{"id":3416,"date":"2026-11-12T12:33:01","date_gmt":"2026-11-12T12:33:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/?p=3416"},"modified":"2026-11-12T12:40:06","modified_gmt":"2026-11-12T12:40:06","slug":"guidance-on-expense-claims-and-cost-control-measures-for-non-pay-spending","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/2026\/11\/12\/guidance-on-expense-claims-and-cost-control-measures-for-non-pay-spending\/","title":{"rendered":"Guidance on Expense Claims and Cost-Control Measures for Non-Pay Spending"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear Colleagues,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In reference to the communication from the Group CFO, as part of our ongoing commitment to fiscal responsibility and sound financial management across the University, we are writing to remind all staff of our policies regarding expense claims and to ask for your cooperation in reducing non-pay operating expenditures.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Whilst the new LASE Expenses policy is currently under review;\u00a0please be reminded\u00a0 the UKC current\u00a0policy\u00a0remains in operation until such time the new policy comes into\u00a0force.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To help us manage our budget effectively and keep administrative spending aligned with our strategic priorities, please adhere to the following key guidelines when incurring and claiming expenses: –<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prior Authorisation<\/strong><\/span> \u2013 All discretionary travel, hospitality and non-pay purchases must receive prior written approval from your line manager or budget holder before commitments are made.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Procurement First<\/b><\/span> \u2013 Expense claims must not be used as a workaround for the University\u2019s Procurement Policy. Standard goods and services should be ordered via official purchase orders (POs) rather than paid personally and claimed back.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Timely Submission<\/b><\/span> \u2013 Please submit all valid expenses claims promptly \u2013 ideally <\/span>within one month<\/span><\/b> of the expense being incurred \u2013 so that costs are accurately captured within the current financial reporting period. Any expense claims submitted outside 90 day period will be rejected.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Valid Receipts<\/b><\/span> \u2013 Every claim must be supported by an original, <\/span>itemised receipt or invoice<\/span><\/b>. Credit or debit card payment slips alone are not sufficient proof of purchase.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Itemised Details<\/b><\/span> \u2013 Claims that include expenses for third parties must explicitly list the names of all individuals involved and the business rationale.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ineligible Expenses<\/b><\/span> \u2013\u00a0Claims for alcoholic beverages must\u00a0adhere to the policy. Upgraded travel, first-class rail\/air, non-compliant subsistence costs that exceed institutional policy rates will be rejected or pruned back to standard rates.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finance Shared Services (FSS) is conducting tighter first-line audits on all submitted claims. Non-compliance with the University\u2019s Financial Regulations and Expense Policy will result in rejected claims and potential escalation to budget holders, line managers or Heads of Department.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We recognise and appreciate the hard work, teaching, research and administrative dedication you bring to the university every day. By exercising mindfulness with non-pay budgets \u2013 such as opting for virtual meetings where appropriate, consolidating travel, and utilizing preferred supplier frameworks \u2013 we can protect our core academic mission and collective resources.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you have any questions about what can be claimed or need clarification on your department\u2019s budget limits, please consult your department administrator or contact the Finance Shared Services team directly. financesharedservices@kent.ac.uk<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Thank you for your continued support.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Links:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finance Shared Services<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Purchasing<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Expenses Claims<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dear Colleagues,\u00a0 In reference to the communication from the Group CFO, as part of our ongoing commitment to fiscal responsibility and sound financial management across … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":82527,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[262280,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-finance-shared-service-fss","category-uncategorized"],"sub_title":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3416","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/82527"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3416"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3416\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3426,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3416\/revisions\/3426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/finance-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}