Professional Expense Reimbursement Procedure for QUFA Members

Purpose

These procedures provide general information on the Professional Expense Reimbursement (PER) claims made by faculty, term adjuncts, librarians, and archivists employed by Queen’s University as defined in the Collective Agreement between Queen’s University Faculty Association (QUFA) and Queen’s University.

General

All PER claims must adhere to all related policies, procedures, and guidelines as identified below.

In accordance with the QUFA Collective Agreement (article 36.3), Queen’s University reimburses members of QUFA for professional expenses related to maintaining and enhancing the member’s academic and professional competence, and the member’s respective disciplinary or specialist expertise. In order to retain the non-taxable status of these reimbursements, this procedure must be adhered to in order to satisfy the requirements of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).  Should CRA deem the reimbursements as a taxable benefit, the member accepts responsibility for any taxes/interest owing.

All goods and equipment, the costs of which are reimbursed, are and will remain the property of Queen’s University.  All PER claims must be submitted through the university’s electronic expense reimbursement system (ERS) using the program code 90081.

Submission Timeline

To ensure all professional expenses applicable to the fiscal year are recorded in the correct period, a PER claim must be submitted no later than fifteen (15) business days before the end of the fiscal year (April 30).   Members may submit a PER claim up to two times during the fiscal year (May 1 to April 30), or at the discretion of the faculty business unit. Members are encouraged to submit PER claims as soon as their receipts total the yearly maximum plus any carryforward balance from previous years. Additional guidance regarding reimbursement of expenses incurred can be found in Queen’s University Travel and Expense Reimbursement Policy.

Eligible Expenditures

1. Membership fees for professional and/or learned societies,
2. Journal subscriptions to professional publications and/or learned journals/ books,
3. Conference registrations,
4. Travel and accommodations,
5. Business portion of cellular and data services. Note: the fair value of personal usage must be excluded when making a PER claim, and
6. Equipment (such as computer hardware and related peripherals). Note: Office furniture purchased for use on Queen’s University property must adhere to the technical furniture specifications as set out by Queen’s Furniture Standards. Queen’s Vendor of Record should be used for all furniture purchases.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list.

Expenditures must be incurred by the member for actual out-of-pocket expenses during the period of employment with Queen’s University for expenses that are allowable within Queen’s University Travel and Expense Reimbursement Policy and this procedure. All departing members, including retirees, can only claim expenditures dated prior to the date of resignation or retirement.  

Ineligible Expenditures

1. Home office furnishings and decorative items,
2. Passport fees,
3. Costs relating to the NEXUS border clearing program,
4. Parking, speeding and other traffic fines,
5. Queen’s University parking fees,
6. Personal expenses, such as fines or interest charges on overdue accounts, personal living expenses, and sports or social club membership fees,
7. Personal academic regalia,
8. Interest or other finance or administration charges associated with a purchase,
9. Payment to/ payment for hiring any individual, and
10. Gifts of any kind.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list.

Balance Carryforward

If a member incurs eligible expenses less than the annual PER maximum in any fiscal year (May 1 to April 30) the unspent PER balance can be carried forward in accordance with the terms set out in the QUFA Collective Agreement (article 36.3).

Receipt Requirement

Appropriate documentation must be submitted to justify the PER claim as described in Queen’s University Travel and Expense Reimbursement Policy. The following is a brief list of acceptable documentation.

1) Original itemized receipt or invoice and proof of payment, except travel related meal per diems, mileage, and gratuitous accommodations. Credit card receipts or statements are NOT acceptable receipts as they do not show the details of the items paid for.

An itemized original invoice or receipt should contain the following information:

• Date of transaction
• Supplier identification
• Description of the item purchased
• Price for each item purchased
• Tax / business number, where applicable (i.e. HST, GST, QST)
• Grand total
• Amount paid along with proof of payment (i.e. last 4 digits of credit card)
• Amount of Sales Taxes charged

2) Purpose of travel or nature of the expenditure must be evident or documented along with the date(s) and place of the event.

3) For conference registration or seminar fees, the request for reimbursement must be accompanied by the course or conference itinerary or syllabus.  Reimbursements will only be made after the member attends the event.

4) For business networking expenditures, original receipts, identification of attendees and the purpose of the networking event is required.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list.  If the invoice or receipt is addressed to the name of another individual or company, the member must provide sufficient detail to justify the expense.