UQ Travel Improvement Program delivers new International Travel Allowance

8 Jun 2018

As part of the UQ Travel Improvement Program, UQ Travel is delivering important initiatives to improve the international travel experience for UQ staff.

In collaboration with Finance and Business Services, UQ Travel is pleased to announce the new International Travel Allowance, planned for release within the UQ Expense Management System (EMS ProMaster) on Monday, 11 June 2018.

Claiming an International Travel Allowance through EMS ProMaster has many benefits for travellers such as:

The allowance is paid directly into your personal bank account a few days prior to travel;
No need to collect a wallet-full of receipts for small expenses;
No need to spend time reconciling individual transactions on corporate credit cards; and
No need to wait for reimbursement.

To keep up-to-date with UQ Travel news, including notifications of new initiatives delivered by the UQ Travel Improvement Program, subscribe to the UQ Travel mailing list.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do I claim for the International Travel Allowance via EMS ProMaster?
From 11 June 2018, UQ staff will be able to apply for an International Travel Allowance by:

Logging into EMS ProMaster;
Creating an Expense Claim using the expense type Int Travel Allowance;
Attaching the UniFi International Travel Request approval email as a PDF to the expense claim as supporting documentation.

Note: Travel Coordinators who enter UniFi International Travel Requests on behalf of others will need to forward the travel approval notification email they receive to the traveller.

Learn how to claim the International Travel Allowance via EMS ProMaster. Simply refer to the Quick Reference Guide and the Interactive Online Training.

What is a UQ Travel Allowance?
The purpose of the UQ travel allowance (for both domestic and international travel) is to cover the additional expenses incurred living away from home, while travelling on official University business.

The allowance is only payable for overnight journeys and will be calculated per overnight stay while travelling on University business.

How much is the International Travel Allowance?
The International Travel Allowance rate is determined by country, per overnight stay while travelling on official University business.

To help with planning and budgeting, UQ Travel has developed a simple ITA Budget Calculator [XLS].

What expenses does the International Travel Allowance cover?
UQ Travel Allowance (both domestic and international) applies to:

The UQ traveller’s meals: food and drink for breakfast, lunch and dinner, morning and afternoon tea.
The UQ traveller’s incidental expenses such as snacks, drinks (water, coffee, tea etc.), gratuities, low value public transport (e.g. local journeys on a local bus, tram, train etc. that doesn’t cost more than 10% of the total overnight allowance).
Any other personal services rendered by the UQ traveller: phone or internet charges, laundry, dry cleaning, room service, etc.

What about International Travel Allowance for non-UQ staff such as students?
The current process for non-staff and students remains unchanged.

What will happen with Travel Cards?
UQ is in the process of phasing out Travel Cards for staff travel. Any Travel Card load requests that include an international travel allowance for staff created prior to 11 June 2018 will be processed.

As of Monday, 11 June 2018, all Travel Allowance requests (both domestic and international) for UQ staff must be applied for via the EMS ProMaster.

Until Travel Cards are phased out for staff travel, UQ staff can still use Travel Cards for actual expenditure in certain circumstances. For more information on the use of Travel Cards refer to PPL 9.43.03 Travel Cards.