Playbook · Getting set up
Prepare for audit and grant reporting
Pull the travel records your auditors and funders will ask for, from one place, without rebuilding them from receipts.
Fiscal year (example)
- For
- Finance leads, grants managers
- Lead time
- We suggest monthly tidy-ups, and 4 weeks before fieldwork
- Owner
- Finance lead
- Sources
- Reports and exports
Before you start
Decide these first
Decisions to make
- Which awards need travel reported, and how
- What your auditors sample (ask them)
- Your functional expense approach for travel
People to involve
- Finance lead
- Grants manager
- Auditors
- Program directors (for explanations)
The plan
A workable timeline
Our suggested lead times. Adjust them to your organization; shorter is possible, but costs and stress go up.
Every month
Keep it tidy
- Import the journal file into your finance system
- Fix any charge missing a code; reallocations are recorded
- Chase refunds past their expected date
Every quarter
Check
- Compare spend with budget by department and project
- Review the exceptions report with approvers
4 weeks before fieldwork
Prepare the pack
- Spend by entity, department, project, supplier and traveler
- Exceptions with justification and approver
- Invoices per entity and period
Grant reports
Report by code
- Travel charged to each project, net of refunds
- Shared trips with their allocation basis
- Purpose for each trip from the request
Year end
Close
- Travel in functional expenses (US filers report these on Form 990 )
- Unused ticket credits listed
Who does what
Your part, and ours
| Task | Your organization | silentVIP |
|---|---|---|
| Codes and reallocations | Correct when needed | Records every change with an audit trail |
| Reports | Pulls and reviews | Reports by entity, department, project, supplier and traveler |
| Exceptions | Explains them | Exceptions report with justification and approver |
| Invoices | Pays and files them | Invoices per entity and period, every line and fee |
| Expense claims | Your expense process | — |
Checklists
Copy these into your plan
Print this page or copy the lists into your own template.
Audit pack
- Spend by code for the period
- Exceptions report
- Approval history for sampled trips
- Invoices for sampled trips
- Your travel policy in force at the time
Grant report
- Travel by project, net of refunds
- Trip purposes
- Allocation basis for shared trips
- Any prior approvals the award required
Common mistakes
What usually goes wrong
Codes fixed at year end
Fix codes monthly. A year of corrections is a week of work and a finding waiting to happen.
Refunds forgotten
Refunds that never arrive overstate what the grant paid.
Policy not kept
Keep the version of the policy in force for each period; auditors test against it.
Questions
Common questions
What will auditors ask about travel?
It varies; ask yours. Commonly: that trips were approved under a written policy, served the organization's purpose, were charged to the right award, and are supported by invoices.
Where are the rules for federal awards?
Travel costs on US federal awards are covered in the Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR Part 200 . Read the current text and your award terms.
Related
Tools and guides
More in Playbooks
Bring your travel program under one roof
Tell us about your organization and how you travel. A person reads every enquiry and replies.