Delegation settlement step by step – rules, costs and calculator

In short, a full business trip settlement involves determining all employee liabilities after the business trip ends. It's essential to calculate the duration of the trip and per diem allowances, factor in meals, accommodations, travel, mileage allowances, and other expenses, and then settle the advance payment. Business trip settlement also requires documentation to support the costs. All of these activities sound like they require a significant amount of work. Worse still, these are the areas most prone to errors: breakfast included in the hotel price, an incorrect start time for the foreign leg of the trip, or a receipt that's been sitting in the employee's jacket pocket for two weeks. From a practical perspective, settling business trips can be much simpler if you use the right tools.

General rules for settling business trips

• The employee settles the costs of a domestic or foreign trip within 14 days of its completion.
• The settlement includes per diem, travel (i.e. plane and train tickets), accommodation, travel to the destination, mileage and other justified costs accepted by the employer.
• Invoices and receipts must be attached to the settlement. This does not apply to per diems and expenses covered by the flat-rate allowance.
• If it is impossible to present the document, the employee shall submit a written statement of the expense and explain the reason for the lack of the document.
• Free meals, including breakfast included in the hotel price, reduce the per diem.
• The rules for domestic and foreign delegations differ, among other things, in the way time is calculated, per diem rates, meal deductions and overnight stay limits.
• In private companies, some rules may be based on the remuneration policy or employment contract. It's worth checking these documents before starting calculations.

A business trip settlement should combine data from the travel order, reservation, documents, and advance payment. Only then will it reflect the actual costs of the business trip. If you want to estimate the costs immediately, use the domestic and international travel calculator. The calculator's results are a guide. The final settlement depends on the documents, the conditions of the specific trip, and the employer's policies.

What is delegation settlement in practice?

A business trip takes place at the employer's request, outside the company's headquarters or the regular place of work. The purpose of the business trip should be specific, such as a client meeting, equipment/installation assembly, or participation in a trade fair. A business trip settlement concludes this process: it shows the employee's entitlements, the company's expenses, the use of the advance payment, and the final additional payment or refund amount.

In fact, a good settlement should begin even before the trip. The travel order should specify the location, date, task, means of transportation, and the rules for covering expenses. If the employee's business trip is to be made in a private car, the employer's consent is required. If the employee is to receive an advance payment, its amount should be based on a preliminary calculation. A well-defined business trip helps reduce disputes upon return. Business travel regulations should be known before purchasing a ticket or booking a hotel, not only when checking documents.

The basic rules stem from the Labor Code and regulations regarding business travel. Detailed rates and conditions are contained in the consolidated text of the regulation on business travel allowances.

Rules for settling business trips in a private company

In private companies, the terms of payment for business trips may be established in the remuneration policy or employment contract. If the company does not establish its own rules, the regulations apply. The per diem rate for domestic travel set by a private employer cannot be lower than the domestic per diem rate applicable in the public sector. 

How to settle a business trip in eight simple steps?

Step 1: Check travel order and company policies

Start with the source data: travel destination, departure and arrival locations, destinations, means of transportation, dates, and advance payment information. Also, review the travel policy, remuneration regulations, and travel approval rules, as well as the expenses themselves, as these may vary. Delegation settlement policies may specify the travel class, hotel limits, and how expenses are documented.

Step 2: Determine actual travel time

For calculations, you need the exact start and end date and time of your business trip. For domestic travel, the time from departure to return after completing your business assignment is considered. For international travel, the start date depends on the mode of transport. Flights, car or train journeys, and ferry journeys are calculated differently.

Step 3: Separate the domestic and foreign parts

A trip abroad may also include a domestic component, such as travel from work to the airport. This component must be separated because different rules for calculating per diem allowances apply to the domestic and international portions.

Step 4: Calculate your diet and include meals

First, determine the number of full and part-time travel days. Then, subtract the value of any complimentary meals. Remember to include breakfast in the room rate. This is one of the most frequently overlooked details, especially when the hotel reservation was made by someone other than the employee completing the billing statement.

Step 5: Add transportation, accommodation, and other expenses

Tickets, accommodations, local transportation, highway tolls, parking, luggage, and other necessary travel expenses may be included in the settlement. Travel costs must be linked to the approved means of transportation. Travel expenses are settled based on documents or the appropriate flat-rate allowance, while accommodation costs are settled based on a receipt or flat-rate allowance rules. These are the basic elements of business trip expenses, but each expense must still be related to the official task.

Step 6: Settle the mileage allowance if the employee used a private vehicle

Check your employer's approval, the number of kilometers traveled, the route, and the agreed rate. The reimbursement is calculated by multiplying the number of kilometers by the rate set by your employer, which cannot exceed the legal limit.

Step 7: Attach documents and settle the advance payment

Assign invoices, receipts, tickets, and confirmations to the appropriate costs. Then, subtract the advance payment from the amount due. The result will determine whether the employer should pay the employee additional funds or whether the employee should refund the unused portion of the funds.

Step 8: Submit your settlement on time

The completed settlement, along with attachments, must be submitted to the company within 14 days of the trip's completion. The business trip settlement process should include document review, approval, and final balance determination. Online business trip settlement allows for immediate assignment of documents to a specific trip, rather than having to complete them on the day of dispatch. This means that a complete business trip settlement is not dependent on messages and attachments scattered across multiple locations. To better illustrate this, the table below summarizes the costs included in business trip settlements.

Type of charge or expense	What does it include?	Basis for settlement
Diet	Increased food costs and, when traveling abroad, also other minor expenses	Length of trip, destination country and meals provided
Passing	Train, plane, bus, long-distance transport	Ticket or invoice, taking into account the means and class specified by the employer
Accommodation	A hotel or other facility providing accommodation services	Bill or invoice, or a lump sum payment after meeting the conditions
Local transport	Metro, tram, bus, transfers	Lump sum or approved documented costs
Kilometer	Travel by private car, motorcycle or moped	Employer consent, number of kilometers and rate per kilometer
Other expenses	Parking, highways, baggage fees and other necessary costs	Document and employer's approval

"Business travel expenses should be divided into time-based and rate-based benefits and document-based expenses. The first group primarily includes per diems and lump sums. The second group includes, among other things, tickets, hotel accommodations, and approved additional expenses. This division facilitates the settlement of travel expenses and reduces the risk of having to pay again an amount already paid by the company at the time of booking."

Tells us about Anna Redzińska, Head of Product & Implementation at WorkTrips.

Settlement of the domestic delegation

The domestic allowance in Poland is 45 PLN per day. The amount of the domestic allowance depends on the length of the trip and the meals provided. Domestic business trips shorter than eight hours do not entitle you to the allowance.

"The rules for calculating per diem allowances require that the trip be divided into full and part-days. If the business trip lasts between 8 and 12 hours, the per diem allowance is paid at half the rate. If the business trip lasts more than 12 hours, the employee is entitled to the full per diem allowance".

Says Wioleta Kucharzyk, Business Travel Advisor at WorkTrips.

Domestic travel time	Proper diet
Less than 8 hours	The allowance is not applicable
From 8 to 12 hours	50 percent of the allowance, i.e. PLN 22.50
Over 12 hours	Full diet, i.e. PLN 45
Each full day for a trip longer than 24 hours	45 PLN
Partial commencement of a day up to 8 hours	50 percent of the allowance, i.e. PLN 22.50
Partial commencement of a day over 8 hours	100 percent of the allowance, i.e. PLN 45

The per diem allowance is not payable if the employee is provided with free full-day meals. However, if the per diem allowance is payable for a partial day, the appropriate portion of the rate is first determined. If the per diem allowance is payable after meals are taken into account, deductions are calculated according to the rules specified in the regulation.

Reduction of the national allowance by meals

The rules for reducing per diem allowances also apply to meals included in the price of another service. Therefore, the per diem allowance rules do not allow you to skip breakfast simply because the invoice shows a single total amount for your stay.

Meal provided	Reducing one full allowance	The amount for the diet is PLN 45
Breakfast	25 percent	11.25 PLN
Lunch	50 percent	22.50 PLN
Dinner	25 percent	11.25 PLN

When breakfast is included in the hotel service, it also reduces the per diem allowance. Therefore, the "bed and breakfast" information isn't a minor addition to the booking; it directly impacts the final billing. Therefore, the domestic per diem allowance is usually calculated based on the length of the trip and only then reduced by the meals.

Accommodation in the national delegation

Accommodation costs, confirmed by a receipt, are generally reimbursed up to twenty times the per diem allowance for one hotel night. At the current rate, this amounts to PLN 900. The rules regarding per diem limits are directly relevant here, as the overnight allowance is linked to the national rate. In justified cases, the employer may accept costs exceeding this limit.

The overnight allowance is 150 percent of the daily allowance, currently PLN 67.50, if the employee was not provided with free accommodation and does not submit a receipt. The overnight stay must last at least six hours between 9:00 PM and 7:00 AM. The rules regarding overnight allowances exclude payment for travel periods and when the employer determines that the employee's daily return to their location was possible.

Commuting by public transport at the business trip destination

The lump sum for local travel is 20 percent of the daily allowance for each commenced day of domestic travel, which is currently PLN 9. However, travel costs must actually be incurred. If the employee does not incur them, the lump sum is not payable. At the employee's request, the employer may cover documented local travel costs, such as public transport or taxi fares, in lieu of the lump sum.

A domestic business trip therefore requires separate verification of time, meals, hotel, and transportation costs. The phrase "domestic business trip refund" is often entered into search engines by people looking for a single rate, but the settlement covers several different charges.

Settlement of foreign delegations

The settlement of a foreign travel assignment begins with separating the domestic and international sections. A foreign trip may include travel to the airport or border, which is billed according to different rules. Next, you need to determine the destination country, the per diem rate, the overnight stay limit, meals provided, travel expenses, and, of course, the currency.

Determining the time of the foreign part

The duration of a trip abroad depends on the means of transport.

Foreign diet

The per diem rate depends on the destination country. When an employee travels to multiple countries, the employer may specify more than one destination country. Per diem rules then require that the appropriate rate be assigned to the appropriate portion of the itinerary. Current rates and accommodation limits are included in the regulation's appendix, and the travel calculator available at worktrips.com allows you to select the country and estimate the amount due.

Time of travel abroad	Due portion of the diet
Up to 8 hours	1/3 of the diet
Over 8 to 12 hours	50 percent of the diet
Over 12 hours	100 percent diet

Meals when traveling abroad

The rules for reducing per diem allowances abroad are different than for domestic travel. Meal costs covered by the per diem allowance must be compared with meals provided by the hotel, event organizer, or contractor.

Meal provided	Reducing the diet
Breakfast	15 percent of the diet
Lunch	30 percent of the diet
Dinner	30 percent of the diet

Accommodation and travel abroad

Accommodation costs are reimbursed based on a receipt, up to the limit specified for the given country. The employer may accept a higher cost if justified. Without a receipt, the employee may be entitled to a lump sum of 25 percent of the accommodation allowance. The accommodation allowance is not payable for the duration of the trip or if the employer provides free accommodation. The regulations also provide for travel allowances for travel to and from the train station, airport, or port. The local travel allowance, however, covers transportation costs at the place of stay.

Advance payment and settlement currency

The employee receives an advance payment for essential travel expenses abroad. This payment can be made in foreign currency, or, with the employee's consent, in Polish zloty. The settlement of the costs of the foreign portion of the trip must also show the value of the advance payment received and the difference for additional payment or reimbursement. This is the final stage, concluding the foreign settlement.

Mileage allowance on a business trip

An employee may travel by private car, motorcycle, or moped with the employer's consent. This consent should be granted prior to departure and related to the specific trip. The maximum mileage rates applicable as of the date this article was updated are:

Vehicle	Maximum rate per kilometer
Passenger car with an engine capacity of up to 900 cm3	0.89 PLN
Passenger car with an engine capacity of over 900 cm3	1.15 PLN
Motorbike	0.69 PLN
Moped	0.42 PLN

The current limits result from the regulation on the reimbursement of costs of using private vehicles for business purposes.

Documents needed to settle the delegation

The employee should attach documents confirming individual expenses. These will most often include:

• train, plane and bus tickets;
• invoices or bills for accommodation;
• public transport tickets or purchase confirmations;
• invoices or receipts for parking, highway and luggage fees;
• documents regarding other expenses approved by the employer;
• record of the route and kilometers when traveling by private vehicle;
• information about the advance payment received;
• a statement about the meals provided, unless this is indicated in other documents.

Delegation settlement deadline

The regulations specify a deadline for the employee: "The employee shall settle the costs of a domestic or foreign trip no later than 14 days after the end of the trip." Source: paragraph 5 of the regulation on business trip payments. It is advisable for the company's internal procedure to also specify the deadline for document verification, the method for correcting errors, and the deadline for payment of the amount due after the settlement is approved. The employee's cut-off date alone does not regulate the work of the finance department.

Example of a domestic delegation settlement

The employee left Warsaw for Gdańsk on Monday at 7:00 AM and returned on Tuesday at 6:00 PM. The journey took 35 hours. The company purchased train tickets and paid for hotel accommodations in advance, for example, through the worktrips.com platform. Breakfast was included in the price, and the meeting organizer (contractor) provided dinner. The employee spent 18 PLN on local transportation and 40 PLN on parking. Before departure, he received a 100 PLN deposit.

1. For the first full day, you are entitled to a PLN 45 per diem allowance.

2. The remaining 11 hours mean another full allowance of PLN 45.

3. The allowance before deductions is PLN 90.

4. Breakfast reduces it by PLN 11.25 and dinner by PLN 22.50.

5. The allowance after deductions amounts to PLN 56.25.

6. The employee's documented expenses amount to PLN 58.

7. The total amount due to the employee is PLN 114.25.

8. After deducting the advance payment, the company pays an additional PLN 14.25.

Tickets and hotel fees remain company travel expenses but are not reimbursed to the employee because they were paid for previously. However, they should be included in the total travel expense report, alongside per diem and incidental expenses.

Example of a foreign delegation settlement

The employee traveled by plane to Germany. For simplicity, let's assume the international portion of the trip lasted 57 hours, and the per diem rate for Germany was €49. The company paid for the flight and hotel. The hotel provided two breakfasts, and the organizer provided one complimentary lunch. The employee spent €35 on approved and documented travel expenses. He received an advance payment of €100.

1. Two full days equals 98 euros.

2. The remaining nine hours are 50 percent of the allowance, or €24.50.

3. The allowance before deductions is 122.50 euros.

4. Two breakfasts reduce it by a total of 14.70 euros.

5. Lunch reduces it by another 14.70 euros.

6. The allowance after deductions is 93.10 euros.

7. After adding travel expenses, the amount due is 128.10 euros.

8. After deducting the advance payment, the company pays the employee an additional €28.10.

This is a didactic example. In a real-world settlement, you still need to check the domestic portion, the exact takeoff and landing times, the company's travel policy, and the currency conversion method.

Examples of industry best practices

One procedure for each trip

Business trip settlement policies should describe the same process for all employees: request, approval, reservation, documentation, and final settlement. This makes settling business trips easier for both the traveler and the finance department. Business trips don't require rewriting the rules each time.

Complete data before booking

Business trip accounting begins before purchasing the ticket. Employee business trips should include a designated date, route, mode of transportation, budget, and purpose. Business travel policies should also specify who approves exceptions to company policy.

Separate rules for domestic and international trips

Domestic travel requires the application of the appropriate rate and national flat-rate allowances. A domestic assignment may include per diem, accommodation, transportation, and travel, but each allowance has its own terms and conditions. The domestic allowance depends on the departure time, and the amount of the domestic allowance may be reduced by the meals provided. These are additional elements of the assignment costs that must be reported separately. Foreign travel also requires determining the time of crossing the border or takeoff and landing, the destination country, the currency, and the overnight stay limit.

Pre-payment check

Business travel policies should identify the person responsible for verification. Before payment, documents, lump sums, deductions, advance payments, and expenses previously paid by the company should be verified. Only after such verification does the business trip settlement conclude.

The most common mistakes when settling business trips

• counting a trip abroad from the time of leaving home instead of from the time appropriate for a given means of transport;
• no separation of domestic and foreign parts;
• breakfast not included in the hotel price;
• following a full diet despite the meals provided;
• settlement of private car expenses without prior consent of the employer;
• re-reimbursing the employee for the cost of a hotel or ticket previously paid for by the company;
• no route description and number of kilometers;
• omitting the advance payment from the final balance;
• using the wrong exchange rate;
• sending illegible photos of documents or documents without assigning them to a specific expense;
• submitting the settlement after the deadline without explanation.

The list isn't long because settling business trips is inherently complicated. It's long because, with a manual process, information is created at different times and in different places: in a message from a supervisor, the reservation system, the mailbox, the employee's phone, and the finance department's spreadsheet.

Transparent online settlement of business trips

For a single trip, a spreadsheet and emails may seem sufficient. The problem arises with multiple business trips, different cost centers, and documents shared by multiple people. Managing business travel requires a common data source. Automated billing systems streamline the travel billing process and reduce manual rewriting of information.

The worktrips.com travel allowance module combines the application, approval, reservation, and settlement process in a single process. This travel allowance process maintains the link between travel approval and travel costs. After the trip is complete, the employee can complete per diem, mileage allowance, additional expenses, and documents. Hotel and transportation previously booked on worktrips.com are already associated with the trip, so there's no need to re-enter them.

From the employee's perspective, online travel expense settlement means they can check the status of their request, proceed to the reservation after approval, and complete the settlement in the same environment. The employee's business trip remains linked to their documents and previous reservations. This means that settling a business trip doesn't require replaying the entire history. 

The company gains structured data, documents assigned to trips, and the ability to further utilize the information in reports and accounting or ERP systems. Business travel management then encompasses not only reservations but also full travel expense accounting and reporting. Automated accounting systems help verify business trip costs without manually combining multiple spreadsheets. 

Stage	Distributed process	Process on worktrips.com
Application	Form, message or sheet	Online application linked to a specific trip
Acceptance	Messages between employee and supervisor	Established approval path and visible status
Reservation	Separate pages and confirmations	Reservation after acceptance in the reservation section of the platform
Documents	Attachments in messages and photos on your phone	Documents assigned to a specific trip
Reckoning	Rewriting data	Complementing the allowance, mileage allowance and other costs as part of the process
Reporting	Manual sheet joining	Data ready for reporting and further processing

Online travel expense settlement is particularly useful when the process involves the employee, supervisor, finance, and administrator. Each person sees the data needed at their specific stage, and the system maintains a history of approvals. This allows settlements to be verified without searching for arrangements in the mailbox.

A well-planned business trip allows a company to control expenses before the purchase. Upon return, the business trip settlement process uses data from the approved request and reservation. This type of business trip settlement reduces confusion about who approved a given expense and from what budget it should be covered.

Settling business trips in a single environment also streamlines expense analysis. Each business trip feeds into the same data set, and business trip costs can be compared by department, project, or cost center. If you'd like to see how the entire process might work in your company, schedule a free demo of the business trip module.

Legal basis and sources

1. Business trip on the website of the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy
2. Consolidated text of the regulation on business trip payments
3. Regulation specifying the maximum rates per kilometre of vehicle mileage

 

Frequently asked questions about business trip settlement

Does an employee have to settle the business trip on an official form?

The regulations do not impose a single, universally applicable form. However, the settlement must include data enabling the determination of the amount due and linking it to a specific trip, and the company may use its own form or an electronic process.

Does breakfast at a hotel detract from your diet?

Yes. If breakfast was included in the hotel service, it reduces the per diem allowance. For domestic travel, this is 25 percent of the full per diem rate, and for international travel, it is 15 percent of the rate applicable in the destination country. The per diem policy covers meals provided as part of another service, even if the price is not separately stated on the invoice.

Can a business trip be settled without an invoice?

If it is impossible to provide documentation, the employee may submit a written statement detailing the expense and the reason for the missing document. This does not automatically mean acceptance of the expense. The employer still assesses its justification.

Does a business trip shorter than eight hours need to be accounted for?

Yes, if the employee has incurred reimbursable expenses. For domestic travel of less than eight hours, per diem allowance is not applicable, but other expenses, such as airfare or parking, may apply.

Can an employee go on business trips in a private car?

It can, if the employer agrees. The reimbursement is calculated based on the number of kilometers and the rate set by the employer, but not higher than the limit specified in the regulations.

Is the delegation calculator sufficient for final settlement?

The calculator helps estimate per diem, mileage allowance, and other expenses, but it does not replace documentation, cost approval, or employer policies. The result must always be compared to the specific trip. Each business trip may have different hours, meals, accommodations, and additional expenses.

Can a company set its own per diem rates?

A private company may define the rules in its regulations, collective bargaining agreement, or employment contract. However, the allowance for domestic travel cannot be lower than the rate specified in public sector regulations. Higher allowances should be analyzed from a tax and social security perspective.