How (and why) to stop paying for work travel upfront

14 Jan 2025 · 6 MIN READ

If you travel regularly for work, it’s possible you’ve been asked to pay for business trips upfront with your own money. Many companies ask their employees to do this, but not only is it a massive inconvenience for you, it can also be inefficient and more expensive for your company in the long run.
Unfortunately, there are no rules against companies asking employees to pay for their business travel, but there are solutions that can benefit everyone. But before we explore these, let’s dive deeper into why this is such an issue.

Why is this an issue?

From our own experience, companies that don’t have a travel management solution in place will ask employees to pay their business travel expenses upfront. Without clear booking procedures or travel policies, you’re left to make your own arrangements, often on your credit card. This can cause lots of problems for you and your colleagues but also for the business itself. 

Why paying out of pocket is an issue for business travelers

It’s inconvenient

Let’s face it, paying for plane tickets, train tickets, hotel rooms, ground transportation, and other travel costs yourself can cause all kinds of stress. First, you have to search for travel arrangements that are within your company’s travel policies. Then, you need to submit all the receipts for these elements, which are often booked individually and have separate invoices.
When you finally hit the road, you also need to keep track of your per diem expenses and submit  a report on your return. Not only does keeping track of all this admin take up valuable time you could use to do more important tasks, but it’s extra stressful when your own money is on the line. After submitting your forms, your travel spending is in the hands of finance, and the wait to be refunded can feel like an eternity. 

It creates financial pressure

When your employer asks you to pay for business-related expenses with your personal funds, it can also cause unwanted—and sometimes unmanageable—financial pressure.
What if you can’t afford to pay out of pocket for these expenses at the time? Especially if you travel for work on a regular basis, airline tickets, hotels, trains,, food, and incidental expenses like tips and taxi cabs all add up. In recent years, inflation and increased living costs have made paying for work trips in advance even more challenging. 
There may be a variety of reasons why using your personal credit card to pay for work-related travel may not be an option. However, bringing these issues up with your employer can be awkward, and no one should feel forced to discuss their finances with their boss.

Why asking employees to pay for traveling for work can backfire on businesses

It’s inefficient

Whether you work for a small business or a large corporation, making employees pay for travel and covering their expenditures later is ineffective.
This out-of-date approach involves accounting for numerous invoices from multiple employees, with finance managers often having to chase down individual team members for each receipt. This manual workflow is a massive waste of time. Time that could be spent doing far more important, creative, and profitable tasks.

It’s makes it harder to stick to company travel policies

Say you have been asked to take a last-minute work trip to meet a client. You have a to-do list as long as your arm, and now you need to add booking a whole business trip to your tasks for the day. 
In your rush to get organized, you forget the company’s preferred hotel chain and book the first accommodation you can find. Now, not only are you waiting to be refunded for this expensive surprise journey, but you are also in trouble with HR. 
With today’s technology, there are far more efficient ways for businesses to help employees stick to company travel policies and remove this unnecessary headache for everyone!
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It decreases employee satisfaction

A 2024 Perk survey found that 75% of HR decision-makers said that including business travel opportunities in their job descriptions made the role more attractive to job seekers. But, as well as attracting candidates, work trips can be a great source of inspiration and motivation. 
63% of surveyed business travelers reported that traveling for work increased the likelihood of them remaining in their current role. Amongst younger employees, this statistic was even higher, with 76% of Gen Z respondents saying that traveling for work influenced their decision to stay in their current jobs. 
But as business travelers like you know all too well, all of these benefits can quickly disappear if you have to constantly handle the stress of paying for your travel arrangements out of pocket.

There is a better solution for everyone

Utilizing the latest travel tools can revolutionize the experience of traveling for work for both you and your employers. From easy-to-use booking platforms to generating speedy travel spending reports, there are a host of ways using this technology can help.

Modern booking tools

Boasting an industry-leading inventory, Perk ensures your bosses get access to competitive rates for worldwide work travel. Not only will this impress management, but you and your colleagues can pick from a huge choice of transport and accommodation options in one easy-to-use platform.

Improved policy compliance

With a comprehensive business travel solution, your managers can integrate travel policies into the booking process. Removing the guesswork for busy travelers like yourself. You can choose the hotels, flights, and other arrangements you prefer with total peace of mind. Knowing you are within company rules and with instant approvals.
Say you are booking from limited last-minute options and need to make arrangements outside your company policy. Then a tool like Perk will flag those bookings to managers for attention, so you don’t need to be stressed about generating non-compliant travel spending.  

Streamlined invoicing

When companies use a central system for organizing their travel, they can also benefit from more efficient invoicing. No more being chased for receipts. Perk provides users with just one invoice and one provider for finance teams to pay. 

Rapid real-time reports

A system like Perk also offers businesses more data on their employees' travel. With just the click of a button, managers can generate reports on individual employees, teams, or by destination. So you will never have to go fishing for old expense reports again!
If you’d like to learn more about how Perk can save you from paying out of pocket and streamline the entire process of traveling for work, please request a demo today.
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