Combining Personal Travel with Business Travel Guidelines
STANFORD LINEAR ACCELERATOR CENTER, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, therefore all reimbursements for travel have to adhere to both DOE and Stanford University policies and guidelines.
Guidelines for Combining Personal Travel With Business Travel
When a vacation is combined with a business trip, the travel may be reimbursed as business travel only when it is clearly established that the business travel is the primary purpose and the vacation incidental. Please be aware of the following rules when combining business with personal travel:
Airfare
- If you are planning on taking vacation in conjunction with your business travel, you may be required to share the cost. If personal days exceed business days, the reimbursement of your ticket may be prorated.
- If the additional personal days increase the cost of the ticket, you will be responsible for paying the difference.
- If the flight includes a stopover that requires an overnight stay in a location that is not part of your business itinerary, you must provide a quote for the lowest available airfare for the direct route to your business location using
Orbitz for Business.
- Acceptable quotes may depart from any of the airports local to SLAC and must arrive at the airport local to the business destination. The quote must be for a trip of the same length that you would reasonably take had the trip been solely for business.
- Include a memo on your expense report if the stopover is due to the unavailability of a direct flight.
- Reimbursement will be limited to the cost of travel by the lower of the direct route to the business destination or the actual airfare. You will be responsible for any additional costs.
- If any portion of the vacation period precedes the business period and the business portion is canceled, the trip will be considered vacation and you will be responsible for all travel costs.
- CFO approval for airfare reimbursement is required if personal travel exceeds one week.
Rental Car
- The actual cost of a compact car rental will be reimbursed for the portion of the trip that is official business. When a rental invoice includes days of personal use, the total will be prorated based on the number of days for personal use and the number of days for business use.
- Stanford University carries insurance coverage for travelers who rent a car for approved SLAC business. No car insurance - LDW, PEI, PDW, PAI, EPI - will be reimbursed except for rentals in foreign countries or Hawaii.
- Frequent Flyer Mileage tax (FFT) is not a reimbursable expense.
Subsistence Expenses
- When personal travel days occur before the business event, reimbursement for lodging and meal & incidental expense (M&IE) reimbursement will start on the first business day. The traveler may request up to 75% reimbursement of M&IE for the first day of business travel.
- When personal travel days occur after the business event, reimbursement for lodging and M&IE reimbursement will end on the last business day. The traveler may request up to 75% reimbursement of M&IE for the last day of business travel.
- Note: If the primary purpose of the trip is personal, the M&IE (75%) will not be reimbursed for the day of departure and the day of return.
