How every expense audit rule works

Alcohol without a client attendee

Detects alcohol on itemized restaurant and bar receipts when the attendee list has no external guest, so internal team drinks are separated from client hospitality your policy actually reimburses.

Missing receipt at or above $75

Checks that every expense of $75 or more, and every lodging charge at any amount, carries documentary evidence showing amount, date, place and nature of the expense.

Late substantiation beyond 60 days

Measures the time between when each expense was paid or incurred and when it was substantiated, flagging lines approaching or past the 60-day safe harbor for accountable plans.

Duplicate expenses across cards and reports

Finds the same purchase claimed twice, whether on a corporate card and a personal reimbursement, across two corporate cards, or in separate reports filed weeks apart.

Split transactions below an approval threshold

Detects purchases broken into smaller charges or reports that each fall under an approval limit but together exceed it, such as charges of $1,284.60 and $1,317.46 days apart.

Personal charges mixed into a business folio

Identifies personal stays and charges inside business hotel folios, such as extra nights before or after the trip, guest fees and leisure charges, and proposes a split before reimbursement.

Hotel minibar and in-room incidentals

Reads every line of a hotel folio and flags minibar, in-room movies, spa and other incidentals that sit outside the nightly room rate and taxes your policy covers.

Airfare cabin class above policy

Reads the fare basis and booking class on every airline receipt and flags business or premium economy tickets that the flight duration, traveler role or documented exception does not support.

Per diem meal cap

Compares daily meal spend on travel days with the destination's per diem or meal cap, adjusting for partial travel days and meals already provided by hotels or conferences.

Entertainment coded as a deductible meal

Separates entertainment, which is nondeductible after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, from business meals at 50%, including separately stated food at events, so GL coding matches tax treatment.

Business gifts above the $25 deduction limit

Tracks business gifts by recipient across the tax year, applying the $25 per recipient deduction limit and separating the excess so the tax team can treat it correctly.

Weekend and holiday spend

Flags card transactions and reimbursements dated on weekends or company holidays with no overlapping trip, event or on-call record, a common early signal of personal spend on business cards.

Preferred vendor not used

Flags hotel, airline and car rental bookings made outside negotiated preferred vendors when a contracted option was available, so negotiated rates and volume commitments are actually used.

Premium ride-share tier

Reads ride-share receipts to identify premium tiers like Uber Black or Lyft Lux, comparing them to the standard fare and checking for allowed reasons like late hours or group travel.

Home office stipend cap

Tracks remote work equipment and internet claims against annual and monthly caps per employee, checking eligibility, repeat equipment purchases and receipts for items the company reimburses on substantiation.