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Expenses Policy

EXPENSES POLICY FOR EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS and BOARD MEMBERS, COUNCILLORS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines for the reimbursement of, or payments for, expenses for Employees, Contractors or Board members, Councillors and Committee Members (“personnel”) in the course of their duties with Australian Bridge Federation Ltd (ABF).

POLICY STATEMENT

Personnel are eligible for reimbursement of reasonable and authorised expenses incurred while performing duties directly related to their roles with ABF, if the approval process outlined below is followed.

For clarity, where personnel incur expenditure for attending an event where they also participate in a bridge tournament, no expenses will be reimbursed or paid for by ABF. Exceptions to this policy are:

  • ABF President – who is eligible to claim expenditure in up to $2,000 per annum to attend ABF licensed events if also playing at such events. There is an expectation that the President will actively promote the ABF and engage in an official capacity with other players/stakeholders of the bridge community at such events.
  • ABF Executive Director (ED) – who is eligible to claim expenditure in up to $2,000 per annum to attend ABF licensed events if also playing at such events. There is an expectation that the ED will actively promote the ABF and engage in an official capacity with other players/stakeholders of the bridge community at such events.

Employees, contractors, Board members, Councillors and Committee members attending a full-day in-person meeting adjacent to a bridge tournament are entitled to claim reasonable travel expenses and one night’s accommodation costs as per the eligibility criteria below. However, expenses for attending a dinner meeting during a bridge tournament in which they are competing cannot be claimed.

ELIGIBLE EXPENDITURE

Examples of eligible expenditure include:

  1. Travel: Airfares, airport parking, accommodation and car hire/taxi/ride share At all times, the best deal must be sought for the most direct route, and in the case of air travel, only economy airfares will be reimbursed. Any additional costs incurred for taking indirect routes or making stopovers for personal reasons, lounge memberships and travel upgrades will not be reimbursed. Frequent flyer points may be retained by the traveller.
  2. Use of private car: Personnel’s private car may be used where it is a cheaper option than other modes of travel. Such use will be entirely at personnel’s own risk. Expenses will be reimbursed on an all-inclusive cents per kilometre allowance.
  3. Accommodation: Personnel will be reimbursed for moderate accommodation expenses (eg nightly room rate, breakfast), but not for items of a personal nature charged to a hotel account. No per diem rates will be paid.
  4. Meals: Meals are usually provided as part of ABF Additional meals will only be reimbursed or paid for if approved in advance by the ED. Separately purchased coffee, morning teas and afternoon teas are not eligible for reimbursement.

Pre-approval – Personnel must obtain prior approval from the ED for all anticipated expenses, whether paid directly by ABF, or reimbursed to personnel. Such approval should be obtained via email for each instance of expenditure.

Documentation: Personnel must provide appropriate documentation for each expense, including receipts, tax invoices (for any item over $75 excl GST), proof of pre-approval (eg email) and any other supporting documentation as required. An example of an Expenses Claim Form is attached.

Approval Authority: The ED shall review and approve all reimbursement or expense payment requests.

Timeframe: expense reimbursement requests must be submitted no later than 14 days after the expense has been incurred. Approved expense reimbursement requests will be processed via EFT within 14 days of receipt of all required documentation.

Disclosure: The FAR Committee will review the list of reimbursed expenses for personnel on a quarterly basis. This transparency protects the personnel and the ABF Board from any potential or perceived conflicts of interest or claims of inappropriate expenditure.

Document File ABF Expenses Claim Form 2024 V1.1

August, 2024