SPESENFUCHS
When companies employ mobile workers, accounting and travel expense accounting quickly become a problem. Excel spreadsheets, email inboxes or individual accounting accesses quickly reach their limits, especially with several field staff and complex travel policies. A system that links all information in a meaningful way, from receipt to approval to the final invoice, is more suitable.
Clearly mapping legal requirements
The accounting of travel expenses is subject to many tax rules. Per diems, meals provided, mileage allowances and absence times only provide a complete picture of travel expenses when they are combined.
The regulations differ depending on the duration of the trip, means of transportation or destination, even for domestic and international trips. However, employees are entitled to additional subsistence expenses based on statutory flat rates. At the same time, different rules apply for private vehicles than for the classic commuting allowance. Correctly recording such details requires more than just a collection of receipts and a traditional accounting solution usually does not accurately reflect these special features. This is especially true when meals provided lead to deductions or different rules apply for several travel segments.
Specialized travel expense solutions, on the other hand, automatically record all relevant factors and ensure that the accounting is complete, correct and legally compliant. This saves time during the audit and prevents subsequent corrections or tax risks. This ensures error-free and reliable calculation of the travel expense allowance.
Bundle all travel data in one place
Business trips generate far more than just individual receipts. In addition to hotel and cab receipts, there is also information on departure times, routes, overnight stays and approvals, for example. A well-structured SaaS travel expense solution collects all this information in one place and maps the trip in its entirety; traceable, audit-proof and accessible at all times.
This allows questions to be clarified quickly afterwards and evaluations to be carried out efficiently. A look at typical questions helps to improve day-to-day management, including
- Which trips incur high costs?
- Which teams are on the road particularly often?
- How often are certain routes driven?
- Which types of expenditure carry the most weight?
- A well-founded evaluation is only possible when all relevant data is available in a complete and organized form.
Self-service saves time and creates an overview
Sales representatives and project managers have the best overview of their own travel. Ideally, therefore, the employee should take over the receipt entry and travel documentation themselves, digitally, on the move and with minimal effort.
Employees use simple applications to enter their receipts, submit information and trigger approval processes. The data reaches the accounting department already checked and complete. This means that there are no unnecessary queries and access to internal accounting systems is limited to the bare minimum. The integration of e-invoicing also facilitates digital processing, which helps to speed up the workflow.
Record receipts digitally and bill efficiently
In many cases, travel expenses are closely linked to project accounting. Spesenfuchs also records all other expenses digitally, from office supplies to small purchases. Receipts are automatically recorded and transferred directly to the accounting department without employees needing access to accounting solutions themselves. This reduces duplicate entries, guarantees structured filing and simplifies accounting. In conjunction with the right invoicing software, companies can process this data quickly and integrate it efficiently into the accounting process.
Relieve the accounting department with clear processes
Typically, simple tasks such as document entry or data maintenance end up directly in the accounting department, although this is where time is often at a premium. The more of these routine activities are upstream and automated, the better the available resources can be utilized.
A specialized solution takes over a lot of the preparatory work for this purpose. Automatic recognition of document data, prepared posting suggestions and GoBD-compliant archiving save a lot of time. At the same time, this significantly improves the quality of bookkeeping. After all, the accounting department accesses information that has already been checked and still retains full control.
How to get started
A complete changeover requires planning, but targeted adjustments are usually enough to achieve noticeable effects. Digital receipt entry, mobile apps or a defined approval process create structure and reduce effort. The most important thing is to maintain a common view of the overall process, because when accounting, travel expenses and invoicing are coordinated, internal processes can be better controlled; without additional effort, but with a much better overview.