Lodging/Booking a Hotel
Researchers are responsible for booking their own hotel arrangements in the event of travel. Please be sure to save your receipts and submit them for reimbursement via the online request system AFTER travel has occurred.
Guidelines for Booking Lodging
Keep the following in mind when reserving lodging:
On Sharing a Hotel Room
UT will only reimburse single-occupancy to the requesting traveler. Per HBP 11.5.2.C “An employee can only be reimbursed for his or her own expenditures, not for expenditures incurred by other individuals.”
HOWEVER, it is possible to share lodging expenses (ex: with another traveler attending the same conference). This is preferred due to cost-efficiency.
If you share a room with another student, you MUST split the cost and each pay equal portions. Request reimbursement for your own half separately and add a note regarding who you shared the room with. This will make your reimbursement qualify for the single-occupancy rule.
How to split the cost:
Ask the hotel if it's possible to pay using multiple credit cards. Some hotels allow you to reserve the room and pay when you check in. Then, if you check in together, you can split the payment and use multiple credit cards.
Otherwise, if only one credit card can be accepted for payment, one person can pay with their credit card. Then, the other person sharing the room can pay their share to the person who used their credit card (cash, Venmo, etc. however you want to settle it between yourselves).
Each person needs to submit the receipt on their reimbursement request to claim their portion of the reimbursement money.
Maximum Hotel/Lodging Costs
The maximum daily limit for lodging expenses is dependent on the city you are in as well as the account being used to support your trip. If you have any questions, please contact WNCG Staff for more information.
Is airBnB allowed?
Yes, you can use AirBnB. When completing your reimbursement request, airBnB is still classified as a "Hotel" rather than a "Lease".
HomeAway is also allowed.
Hotels in the state of Texas
If your trip is within Texas, state taxes are not reimbursable expenses!
Please fill out and bring a Texas State Hotel Tax Exemption form so that the hotel does not charge you tax. You’ll submit this form directly to the hotel, and they will either not charge you tax (if you’ve yet to pay) or will refund the tax you paid. UT will NOT reimburse Texas state tax, so it is up to you to coordinate with the hotel.
Hotel Receipt Requirements
In order to be reimbursed, your hotel receipt MUST show all of the following:
The room tax and room charge as separate items. This can be either a total tax & total room charge, or a breakdown per day of daily tax and daily room charge.
Proof of Payment – A final balance of “zero”, or other notation explicitly stating the entire balance as “PAID”
Method of Payment – If paid with a credit card, this is will often show an authorization code as well as either the name of the credit card (i.e. VISA, MASTERCARD) or simply “Credit Card”
If your receipt lacks the required information
If your receipt is missing proof/method of payment, you should submit both the receipt and a supporting document such as a copy of your credit card statement showing payment of the expense.
Please note that in most cases, credit card statements are considered supporting documentation and cannot function as primary receipts. Be sure to hang on to your original receipts, and ask vendors for receipt copies if they don’t provide you one.
Good rule of thumb: When in doubt, the MORE detailed your receipts and documentation, the better :)