Companies Employees Money One's Hotel Driving Car Amount

Some American companies offer their employees a "per diem rate," or an amount of money given to an employee for each day he or she is traveling "on business" (related to one's job). Other companies "reimburse" (give someone money equal to the amount that he or she has spent) their employees for their "actual" (real), "eligible" (allowed) expenses. Employees need to "file" (submit; present) an "expense report" (a description of how much money was spent on different items) with "receipts" (a small piece of paper from a store or restaurant showing how much money one spent at one time) when they return from their trip.

Companies typically reimburse employees for all of their "travel expenses," such as airplane tickets and "ground transportation" (buses, cars, and taxis). If an employee uses his or her own car, the company will reimburse the employee for the "mileage" (the number of miles traveled). Companies also "cover" (pay for) "accommodations" (lodging, hotel rooms).

Companies also pay for "meals" (food), including "tips" (a percentage of the bill, usually 15%, that one leaves at the restaurant for the server). However, they usually do not cover the cost of alcohol.

Employees who need to "wine and dine" (entertain; show someone a good time) their clients usually have an "expense account," meaning that they have a credit card that they can use for all of the related expenses. They might take a client to a ball game or to a concert, and those expenses will be reimbursed if they are job-related.

Companies have long lists of the types of expenses that cannot be reimbursed. These usually include "laundry services" (having one's clothes cleaned, dried, and ironed), "room service" (food brought to one's hotel room), "pay-per-view TV" (shows that one pays to see on one's hotel room television), "salon services" (haircuts, massages, etc.), and personal phone calls.