Travel Cash Advance

Travel cash advances are intended to cover ground transportation, lodging, meals, incidentals, and other expenses directly related to the travel activity.

What Can and Can Not be Paid with a Travel Cash Advance

Not all expenses are allowable for payment with a Travel Cash Advance. Please be sure you are including only allowable expenses before requesting a Travel Cash Advance.

What is Allowable

  • Lodging expenses
  • Daily subsistence expenses (meals and incidentals)
  • Ground transportation expenses
  • Miscellaneous local expenses related to UC Berkeley business activity

What is Not Allowable

  • Airfare
    • Airfare should be paid directly by the university using Direct Bill and booked via ConnexUC, the UC system-wide online travel booking system
  • Conference registration
  • Any expense not directly related to UC Berkeley business activity

For UC Berkeley Employees

With a US Bank Corporate Travel Card

UC Berkeley employees can obtain cash advances for business travel by using their US Bank Corporate Travel Card at any automatic teller machine (ATM) displaying the PLUS network symbol. You will need your PIN number to do this. If you do not know your PIN, please contact US Bank at 800 285 8585.

Limits

Travelers are generally limited to three (3) withdrawals per day up to a maximum of $1,000 in a 24-hour period.

Foreign Currency

If your foreign destination does not have a PLUS network, you can go to any bank and charge the local currency to your card. If you need assistance identifying a foreign location, please contact US Bank Visa customer service at 800 285 8585.

Cash Advance Fees

US Bank Visa charges a 2.5% fee for ATM cash advance transactions with a minimum of $2 and a maximum of $10. These fees and any fees charged by an ATM are reimbursable and can be claimed on your Travel Expense Reimbursement Report after your trip.

Without a US Bank Corporate Travel Card

If needed, employees can obtain a cash advance from the Accounts Payable Office. Cash advances processed through Accounts Payable require additional handling and reporting, so it is best to use this resource only as a last option.

A traveler may not have more than one outstanding cash advance per trip at any given time.

A cash advance may not be issued more than 30 days before the start of the trip, and you will want to be sure to allow at least a week for processing. Please do not submit the request too early or too late.

Requesting a Cash Advance

  • Log in to the Reimbursement System, select 'Create New Expense Report'
    • Please do not use the Travel Reimbursement System to request a cash advance, use the Other Reimbursement System
    • Please refer to the Reimbursement for Travel Expenses page for more information
  • Complete the information requested
    • Provide a brief explanation for the reason why a cash advance is needed in the Business Purpose field
    • For the date select that day's date
    • For 'Expense Type' select 'Travel Advance'
    • For Amount, enter the amount being requested
    • In the Remarks field, enter 'Travel Advance'
    • Click the 'Add Expense' button
    • Click the 'Save and Continue' button
  • On the Totals Page, the chartstring will automatically default to the Travel Advance chartstring:
    • Acct: 15001
    • Fund: 69995
    • Dept: 00800
      • No Function code should be used
      • Using any other chartstring will result in the report being rejected back to the preparer for revision and will delay the ability to process the advance
  • On the Confirm and Submit page, under 'Next Steps,' attach a PDF of the completed Travel Cash Advance Request Form using the 'Upload Receipts and Backup' function
  • Submit the request to the selected preferred approver

Travel Expense Reimbursement Report

A Travel Expense Reimbursement Report must be submitted within 45 days after returning from the trip, whether or not a reimbursement is due to the traveler. Any unused cash advance funds must be returned at that time. Cash advances that are not substantiated within 120 days after the end of a trip will be charged to the campus department and reported as additional wages to the employee.

For Non-employees

Generally, cash advances are not issued to non-employees, though advances may be made to students if warranted. A UC Berkeley employee must submit a reimbursement request, on behalf of the student through the Other Expenses Reimbursement System, following the steps listed in the section above for processing by Accounts Payable.

  • Travel must comply with UCOP Policy G-28, Regulations Governing Travel
  • The campus department authorizing the cash advance must ensure that a Travel Expense Report is submitted by the traveler at the conclusion of the trip and that any unused cash advance funds are promptly returned