Travel Advances	Q:   Who is eligible to receive a travel advance? A:   Travel advances may be granted to active employees: Set up to receive advances via ePayment. To individuals with no other outstanding travel completions associated with an advance more than 30 days after the return date from their previous trip(s). For lodging up to the Federal Allowable Rate (FAR) or the quoted cost, whichever is lessor. For M&IE up to the Federal Allowable Rate (FAR). For airfare and conference fees with receipt.   Q:   Are there exceptions to the travel advance policy? A:   Exceptions may be granted for unconventional travel expenses such as: Student Athlete travel associated with athletic competitions and recruiting where PCards or Purchase Orders (POs) are not feasible. Student travel relating to University sanctioned business as well as any travel related to a chartered student organization. Students must not have any other outstanding advances more than 30 days after return from a prior trip. Travel relating to teaching for the Study Abroad Program. Research travel in remote areas.   Q:   Can excess lodging be claimed as an Advance? A:   No. Excess lodging is to be claimed on the completion.   Q:   Is there a way to see if an Advance or reimbursement check has been issued?   A:   There are 2 ways: 1. In eTravel, once Disbursing "releases" the document, the payment (advance or reimbursement) will be generated in the next check run which occurs on the 15th and last business day of the month. If you have signed up for direct deposit via ePayment, the traveler would receive an email notification of the impending payment and payment should be posted to the traveler's bank account within 3-5 business days. Through your Business or Fiscal Office via KFS.   Q:   What happens if the Advance was over-estimated? A:   If the Advance was over-estimated, the Traveler owes the University the difference between the amount of the Advance and the amount of Actual Expenses. Note: At time of Travel Request, all expenses are estimated. Advance amounts may be over- or under-estimated compared to the actual cost upon completion.   Q:   What is the latest an Advance can be submitted to receive money? A:   The travel document must be received by the Disbursing Office at least 10 working days prior to the departure date. Note: In eTravel, the user will receive a warning if they click Submit or Approve on the Advance document and there’s fewer than 10 working days from the travele's departure date.   Q:   Can I get an advance even though the trip is fewer than 4 days? A:   Yes. There is no minimum number of days to get a travel advance.   Q:   What are the acceptable forms of payment for the return of excess travel advance? A:   Acceptable forms of payment include cash or check. If paying by check, the check must be made payable to the University of Hawaii. Credit card/debit card payments are not allowed.   Q:   What will happen if the Travel Request+Advance is submitted within 10 business days of departure? A:   If the Travel Request+Advance is submitted within 10 business days of the departure date, the advance will not be processed. It will be denied and the department will must change the travel from a Request+Advance to a Travel Request.
	EFT	Q:   What is EFT? A:   It stands for Electronic Funds Transfer, and Travelers may sign up for EFT via the ePayment application. The primary benefit is that the Traveler receives their travel advances and reimbursements faster via direct deposit to their bank account, and saves a trip to the bank to deposit checks.   Q:   Am I required to sign up for EFT? A:   No, it is not required at this time. However, EFT is required if the traveler is seeking a travel advance.   Q:   How will I know when a deposit for travel advances or reimbursements have occurred? A:   If you sign up via ePayment, you will receive email notifications of upcoming deposits. The email will include the travel document number(s) and the amount being deposited.   Q:   If I was overpaid on the advance and owe the University money, will they deduct it from my bank account? A:   No, EFT/ePayment is strictly for deposits, the University will never deduct money from your bank account. If you owe the University money, you must write a check and submit it with your Travel Completion.   Q:   Can I sign up for ePayment if my bank account is with a non-local financial institution? A:   Yes. ePayment interfaces with Bank of Hawaii, who supplies a lookup table of financial institutions and their bank routing numbers. That table includes both local and non-local financial institutions.
	Airfare Credits	Q:   What documentation is needed to process a reimbursement for an expired airfare credit? (ie, proof of payment, purchase date, copy of airline credit/refund policy, statement from the traveler that they have not/will not use the credit for personal travel, proof that the ticket was not used, etc...) A:   Employees: Need to provide documentation from the airline showing the credit expired, with original airfare itinerary and proof of payment. Non-employees: Need to provide proof of payment, purchase date, copy of airline credit/refund policy, proof that the ticket was not used and the credit has expired.   Q:   How should airfare reimbursements be processed? A:   Employees: eTravel Non-employees: Non employee invoice via PO   Q:   Does the traveler need to show proof that the credit expired and was not used? A:   Yes.   Q:   If the airfare was not purchased by the traveler (ie, PO, Pcard, travel agency) and the credit expires, do I need to update eTravel? A:   If the travel credit has already been entered on the Airfare Credit report, the system will automatically expire any records that are past the expiration date. No action is required on the actual travel document. Documentation pertaining to the expired credit should be kept at the department level.   Q:   If there was personal time, will the reimbursement be based on the business only itinerary? A:   Yes. The travel policy regarding personal time still applies to airfare credits. Reimbursements will be based on the business itinerary.   Q:   If the credit expiration date has been extended (ie 2+ years), can the employee be reimbursed after one year? A:   No.