New IRS publication requires employee expenses be submitted within 60 days for reimbursement

Beginning July 1, UF is standardizing the expense reimbursement process to address the timeliness of reimbursements and match the requirements detailed by IRS Publication 463 for all employee reimbursements.

These requirements must be met for employee reimbursements to be considered non-taxable. If expense reimbursements are not submitted and approved within the 60-day limit, the amount ultimately paid to the employee will be included in the employee’s annual W-2 as taxable income.

All expense reports for travel or other employee reimbursements must now be submitted and approved in the myUFL accounting system in accordance with the following rules:

1. Employees must submit their expenses no later than 60 days after the expenses were paid or after the date of return from travel.
2. All expenses must have a business connection and have been incurred on behalf of the university or direct support organizations.

Travel advance settlements

According to the State of Florida Disbursements Guide, any traveler who has received a travel advance must complete a travel reimbursement form and submit it to UF within 10 workdays of the traveler’s return. Employees must return any excess reimbursement or allowance within a reasonable time. Defined by the State of Florida Disbursements Guide, these items should be accounted for within 10 days after the expenses were paid or after the date of return from travel and no later than 30 days after the expense was paid or incurred.

Questions? Contact Randy Staples, associate controller of University Disbursements, at (352) 392-1241 or rstaple@ufl.edu.