1 Scope

This policy applies to all Employees unless there is a specific exception in an employment agreement or contract.

Only the CEO, Finance Director or Group FC can approve any deviation from this policy.

Note: Independent Contractors, including editorial contributors will need to include any legitimate expenses on their invoices submitted to Are Media for payment.

2 Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to establish a framework for the reimbursement of legitimate out-of-pocket expenses incurred by Are Media Employees while performing employment duties.

3 Summary

The following summarises Are Media’s Expense Reimbursement Policy:

• Legitimate expenses (refer Definitions) can be
• Expense reimbursements will only be made when payments via the Accounts Payable process, Preferred Supplier Contracts or a Corporate Card are
• Where multiple Employees are on outside business together, the most senior Employee in the group must pay for expenditure.
• A Valid Tax Invoice / Receipt for each expense item must accompany Expense
• Expense Reports must be approved by the Employee’s Approving Manager and Business Manager
• It is the responsibility of each Employee, their Approving Manager and Business Manager to ensure expenses are within budget.
• Compliance with this Policy is mandatory

4 Expense Types

4.1 Types of Expenses Reimbursed

Payment for legitimate expenses (refer Definitions) should be made via the Accounts Payable process, Preferred Supplier contracts (e.g. stationery) or Corporate Card for low value items.

Where none of the above methods are available and the individual has to use his or her own money, the Expense Reimbursement process in this policy applies.

Expenses must be in accordance with all other Are Media Policies and Procedures. Inappropriate expenditure (refer Definitions) will NOT be reimbursed.

5 Expense Reports

5.1 Reports

Expense reimbursement claims are to be made by completion and submission of an Expense Report within Concur.

There is a limit of ONE Expense Report per Employee per payroll cycle.

5.2 Approval

Expense Reports:

• Must be approved by the Employee’s Approving manager and Business Manager
• Must be submitted within 60 days of incurring the expense, otherwise Are Media reserves the right not to reimburse the funds.

5.3 Tax Invoice / Receipts

All Expense Reports must include valid Tax Invoices/Receipts (refer Definitions) for each expense item within the Concur Expense Report.

Credit Card receipts are NOT accepted as a valid tax receipt.

5.4 Reimbursement

Expense Reports will be reimbursed to Employees in their regular payroll cycle following Concur Receipt Audit and approval per 5.2.

5.5 False Report

An Expense Report will be defined as a False Report if:

• it includes inappropriate expenses (refer Definition);
• it includes an expense item that has previously been reimbursed;
• it includes an expense item that forms part of an Employee’s Allowance (eg Car, Parking);
• an expense item is not supported by a valid Tax Invoice/ Receipt; and/or
• an attached Tax Invoice/Receipt demonstrates that the expense item is not a legitimate expense.

The submission of a false Expense Report will result in:

• Non-approval of the Expense Report;
• A deduction from the Employee’s salary if the Expense Report has already been reimbursed to the Employee;
• Disciplinary action.

Further disciplinary action may be considered if the breach constitutes misconduct. This may include termination of employment, legal action or criminal prosecution.

6 Expense Specifics

6.1 Meals & Catering

Per Diem

Employees who are required to take business related travel may claim a per diem if they are away for 4 or more nights.

Employees who receive a per diem in accordance with the Travel Policy, will NOT be reimbursed for additional meal, catering or entertainment costs. Reimbursement will extend only to the client portion of the expense.

 

Catering – Photo/promo shoots

(a) Employees

Reimbursement for Employee’s meals while on photo/promo shoots will NOT be made unless:

• In accordance with the Travel Policy;
• Where the Employee’s duties require them to take 2 or more meals (lunch and dinner) away from their home/primary office and this is not part of their regular employment duties;
• The limit is $20/head;
• Unless otherwise stipulated in an Employment award.

Reimbursement will NOT be allowed for breakfast on the morning of departure for the photo/promo shoot.

Drinks/coffees/snacks are NOT reimbursable.

(b)External freelancers/models/crew (paid by Are Media)

Reimbursement for meals & catering costs for external freelancers/models/crew that are paid by Are Media to perform duties for a photo/promo shoot will NOT be allowed. Invoices submitted to Are Media by these attendees should NOT include any costs in relation to per diem, meal or catering as the cost should be taken into account as part of their rate.

(c)Special guests/talent

In the event of special guests/talent attending a photo/promo shoot, a small amount of catering may be allowed if pre-approval is granted by the CEO, CFO, Group FC or a Publisher. The catering should extend only to the special guests/talent and still be in accordance with

(a) and (b) above.

Catering – Other

Catering may be reimbursed for meetings/presentations for client relationships/new business only and up to a limit of $20/head.

Expenses exceeding the limits outlined will require pre-approval by an Executive (refer Definitions for a listing).

6.2 Entertainment

Legitimate expenses for entertainment are to be paid for by either the most senior Employee or an Employee with a Corporate Card.

There must be a minimum of one Are employee to two clients where there are more than 2 attendees.

Both Are and client attendee details for entertainment must be noted on the Concur expense report.

Refer to Appendix 1 for reimbursable entertainment and limits. Refer to section 6.8 of this policy in relation to Tips.

6.3 Employee Expenses

Employee team expenses will be limited to $10/employee/month and includes the following:

• Food/drink celebrations in relation to employment milestones/farewells/births/marriages
• Team refreshments/snacks/fruit box/drinks/other

Grooming expenses such as hair, makeup, tanning, manicure, pedicure as well as dry cleaning will NOT be reimbursed even if it’s in relation to an Are Media event/presentation/demonstration.

6.4 Taxis, Tolls, Parking and Kilometres

Expenses in relation to normal travel between home and an Employee’s primary office will NOT be reimbursed.

For travel involving an overnight stay and/or international/ domestic travel, refer to the Travel Policy.

The Taxis, Tolls, Parking and Kilometres table in Appendix 2 summarises Employees’ eligibility for claiming reimbursement.

Taxis

Employees should request advance permission from their Approving Manager to use a taxi from their primary office:

• To start or finish work more than 2 hours outside of standard business hours; and
• To work more than 10 hours per day; and
• To work on a public holiday, weekend or during official office shut down; or
• To attend a work related appointment or event during or outside standard business hours.

Standard business hours during the daylight savings period are 7am to 8pm. Standard business hours during the non-daylight savings period are 7am to 7pm.

Taxis are not allowed if Employees leave work for personal reasons and then come back to the office to pick up belongings.

Tolls

Where the company provides an ETAG to the Employee for use in a Are Media vehicle, private vehicle or a test vehicle, expense reimbursement will only be made where the toll falls outside of the ETAG zone.

Where tolls are paid for by the Employee in the course of their employment duties, then reimbursement will be in line with the eligibility table on the previous page. Reimbursement will not be made for travel between the employee’s home and primary office.

Administration and late fees will NOT be reimbursed.

Parking

Where the company provides the Employee with an allowance, parking will not be reimbursed except for parking at an airport for work related travel, interstate or overseas charges while using a hire car.

Reimbursement will only be made for parking near the primary office if the Employee has an external appointment as part of their employment duties during standard business hours. In these situations, the lessor cost of a taxi or use of a private vehicle and parking should be considered.

Employees should choose the cheapest parking available to keep costs to a minimum eg early bird. Reimbursement may be denied if the parking costs are considered excessive.

Valet parking expenses and parking fines will NOT be reimbursed.

Kilometres

For travel outside the city metropolitan area which is >50km from the Employees primary office, the lessor cost of a hire car or private vehicle should be used.

Approval for an Employee to utilise a private vehicle must be obtained from the Approving Manager prior to travel being undertaken. This request must be made on the Private Vehicle Travel Authorisation Form in Appendix 3.

Petrol and fuel will NOT be reimbursed unless it’s in relation to a work-related hire car under the Travel Policy.

An expense claim for kilometres using a private vehicle is to be made via ESS and the Private Vehicle Travel Authorisation Form must be attached to the kilometre claim. Refer to the ESS User Guide located on the intranet.

Employees should claim the lessor of the kms from the Employees primary office or their home and the work-related destination. Reimbursement may be denied if the route is considered excessive.

The kilometre rate will be in accordance with the Australian Taxation Office and varies by award and contract.

Kilometres are only allowed to be reimbursed to the Employee incurring the expense and NOT on behalf of a freelancer/contractor.

Employees, who receive car and / or parking allowances, are able to claim travel expenses incurred which exceed their allowance in a financial year where a Logbook and supporting receipts are provided.

6.5 Travel

Business related travel expenses will only be reimbursed in accordance with the Travel Policy and may require pre-approval.

6.6 Mobile, Phone, Internet and Wireless Devices

Reimbursement of mobile phone expenses or home internet expenses must be approved by the Finance Director unless specifically included within an Employee contract.

Mobile plan expense claims are capped at $60 ex GST per month.

Employees are not permitted to expense the purchase of mobile or wireless devices (this includes monthly handset device repayments).

Are Media will not pay contract termination fees for private accounts.

The cost of replacement accessories (e.g. chargers, USB cables) related to private devices will NOT be reimbursed.

The cost of repairs will NOT be reimbursed even if the device is an Are Media device.

6.7 Gifts

Expense reimbursement will only be made in accordance with the Gift Policy.

6.8 Tips

Tips and gratuities will be reimbursed in situations where they would normally be appropriate but should be kept to a minimum ie 5% and not exceed 10% of the total bill. No tip or gratuity will be reimbursed where the bill includes a service charge.

6.9 Preferred / contracted Suppliers

Where Are Media has a preferred supplier contract for particular items, Employees must use these suppliers via online booking and / or direct account invoicing eg. travel, stationery, hire cars, newspapers / magazines. Expense reimbursement will NOT be allowed in these circumstances.

6.10 Capital Assets Expenditure

Physical items with a purchase price of over $300 (excluding GST), to be used for more than one year, will NOT be reimbursed via Expense Reimbursement and CANNOT be purchased on Corporate Cards.

These items are subject to company capital expenditure approval and must be paid through the Accounts Payable process. Please refer to the intranet site for the relevant Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) form.

6.11 Training Professional Membership

Professional Body Membership and Training directly related to employment duties may be claimed. For training, a pre-approved HR “Training Registration” form must accompany the Expense Report.

6.12 Other

If you’re unsure about whether an expense may be reimbursable please contact your Business Manager PRIOR to incurring or claiming the expense.

The CEO, Finance Director and Group FC have the authority to approve any reimbursement not specifically addressed in this policy or items exceeding specified limits and deemed necessary in the conduct of business or caused by extenuating circumstances.

7 Policy Enforcement

7.1 Enforcement of this policy

The Finance Director and Group FC have overall accountability for financial management and are therefore responsible for enforcing this policy.

Reviews, audits, investigations and queries may be conducted at any time. Employees must co-operate with this process.

7.2 Reporting Breaches

All suspected breaches of this policy should be reported to the Group FC who will then escalate the matter to the Finance Director or CEO.

7.3 Breaches of this policy

The Finance Director and Group FC are responsible for authorising corrective action/penalties to rectify all breaches of this policy. Where breaches constitute misconduct, the CEO and Finance Director will determine the appropriate penalty.

7.4 Penalties for breaches

Reimbursement of inappropriate expenditure will result in a deduction from the Employee’s salary. Further disciplinary action may be considered if the breach constitutes misconduct. This may include termination of employment, legal action or criminal prosecution.

8 Appendix 1 – Meals, Catering and Entertainment Summary

 

Type	Claimable	Value Limits	Other Applicable Policies	Supporting Documentation
Meals	Per Diem Travel Allowance where business related travel is for 4 or more consecutive nights	Refer Appendix 3 Meal Limits in Travel Policy	Travel Policy	Completion & approval of Appendix 4 in Travel Policy
	Out of pocket expense reimbursement where business related travel less than 4consecutive nights	Refer Appendix 3 Meal Limits in Travel Policy	Travel Policy	Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
Catering (photo/promo shoots)	Where the Employee’s duties require them to take 2 or more meals (lunch & dinner) away from home/primary office and this is not part of their regular employment duties.	Within department/ project budget and up to max $20/head		Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
Catering (excluding photo/promo shoots)	Meetings/Presentations for client relationships/New business	Within department/ project budget and up to max $20/head		Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
Entertainment (Restaurants/Drinks)	Annual team session (excludes Are Media Christmas Party)	Within department/ project budget and up to max $75/head/year		Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
	Business related travel (where per diem is not claimed)	Within department/project budget and up to max $65/head/day	Travel Policy	Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
	Client relationships/ New business	Within department/ project budget and up to max $75/head for lunch and $100/head for dinner		Original Tax Invoice/Receipt
External Events (including tickets, concerts, tradeshows)	Client relationships	Within department/ project budget and up to max $100/client/year		Original Tax Invoice/Receipt

9 Appendix 2 – Taxis, Tolls, Parking & Kilometres

 

Employee Allowance	Taxis	Tolls	Parking	KMs
Car Allowance	No YES for airport, interstate, overseas for work travel	NO Yes for interstate or overseas	NO YES for airport, interstate, overseas or hire car for work travel	NO
Parking Allowance	NO YES for airport, interstate, overseas for work travel	YES	NO YES for airport, interstate, overseas or hire car for work travel	NO with Car Allowance YES without Car Allowance
Parking Spot	NO YES within 5km of office if no Car Allowance	NO with Car Allowance YES without Car Allowance	NO with Car Allowance YES outside of 5km of office	NO with Car Allowance YES without Car Allowance
No Allowances or parking spot	YES*	YES*	YES*	YES*

*In accordance with the guidelines of this policy

10 Appendix 3 – Private Vehicle Travel Authorisation Form

Employee Name
Position
Department
Accompanying Employee Names
Trip From (Origin)
Trip To (Destination)
Trip Purpose
Start Date
End Date
No. of Kilometres
Reason for Travel by Car

Authorised by Approving Manager: Name: Signature: Date:

Authorised by Business Manager: Name: Signature: Date:

11 Definitions

In this policy, the following terms have the following meanings.

Approving Manager means an Employee’s direct supervisor, or any person temporarily appointed to supervise an Employee.

Business Manager means the Finance Employee responsible for a department.

CEO means the Chief Executive Officer of Are Media with whom an Employee is employed.

Finance Director means the Finance Director of Are Media reporting to the CEO.

Employee is an individual who is engaged via an employment agreement with Are Media.

Employment Duties means any role, function, project or service attendance that an Employee is engaged to perform on behalf of Are Media.

Executive means the Executive Leadership Team as per the Are Media website.

Finance Manager means the Finance Manager, or equivalent Finance Function, reporting to the Group FC.

Group FC means The Financial Controller, or equivalent Finance Function, of Are Media with whom an Employee is employed.

Inappropriate Expenditure means Includes (but not limited to) the following unless stipulated by an award or an employment contract:

• Hotel charges for personal mini bar, movie hire, gym, telephone calls and internet usage (refer Travel Policy)
• Traffic, Parking fines and late fees
• Valet parking
• The item is available through a preferred supplier arrangement / contract
• Capital expenditure items >$300 (refer section 1)
• Where an allowance or per diem is provided to the Employee for such items
• Any items deemed by the business to be personal in nature
• Any expenses deemed excessive
• Any items deemed by the business as not required for performing regular employment duties
• Charges outside of reasonable client entertaining hours
• Entry to nightclubs and strip parlours
• Is not in line with all Are Media Policies

Legitimate Expenses / Expenditure means incurred in the course of performing regular employment duties, in accordance with a Are Media policy or as stipulated by an award or employment contract and does not fall within the definition of Inappropriate Expenditure.

Primary Office means an Employee’s normal place of employment.

Valid Tax Invoice / Receipt means Receipts / Invoices must comply with GST legislation and include the following:

• The words “Tax Invoice” ,Date of issue of the tax invoice, Name of supplier
• A brief description of each item supplied
• ABN number; and Either the GST amount or wording along the lines of “total price includes 10% GST” is to be clearly stated.

Credit card slips are NOT acceptable.