Accounting for an employee's business trip

Hiring employees very often involves the need to send them on a business trip - whether it is to arrange formalities with the client at his office, acquire a new contractor, or for valuable training. Regardless of the reason, the employee's business trip should be settled in accordance with the rules presented below.

Business trip - definition

A business trip is defined as an event when an employee travels outside the place where the company is based or the employee's permanent place of work, at the employer's request, as part of the work performed. Importantly, Polish law does not find a ready-made definition of a business trip, but it is very important to separate it from posting, which has completely different legal consequences.

Business trip - departure order

The formal basis for the employee's business trip is the departure order. Such a document is prepared by the employer and should contain:

• employee data,
• deadline, i.e. the time of a business trip,
• place of departure and destination,
• means of transport,
• task to be fulfilled during the trip.

Important! The provisions of the labor law prohibit posting pregnant women and parents bringing up children under 4 on a business trip without their consent.

Diet during a business trip

The basic payment due to an employee on a business trip - apart from the reimbursement of travel costs, accommodation and other documented expenses, except invoices for food - are daily allowances. Their task is to cover the increased costs of food during the trip, but in a strictly limited amount defined by regulations.

Online Tips

Do you run a company and have questions?

Take advantage of the expert advice of the Entrepreneur's Guide

Online advice for businesses

The amount of the business travel allowance depends on the place of departure (country or abroad) and the length of the trip. The national allowance for the entire day of travel is currently PLN 30. Foreign rates depend on the country to which the employee goes.

Settlement of a business trip

The costs of a business trip by the employee should be settled within 14 days from the date of its completion. All expenses related to the departure of the employee should be booked by the entrepreneur on the basis of an internal document, which is to include:

• subject of economic operation,
• the amount of expenses,
• date,
• signatures of persons who made the expenses directly,
• additionally, internal evidence regarding the settlement of employees' travel expenses and allowances.

This document is often called business travel expenses.

All expenses related to the employee's business trip should be included in col. 13 of the KPiR (other expenses).