Travel Expense Audit SOP

Standard procedure for reviewing travel expense reports for per diem compliance, receipt requirements, expense categories, policy violations, and exception handling.

Steps

• Open the expense report for review
  The Expense Auditor opens the submitted travel expense report and confirms the report is in a reviewable status. The auditor verifies that the report includes the traveler name, trip purpose, trip dates, cost center or project code, and all attached supporting documents.
• Verify report completeness
  The Expense Auditor verifies that the report is complete before detailed review. The auditor checks for required fields, itemized expense lines, currency, submission date, approver name, and any mandatory trip authorization records. If required information is missing, the auditor records the deficiency and routes the report for correction.
• Check per diem compliance
  The Expense Auditor compares claimed per diem amounts against the approved policy rate table, destination, travel status, and eligible meal periods. The auditor verifies that the traveler did not claim per diem for ineligible days, duplicate meals, or amounts above the policy tolerance. Any variance is documented as a deviation.
• Review receipts against policy thresholds
  The Expense Auditor checks each expense line against the receipt requirement in the policy. The auditor confirms that receipts are attached for expenses above the threshold, that the receipt date matches the travel period, that the merchant and amount align with the claim, and that any missing receipt has an approved exception or affidavit.
• Validate expense categories and coding
  The Expense Auditor verifies that each line item is coded to the correct expense category, such as airfare, lodging, ground transportation, meals, parking, or incidentals. The auditor confirms that personal expenses, entertainment, alcohol, and other non-reimbursable items are excluded or separately flagged according to policy.
• Identify policy violations and duplicate claims
  The Expense Auditor reviews the report for policy violations, duplicate submissions, split transactions intended to bypass approval thresholds, unsupported business purpose, and out-of-policy spending. If a violation is found, the auditor determines whether the issue can be corrected with documentation or must be escalated as a non-conformance.
• Approve compliant expense report
  The Expense Auditor approves the report when all required checks pass and no unresolved deviations remain. The auditor records the approval decision in the system and releases the report for reimbursement processing.
• Request clarification or missing documentation
  The Expense Auditor documents the specific issue, identifies the affected line items, and requests clarification or missing documentation from the traveler. The auditor sets a response deadline consistent with the organization’s reimbursement cycle and pauses further processing until the response is received.
• Escalate confirmed non-conformance
  The Expense Auditor escalates confirmed non-conformance to the Finance Manager, Compliance Analyst, or other designated approver. The auditor records the violation type, amount at issue, supporting evidence, and recommended disposition, such as partial denial, full denial, or repayment request.