Companies that streamline their T&E process by using the high-low substantiation method for business travel, you have some new numbers.
IRS recently announced the new numbers, effective Oct. 1, 2021. And like with the per-diem rates, your team has many changes to adjust to.
IRS Notice 2021-52 outlines them for you, your A/P team and your road warriors:
- The “high” rate for lodging expenses and M&IE for travel to any high-cost locality increases to $296 (a $4 increase), while
- The “low” rate increases to $202 (from $198 last year) for travel to any other locality within the continental U.S. (CONUS).
When it comes to the rates for M&IE in the high-low substantiation method, they increase to:
- $74 (up from $71) for high-cost localities, and
- $64 (up from $60) for any other locality within the CONUS.
Leverage the good news
Your company’s road warriors will be glad to hear they get a little more spending money on the road this year with the high-low substantiation method.
So, when you share the new rates with them, make sure to capitalize on that fact. After all, happy biz travelers tend to be more compliant biz travelers, too.
Increase T&E compliance
Of course, no matter how you structure your T&E program, you want to do all you can to keep employees policy-compliant.
With a T&E training video, employees can get more information in less time (and not to mention, a more entertaining format). And if employees absorb more information, you’ll see greater compliance.
Here are a few training video tips and ideas to get your wheels turning:
1. Lay out the story. A/P pros are great with organization and order. Leverage those skills to create a clear path for your video.
First comes the script: What policies and instructions do you need to relay, start to finish? Next comes the storyboard: How will you lay out that script visually?
2. Select video type(s). There are many visual routes you can take, like:
- Screencast: You record your screen to show process steps (e.g., how to submit receipts online).
- Present: You tape someone talking (e.g., an A/P staffer explaining deadlines).
- Scenario: You show a process being carried out (e.g., an employee filling out an expense report).
A mix of all three might be best to relay different kinds of messages and keep employees attentive and engaged.
3. Enlist other experts. Though no one knows T&E quite like A/P, others can help make your video stronger. Once your script and storyboard are ready, have others involved in training give it a look.
Then, see if your creative folks (in Marketing, Design, etc.) have any tricks for producing strong visuals. For example, you could add annotations, text overlays, pointing arrows and more to highlight your key points.
When it’s time to record, edit and distribute the video, turn to IT. They may be able to offer tech tips to make your video professional, easily accessible and glitch-free.