Step 6: Accounting/payment details page

The Accounting/payment details page is used for both types of travel request and, if you have an offline TAN, you therefore have the pre-authorization to actually book the travel from the page.

The page presents the payment method that will automatically be used for your trip. Additionally, there are a few accounting details to complete, the trip start and end dates should be checked, and the trip given a name before it is finally submitted as a travel request or booked.

Many of the details on the page are automatically taken from your profile. However, if you want to change any aspect, just for this trip, you can do. For example, you could use a different credit card. If you see that the credit card has expired, you could update the details to be used in the travel request/booking. After the travel request has been submitted/booked, changing the details in Manage Profile will save them permanently. If your organization has the feature switched on, you will have the option to hold the trip, as an alternative to booking it/creating a travel request. Details about the feature are given below:

Hold trip

Instead of clicking Book Now or Create travel request, you may wish to use Hold Trip.

Note: Only Flight and Eurostar segments can be held.

Holding a trip is useful if you are waiting for further information or answers before you can decide whether to book the trip. It can help control spend as purchasing is prevented until the last date to ticket. When a trip is held, the fare is subject to change and the trip must be purchased by the ticketing deadline. The "Last Date to Ticket" will be shown on the email confirmation that is sent after a trip is held. After a trip is held, it can be retrieved by clicking Itinerary and then Search Itineraries, in the main Travel Menu. Hotel or car rental may be added to the itinerary once it has been retrieved and to purchase the trip, a Purchase Now button is present at the bottom of the Itinerary Details page.

Blanket Travel Authority

Blanket Travel Authority (BTA) is pre-determined authorization for travel requests that meet certain conditions. The following are examples of criteria on which conditions can be based: itinerary segment type (the particular mode of travel or whether the segment is an expense only claim), location of the travel, and cost. Conditions are used to create a BTA rule that applies to one or more travellers. Blanket Travel Authority is set up and administered elsewhere in the STS portal - if possible, see the Administration tab and click the Travel link. The Administration tab and Travel link are usually only accessible to a limited number of employees.

A scenario to show how BTA could be used is as follows. Alice needs to travel once a week to a meeting in Toronto and will often need to stay overnight in a hotel. The meetings are set to last for six months. Therefore a rule could be set up where BTA is granted whenever a hotel request is submitted for Alice that is within Toronto and costs 110 Canadian dollars or less. The rule could be set to expire within six months. After the rule had been set up, every travel request that was submitted for Alice that met those conditions would automatically be approved.

To complete the Accounting/Payment Details page:

1. Check the details in the Payment Information section, changing the payment method if required.

1. The Travel Policy for this trip box is linked to your company policy and cannot be amended at this point. Choose an option from the Trip Category drop-down-menu.
2. Make a selection from the Trip Purpose menu.
3. If your trip category was 'Other', give a brief description in the Other Trip Purpose field.
4. In the Alternative to Travel Offered box, select the option that describes why an alternative to making a journey/booking accommodation is not viable.
5. If applicable, enter an offline TAN.
6. Select the fiscal year to be charged and whether that year is different to the current year.
7. The TAN Prefix box should automatically be filled in. It is the code picked up from your profile or the profile of the traveller you are booking for. It identifies the department, sector or user group that you belong to or that of the traveller you are booking for.

1. If you have Blanket Travel Authority (BTA) set up and need to use it for the booking, select the relevant BTA from the dropdown menu.
2. If you have been arranging travel, the Depart date and Finish date boxes should already contain the start and end dates of your trip (picked up from your itinerary). However, if you need to change them or if you are making an expense only claim, edit the Depart Date box by clicking on the calendar icon and selecting the date that the trip begins. Alternatively, you may type the date into the box.

   Tip: You can choose the depart and finish dates at the same time by clicking and dragging on the depart date calendar.

3. For travel bookings only (not expense only claims): If you would prefer to later go back your itinerary and manually click to book once approval is received for the trip, clear the Auto-book upon approval check box. Your reservation is not guaranteed until booked. If you leave the check box selected, the trip will automatically be booked for you once approval has been granted.

1. In the Trip name box, give the trip a meaningful name such as "Montreal to Los Angeles flight with hotel".
2. If the Reason for travel menu is present, make a selection.
3. Click one of the following options:
   1. Next traveller - to start the process for another traveller, if you are arranging travel for more than one person.
   2. Cancel - to be taken back to the Itinerary details screen, where, for travel bookings, you can cancel or amend some/all of the itinerary.
   3. Hold trip - see above for an explanation of this feature.
   4. Create travel request - to submit the itinerary to the Expense Management System, where it will need to be approved, unless BTA has been used.
   5. Book now - if an offline TAN has been entered. After clicking Book now, you will be taken to an Itinerary status screen. From that screen you can then view the itinerary and save the trip as a template if so wished.

      Tip: After clicking Create travel request or Book now, it is still possible in many cases, to cancel or amend some/all of the itinerary.