Submitting a travel expenses claim

Travel expenses claim

The travel expenses claim must be registered, reviewed and certified within 365 days after the end of the trip. After this time, the right to ocmpensation ceases. This also applies to private expenses that are not connected to any trip.

The recommendation is to register you travel expenses report in close connection to your business trip.

Expenses

In the first instance, all purchases must be handled through th ee-commerce system. Own expenses must be made exceptionally. 

Taxable benefits

Some own expenses is a taxable benefit and a form for taxing must be sent to the payroll unit.

Extending business travel for personal reasons

Your manager must authorise any interruption to business travel or extending travel, such as over a weekend. Business travel can be extended for personal reasons without being taxed, as long as the travel will not generate extra costs for SLU. 

Most importantly, the purpose of the travel and the choice of destination must be business-related.

Swedish Tax Agency regulations stipulate that before booking, employees must ensure that the cost of return travel is the same as it would have been if they had travelled as originally planned – in other words, the ticket must not be more expensive. You must document the price comparison and include it with your travel expense report. You will be taxed on fringe benefits if the travel will be more expensive for SLU. 

The duration of the holiday must not exceed the duration of the business trip and may not exceed 14 days. For longer holidays, SLU's business travel insurance does not apply, and the employee is then responsible for taking out private insurance.

When you register your travel expense report in Primula, remember to select ‘Interruption to business travel’. This will remove the subsistence allowance or the salary allowance.

To receive reimbursement for travel expenses, you need to submit a travel expense report for review and authorisation within 365 days of the end of your trip. The subsistence allowance and salary allowance are paid in conjunction with business travel. These allowances may be either taxable or tax-exempt.

Subsistence allowance

A subsistence allowance covers the increased living costs you incur while on a business trip. To be eligible for subsistence allowance, the business travel must involve staying somewhere overnight and be outside of your regular place of work. The subsistence allowance is tax-exempt.

For travel starting 12:00 or later, 50 per cent of the allowance will be paid out.

For travel ending 19:00 or earlier, 50 per cent of the allowance will be paid out.

An overnight subsistence allowance will be paid out if you arrange private accommodation. This allowance is 50 per cent of the regular subsistence allowance amount.

The Tax Agency determines the size of the subsistence allowance for international and domestic travel.

Salary allowance

Salary allowances are paid out for both one-day travel and multi-day travel. The salary allowance is taxable.

Single-day salary allowance

To be entitled to a single-day salary allowance, travel must exceed nine hours. The allowance is taxable and applies to both domestic and international travel.

For business travel ending 19:00 or earlier, 50 per cent of the salary allowance will be paid out.

If the business travel ends after 19:00, a salary allowance will be paid, equivalent to a full subsistence allowance.

Multi-day salary allowance

The multi-day salary allowance is taxable and can only be paid out for domestic travel.

For travel starting 12:00 or later, 50 per cent of the allowance will be paid out.

For travel ending 19:00 or earlier, 50 per cent of the allowance will be paid out.

Car allowance

If SLU believes that car travel is the most suitable mode of transport, a basic tax-exempt amount will be paid out, as well as an identical amount that is taxable. 

Meal benefits and deductions

Meal benefits are a fringe benefit for meals paid for by SLU or anyone with professional ties to your employment. Meal deductions will reduce the sum of the subsistence allowance following the Tax Agency’s regulations for meal deductions.

Meal benefits

If SLU or anyone with professional ties to your employment has paid for your meals, you will be taxed on fringe benefits of a fixed amount. 

Exception:

• Meals that are automatically included in the price of transport tickets (train, plane)
• Breakfast included in the hotel price
• Meals provided during internal courses or training
• Meals as part of business entertainment

Meal deductions

If SLU or a professional contact has paid for your meals during the business trip, the subsistence allowance will be reduced as you have not incurred increased meal costs. 

Exception:

• Meals that are automatically included in the price of transport tickets (train, plane)

Registering expenses

Register meal benefits and deductions when you fill in your travel expense report. If you have not travelled or claimed a subsistence allowance, but are to be taxed on benefits, you must use a special form.

Quick guides for travel expense claims 

• Traveller

Agreement on compensation for business travel

One-day assignments

• Rules for one-day business trips apply if you are away for a minimum of 9 hours.
• You will be reimbursed with the per diem amount set by the Swedish Tax Agency.
• The per diem allowance also applies for international travel.

Travel time

Reimbursement for time spent travelling is processed separately from the main expenses claim and can be found under the Compensation/comp leave tab in Primula. State the number of hours of travel time for which you are entitled to reimbursement. The system will then calculate the amount to be paid out in SEK, or alternatively, the number of hours of compensatory leave if you have agreed this with your manager.

• If you have non-regulated working hours or annual working time, you will not be reimbursed for time spent travelling.
• If you have fixed working hours (not flexitime), you can be reimbursed for up to 8 hours per day for all travel outside of working hours.
• If you work flexitime, you can be reimbursed for travel before 06:00 and after 19:00 and on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays up to 8 hours per day.

Travel time is primarily reimbursed in SEK as your full-time monthly salary/320. You and your manager may agree on reimbursement in the form of compensatory leave, where one hour of travel time equates to 30 minutes of leave. Always enter the hours you want to be reimbursed for and the system will calculate your reimbursement.

Spot checks

As all travel expenses are now digitalised in Primula, the Payroll Unit will carry out random checks from May 2025 to ensure compliance with current regulations.

In the first instance, hotel and travel expenses must be booked via Stureplan's travel agency. Own expenses must be used in cases where this cannot be done via the e-commerce system.

Read more about where to book in advance under Information and also Guidelines.

SLU now processes electronic receipts and documents in the travel expenses function in Primula. Submitting physical receipts is no longer necessary; instead, you can upload scanned or electronic receipts with your expenses claim. The uploaded receipts/documents must meet certain requirements.

Requirements for electronic receipts and documents

You must ensure that the receipts you upload are:

Complete and readable:

• The image must contain the entire receipt, including the amount, VAT, date of issue and issuing company’s name.
• High resolution images only. Blurred or incomplete copies will not be accepted.
• Ensure that the receipts do not overlap, for example, credit card receipts must not obscure the cash register receipt.

The correct file format:

• The following formats are accepted: PDF, JPG, or PNG.

Unaltered original receipts:

• Do not edit or manipulate the electronic receipt in any way.

Preparing and submitting your receipts:

1. Scan or take a high-resolution photograph of your receipt.
2. Upload the image in Primula. See instructions in the Primula help text.
3. Check that all information on the receipt is correct and clear before submitting.

Existing electronic receipts or documents can be uploaded directly to the expenses claim.

Please note:

• Save your original receipt until your expenses claim has been approved and you have received your reimbursement payment with your salary. You must be able to produce the original receipt upon request. Once your travel expenses claim has been approved in Primula, you no longer need to keep the original receipt as the scanned copy is now considered legally binding.
• Number and arrange your receipts in the same order as the expenses are registered in Primula. Your administrator will determine how to structure these procedures.

Only register your receipt once. You must ensure that you do not submit multiple copies of the same receipt.

You no longer need to print out and submit cover sheets from Primula.

If you have any questions, please contact your administrator.

Here, we have collected frequently asked questions and answers about business travel at SLU. 

Who is entitled to receive subsistence allowance when travelling for business?

All SLU employees. 

What applies if the business trip starts from somewhere other than your home/workplace? 

A business trip can only start from the place where the staff member has their place of work or from their registered place of residence.

The employee will be sharing a room with a travelling companion who is not an SLU employee. How do you handle costs for the second person?

The cost of the accompanying person is set at 25 per cent of the price of a double room.
If the employee pays with their own card, 75 per cent of the price should be included in the travel expense report.

Contact the travel agent for more information. 

When does the salary allowance apply?

The SLU salary allowance applies to domestic one-day and multi-day travel.
To be entitled to the taxable salary allowance, the one-day travel must exceed nine hours and be outside of the place of employment.

Is it possible to interrupt a business trip to take leave?

Your manager must authorise any interruption to business travel or extending travel, such as over a weekend.

Swedish Tax Agency regulations stipulate that before booking, employees must ensure that the cost of return travel is the same as it would have been if they had travelled as originally planned – in other words, the ticket must not be more expensive. If the ticket is more expensive, the employee will be taxed on the cost of the journey. If approved, the employee must be able to prove that the trip will not involve additional costs for SLU. 

When you register your travel expense report in Primula, remember to select ‘Interruption to business travel’. This will remove the subsistence allowance or the salary allowance.

What does private accommodation mean in the travel expense report?

Tick ‘Private accommodation’ if you organise your own accommodation and it is not paid for by SLU. A night-time allowance will be paid for private accommodation.

When should I tick the box ‘Taxable car allowance’?

If your manager considers and has approved that a car is the best means of transport, you need to tick ‘Taxable car allowance’. A taxable car allowance is then paid. If you do not tick the box, only the tax-free part is paid.