This article is for: employees.
A per diem is a fixed daily allowance for the days you travel for work, so you don't have to keep a receipt for every coffee and meal. You pick your company's rates and days, and Factorial adds up the total.
Claim a per diem with your company's rates
Overview
Your company sets up its own per diem rates, for example "Full day national" or "Half day abroad", and must have assigned you at least one. You can combine several rates in one per diem.
How to use
On the mobile app
- Go to Expenses, tap Add, then Per diem.
- Enter your trip, choose your rates and units, and add more rates if you need them.
- Tap Next, then Send for approval (or Save as draft).
On the web
- Go to My spending > My expenses, click New expense and choose Per diems.
- Under Trip information, enter the Origin with its Departure date and Time, and the Destination with its Return date and Time.
- Under Per diem details, choose a Rate and enter the number of Days. The Amount is calculated for you.
- To claim another rate on the same trip, for example meals for 4 days and lodging for 3 nights, click Add rate.
- Check the summary on the right: each rate, its days and the Total (also shown at the bottom of the page).
- Fill in anything else your company asks for, and click Send for approval, or Save as draft to finish later.
Tips and Best Practices
- Do you work for a company in Germany? Factorial calculates your allowance from your trip with the official German rates. See How do I claim per diems in Germany?
- Don't claim meals on per diem days. If you also submit an expense in the Meals or Refreshments category for those dates, Factorial flags a "Potential category conflict". Claiming the same rate twice for overlapping dates is flagged as a "Potential duplicate expense". Flags never stop you from submitting. You won't see the duplicate flag yourself: only people who see the whole company's expenses, such as finance, do.
- List your stops in the description if they matter for approval. The per diem summary shows dates and amounts, not each stop.
- Several costs on the same trip? Put the per diem, mileage and receipts in one expense group so they're reviewed together.
Related articles: How do I set up mileage and per diem rates? · How do I claim mileage? · How do I group expenses from one trip?
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Troubleshooting
- I don't see Per diems. Per diems aren't turned on for your company. Ask your Expenses admin.
- I see no rates to choose from. Your company hasn't assigned you a per diem rate. Ask your Expenses admin.
- I need to change a per diem I already sent. While it's Pending, click Reset to draft to take it back, fix it and send it again.
FAQ
1. Can I claim several rates in one per diem?
Yes. Click Add rate for each one, as long as they're in the same currency. Each rate can be added once.
2. What happens if I submit a per diem for dates I've already claimed?
If it uses the same rate, it's flagged as a possible duplicate to people who see the whole company's expenses, such as finance, so it can be checked. Nothing is blocked, and you don't see the flag yourself.
3. How do I claim an overnight stay?
If your company has a rate for it, click Add rate, choose that rate and enter how many nights in Days. If you don't see one, ask your Expenses admin.