Business travel

• Book tickets and hotels
• Make sure that you have a valid certificate of insurance
• The possibility exists to obtain a travel advance (link in Swedish)

• Keep all original receipts
• Keep any information related to exchange rates (e.g. currency exchange receipts)

Sometimes it can be practical to combine a business trip with a few days of vacation. This is acceptable – but there are specific rules regarding which costs may be reimbursed by the department.

Rules for Reimbursement of Expenses

In order for both the outbound and return journeys to be reimbursed by the department, the following conditions apply:

1. If you wish to take vacation in connection with a business trip, the number of vacation days may not exceed the number of business days.
2. If you take more vacation days than business days, you must pay for either the outbound or return journey yourself, depending on when the break occurs.
3. These rules apply regardless of whether the vacation is taken before or after the business trip.

The purpose of these rules is to ensure that costs are handled in a fair and transparent manner when a trip includes private elements.

Vacation Registration

It is important that all absences are correctly registered and approved. Therefore, all vacation days connected to a business trip must be registered in Primula well in advance of the trip.

If the Trip Is Changed for Private Reasons

If you change your itinerary for private reasons or travel on to another country or city after the assignment, this may have tax implications.

Once you leave the location where the business assignment ends (for example, the conference venue), the business trip is considered completed. If the institution pays for your return journey from another location, this is regarded as a taxable benefit.

You also cannot use the cost of the original business trip as a kind of “budget” or “pot” to finance a private trip.

Examples

Example 1 – Vacation in Connection with a Business Trip

You travel on business from Stockholm to Hamburg for a conference that ends on Wednesday. You decide to stay in Hamburg on Thursday and Friday for private activities and pay for your own accommodation during these days. You return home on Friday.

If the return ticket on Friday does not cost more than it would have on Wednesday, this arrangement is acceptable.
→ No taxable benefit will apply.

Example 2 – Changed Itinerary

You travel on business from Stockholm to Hamburg for a conference that ends on Wednesday. After the conference, you travel on to Berlin for a private stay and pay for your own accommodation there, returning home from Berlin on Friday.

Since you left Hamburg after completing your business assignment, the trip home from Berlin is considered private. If the institution pays for this ticket, it will be treated as a taxable benefit. However, you may choose to end your business trip in Hamburg and pay for the return journey from Berlin yourself, provided you have taken approved vacation time.

More

For more information about rules and taxation for business trips, see the Swedish Tax Agency's website.

https://www4.skatteverket.se/rattsligvagledning/edition/2022.9/326321.html#h-Av-privata-skal

https://www4.skatteverket.se/rattsligvagledning/26461.html?date=2005-12-09&q=F%C3%B6rl%C3%A4ngning+av+tj%C3%A4nsteresa+i+tv%C3%A5+fall

• Complete a travel account in Primula after your return. Reimbursement for cases older than three months after the end of the trip will not be paid out.
• Completed PDF format including purpose of the trip, project number, date, destination etc. shall be attached in PDF format and digitally signed/ approved by the project owner, – see PDF template
  Template approval travel expense claim pdf, 231.2 kB. (226 Kb)
• For more information how to report Meals/Allowance in travel bill
  Guideline for meals/allowance in your travel bill - primula
• All supporting documents to your travel bill/ expense claim shall be scanned and attached digitally in Primula.
  Original receipts are to be given to your contact at the Administrative division for archiving purposes. Digital documentation need not be printed.
  For questions concerning travel bills, expense claims and wellness benefits, please contact reserakning.utlagg@fysik.su.se.
  Travel bill/ expense claim, including supporting documentation and approval, received by the Administrative division prior the 5th of the month for reimbursement, will be included in that month’s salary payout.
• Why state the purpose for travels, entertainment and expenses?
  As employees we need to assign purpose for business travel, purchase, entertainment. The reason is to improve the internal control and ensure that the legal framework is followed. By clearly declaring the purpose it is also easier to prove that we follow the rules when audited by external or internal auditors.
  For internal or external entertainment, name and organization of participants shall be specified in Primula as well as above mentioned purpose of the entertainment.
  Stockholm University regulations for representation is found here (in Swedish).

All flights must be booked through the travel agency Amex GBT.
An updated travel profile is required to book through Amex GBT. If you have any questions about your travel profile – contact your HR-administrator.
Information about booking and link to the online booking system can be found on Medarbetarwebben.

Stockholm University and SJ AB have an agreement on rail journeys. Train tickets can be booked through Amex GBT or SJ. More information can be found in guide for train booking (Swedish only). Contact your administrator to get the department's account number.
Each single travel shall consider the environmental impact, the cost for the trip and the opportunity to work during the trip. If the price difference between first class and second class is justifiable, it may be possible to buy a first-class ticket if the project owner and research financier’s terms allow.

SU has a taxi travel agreement within the Stockholm area. All business travels by taxi shall therefore be booked through one of the suppliers, Taxi Kurir or Sverigetaxi.
Both suppliers are part of Cabonline. To book a taxi, use Cabonline’s app, website or call 08-744 95 60.
To register a Cabonline account:

• Download the app Taxi Cabonline or go to https://boka.cabonline.com/en
• Enter your university email address (@fysik.su.se) and request a password
• Register your mobile phone number
• Payment is made by travel account (resekonto)

To book a taxi by phone, use the phone number registered in your profile.
Payment by travel account only applies to pre-booked travels. If you have not pre-booked your taxi, you will have to pay directly after completed journey.

For more information, please contact the administrative division.

Travel arrangements shall be made via the travel agency with which Stockholm University has signed an agreement (Amex GBT). In exceptional cases, a business trip with own car can be accepted. In those cases, the Head of Department shall approve this before departure.
The project owner is responsible for sending the application to the Head of Department. Use the form  Business trip with own car (in Swedish).

If you wish to travel with third parties in connection with a business trip, you may book their ticket separately on your own.
Fysikum does not book and reimburse for private traveling attendees at the employee's mission.
It is possible for employees to book a ticket for private traveling through Amex GBT, which then might charge a service fee.

If you are staying at a hotel in conjunction with a third party in connection with a business trip, you should deduct 25 % per third party person of the hotel cost on your travel bill.

There is a manual on the university's website (https://hrinfo.pa.su.se/minsida.pdf) with detailed instructions. The online-form also has help-icons ”?” which provide additional information.
A few additional clarifications, such as regarding costing, are given below:

Costing/signing
If you have the project number, the costing tool can be used to obtain the full costing information, which includes information as to who needs to sign the travel claim. Project numbers can be obtained from the project owner/supervisor.

You must give full costing information. Fill in the lines:

• Dep:t (department number, i.e., 402 for Fysikum/Department of Physics)
• Project (the project number which will be charged)

Per diem

The per diem is supposed to cover the increased living expenses incurred during a business trip, such as meals, local travel, and additional minor expenses.

The basic rule is that the full per diem will be paid. The size of the per diem is regulated by the Swedish Tax Agency. The per diem is determined based on the travel times that you entered into the travel claim (which must match the times in your travel plan). The per diem is reduced if you have not paid for all your meals yourself. Furthermore, if you have not requested compensation for costs related to accommodation, a nightly per diem can be added - click the "Private overnight stay" box to fill in the details.

Meal deduction

If you have paid for all meals yourself, click the box "all meals paid by the traveller". If not, you have to specify which meals have been paid by someone else; click on "Meals".

Guideline for meals pdf, 278.4 kB. (278 Kb)

Interuption in travel

If you did not work on certain days during the trip, e.g. holiday, sick leave or other reasons, these must be indicated in the form. Note that holidays and other leaves must be requested (and approved) in the usual way.

• For breaks which last the entire day, e.g., holiday, then these times must be entered as 06:00 to 23:59
• Breaks cannot be made on the days of departure and return
• Costs incurred during these breaks will not reimbursed

Outlay/expense

• Each receipt shall be reported separately as a separate cost item ("new line") in Primula
• Tipping within Sweden is not compensated
• Only Swedish VAT shall be reported (please note that for EU/ERC projects, specific accounting principles apply)
• The exchange rate for each cost item/receipt must be shown with e.g. exchange-rate receipt or bank statement
• If the hotel receipt contains items for meals (e.g. breakfast) these shall be deleted, and the cost subtracted from the total amount claimed (SU does not directly compensate for meals, as these costs come from the per diem)

Add messages

In some cases, clarifications may be required, such as: if hotel costs refer to other people than the traveler; whether the expenses are related to any kind of contract/agreement; costs for temporary mobile subscriptions, etc. Use the Add message box in the travel claim form in Primula to motivate and clarify the issues, and attach all relevant documents to your travel claim.

When registering, the amount and any VAT must be indicated by selecting the appropriate % rate. If no VAT is indicated, select only health care. In the case of direct debit, no VAT should be deducted, but select only wellness. Please note that the payment date must be the 25th and it is important to specify the type of health care. You need to have been employed during the whole year to be entitled to the maximum amount of 3000 SEK.
Original paper receipts, after being scanned into the Primula file, should be attached to the Primula printout and sent to the Physics administration department for archiving. Please note that digital receipts are not printed out but are only attached to the file.

Information about health care on the Stockholm University website (Opens in new window)