and supplies used to conduct UC business.
- Employees working from their alternate work location, per a Remote Work Agreement, are NOT considered to be on travel status and thus not permitted reimbursement of travel or meal-related expenses covered under UCOP policy G-28.
- Travel between your traditional university work location and your alternate work location is considered normal commute and thus not reimbursable – including mileage, parking, tolls, and other normal commute-related expenses. This applies even on days you may be scheduled to work at one location, but required to work from the other location for any reason.
- If you are on approved travel status (i.e. on a business trip or attending an off-site meeting or conference), travel should be calculated from your currently scheduled work location (traditional or alternate). Whenever feasible, the more economical headquarters should be selected as it pertains to permissible mileage, lodging, and other transportation expenses.
- At this time, it is not expected that departments will be able to provide temporary parking permits or coupon codes for the UC Davis parking app. For employees on travel status who are not utilizing a department vehicle, parking fees are reimbursable. However, these are to only be submitted for reimbursement once per month. It is further recommended to limit expense reporting to only reports greater than $25 in value. Please include the mobile receipts for all parking fees incurred while on UC travel status with the parking app throughout the month and submit them on a single reimbursement request.
Guiding Principles - Entertainment
- Entertainment meals can be reimbursed if provided remotely to non-employees, such as during student engagement events, donor development, or recruitment activities.
- Entertainment meals cannot be reimbursed if provided remotely to employees, regardless if they are for business meetings or morale events. Any meals provided to employees as part of an entertainment event require an in-person host.
Guiding Principles – Office Supplies and Internet Services
- Employees may request reimbursement for internet or cellular services, if, and only if:
- such service is required to perform UC business, is approved by their department head, AND
- the employee does not already have high speed internet or cellular service available at their home, or alternate work location.
- No reimbursement shall be made for business calls, or the percentage of business use of internet or cellular service, if such use is within the existing internet or calling plan contract.
- Only business-related equipment that can be returned to the University at the end of the remote work agreement is permitted for reimbursement, including computer monitors and other general office equipment. Department heads are responsible for determining and approving such items, taking into consideration the longevity and need of individual employees.
- If the department head approves a new purchase or reimbursement, it is only allowable if existing University-issued office equipment can’t be taken home, or the employee does not already have personal equipment at their alternate work location to perform their work duties. In all cases, the employee and the department are responsible for ensuring that University equipment in the employee’s alternate work location is used primarily for University business.
- For any University-issued office equipment that is taken off-site, or purchased/reimbursed on behalf of an employee who will use the equipment off-site, the employee is required to complete the Employee Agreement Concerning Use of University Resources form. This signed form should be kept on file with the department. Refer to these step-by-step instructions on how to electronically sign a PDF.
- Note for Hospital, School of Medicine, and School of Nursing departments: Printers, internet services, and furniture are NOT being provided or expenses reimbursed for employees working remotely. Only standard issue equipment, such as a computer/monitor will be provided/reimbursed.
Examples and Scenarios
Scenario 1: Employee works from their alternate work location on Monday/Wednesday/Friday and from their traditional university work location on Tuesday and Thursday.
| Employee drives to university office location on Monday for an all hands meeting. | Not reimbursable. Considered commute expense. |
| Employee drives to different university location (such as Mrak) on a Tuesday for official UC business. | Reimbursable for mileage and parking to/from their current work location; a department vehicle should be used if possible to avoid need for reimbursement. |
| Employee drives to a different location for a meeting with clients on Wednesday. | Mileage and parking are reimbursable to/from their current (alternate) work location. |
Scenario 2: Employee works 100% from their alternate work location.
| Employee has to come to the department office to pick up paperwork. | Not reimbursable. Considered commute expense. |
| Employee drives to San Francisco for a conference for official UC business | Mileage and parking are reimbursable to/from their current (alternate) work location. |
| Employee comes into the department office first, then goes to a business meeting on campus, then goes home. | Mileage and parking are reimbursable, but only for the amount that is greater than their normal commute between work locations. |
How to Process Reimbursements
After determining an expense is appropriate for university reimbursement, follow the instructions below.
Mileage and Parking
Review the information on reimbursements for mileage and parking associated with travel before processing the Mileage Log Form on the Travel and Entertainment forms page.
Office Supplies
For all departments, excluding Hospital departments (Chart H accounts), office supplies should be purchased through Aggie Enterprise. Hospital departments should utilize the UCDMC Purchasing Department in Sacramento.
Internet Service
Internet service reimbursement is processed as a Professional Expense reimbursement in AggieExpense, report type 9.