MyTravel is required for reporting expenses for employee and non-employee travel in the U.S. that lasts fewer than 30 days.
In the right place? If you are a traveler, see the traveler's overview. For travel to a foreign destination, or travel that lasts 30 days or longer, use a Travel Expense Voucher (TEV).
See a demo for completing a TEV for a foreign destination.
This page includes guidelines for the following:
MyTravel process overview
- Log into MyTravel, enter expense information, and submit the claim. When you submit a claim on behalf of a traveler, the traveler will receive an e-mail request to review and certify.
- The approver receives an e-mail request to review and approve the MyTravel submission using MyApprovals.
- Reimbursement for an event processed in MyTravel is issued via direct deposit to UCSD employees. Non-employees are reimbursed via direct deposit (if they are enrolled) or a paper check.
MyTravel has built-in guidance. However, you can also see step-by-step instructions, demos, or click Help if you need assistance while you are logged into MyTravel.
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Preparing to use MyTravel
- Travel preparers, approvers, and employee travelers all need a ucsd.edu e-mail address. To use MyTravel for a non-employee, add the traveler's e-mail address using the Add/ Change Traveler Account feature in TravelLink.
- Travel preparers and approvers also need a Single Sign-On user ID and password. (This also applies to employee travelers who report expenses in MyTravel.)
- In addition:
- As a travel preparer, you need a preauthorization approval hierarchy template (TRP) set up with the person delegated authority to approve travel at Level 1. (To meet the UC requirement for separation of duties, you cannot be both the preparer and the appover for a transaction.)
- Travel approvers need a method to retain receipts. (Only paper TEVs require receipts to be submitted to UCSD Travel.)
- Employee travelers need to be enrolled in direct deposit for Travel/ Disbursements. (Most employees are already enrolled in direct deposit. If not, see how to enroll.) To complete MyTravel claims while awaiting direct deposit, follow Step 14 of the MyTravel instructions.
Note: Non-employees are reimbursed by direct deposit (if enrolled) or a paper check sent to the traveler's residence or business (not a UCSD Mail Code). If he or she will travel for UCSD again, recommend enrollment in direct deposit. Use TravelLink to add or change a traveler's address.
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Receipt guidelines
Departments will retain required receipts for claims submitted through MyTravel. MyTravel indicates, in the final steps of the process, which travel receipts are required.
Receipt retention methods for expenses reported using MyTravel follow established departmental procedures. Receipt review and certification is accomplished in MyTravel by:
- Traveler certification, which verifies that:
- Expenses being claimed accurately reflect what was spent
- Required original receipts have been provided
- Final approval of the expense reporting data
Recommendations for receipt retention:
- Maintain a secure, organized filing system.
- Print the MyTravel summary and attach it to the required original receipt(s).
- File documentation by event, in a logical order.
- Keep sensitive data private (e.g., obscure credit card numbers and other personal data with dark ink).
- Retain receipts according to your business office and the UC records disposition schedule.
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Traveler certification
Traveler certification is accomplished electronically: - Travelers who complete their own claims in MyTravel certify the data during submission.
- Travelers who have had a MyTravel claim completed for them will receive an e-mail with a unique URL for verifying the data. (This request is for the traveler only and is not to be forwarded.)
- Travelers confirm, via certification, that the expenses being claimed are accurate and that the required receipts have been provided to the appropriate departmental contact.
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Approval
Approval is accomplished via MyApprovals, following the IFIS approval hierarchy for travel authorization. For travel authorization and encumbrance template (TRP):
- The person with delegated authority to approve travel must be the final approver (Level 1).
- The travel preparer would be included in the template (Level 2).
For approvers, guidance for using MyApprovals and a checklist for MyTravel events are available.
My Travel assesses risk conditions and flags some submissions for approvers. Examples of risk conditions that MyTravel will flag:
- Expenses over a certain dollar threshold
- Missing receipts (to be sent for review and approval by the Travel manager)
- Travel durations that are different from what was preauthorized
- Change to an index or account from what was encumbered during preauthorization
| MyTravel claim without system-identified risks |
MyTravel claim with system-identified risk(s) |
Held in MyApproval for up to seven calendar days for departmental approver review. If the approver does not change the status within the seven days:
- The submission will be processed after seven days elapses.
- Any reimbursement will be issued.
If the approver changes the status to Approved before the seven days have elapsed:
- The submission will be processed that evening.
- Reimbursement will be issued on the next business day.
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Held for review. The submission will be processed and reimbursement issued only after the departmental approver changes the status to Approved.
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Research
You can find details of processed MyTravel claims by using the query.
For a simple search:
- Enter the event number.
- Submit the query with default selections.
- Click the event number that displays in the summary results to see full claim details.
For more in-depth research, explore the MyTravel query criteria and use drop-down menus to fit your research needs.
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Questions? Use the following resources:
- For MyTravel submissions awaiting approval, contact the departmental approval authority for your travel events. If you do not know who approves your travel events, contact your department business office or administrator to find out.
- For Travel policy:
- For technical issues, contact the ACT Help Desk, (858) 534-1853.
- For a quick look at MyTravel, see this sample tab.
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