Creating/Submitting/Closing a Travel Request

Owned by Nehal Gupta
Last updated: Jul 24, 2024 by Alyssa Wojcik
7 min read

Concur Request makes department budgeting, requesting travel, and submitting travel-related expenses easier with a pretrip Request. The University requires pre-approval for travel that involves any Airfare, Hotel or Car Rental for Employees, Students and Guests, prior to the start of the trip. For Guests that have pre-approval through other means (example - contract, purchase order, departmental program, event, conference, etc.) they will not require a pre-approval to be initiated or approved in the Concur Request module.

(1) In these cases, the University Employee will attest to the fact in the Concur Expense Report Header or HuskyBuy that this pre-approval is held in the department and can produce this pre-approval if Requested. (2) Departments can also utilize Concurs Travel Request for Guest travel where there is no clear documentation as to the travel approval for the Guest.

Table of Contents

Logging In

  1. Navigate to any web browser.

  2. Access Concur by logging in through our website at Travel Services and clicking “Login to Concur Travel & Expense.”

Start a New Request

All UConn business travel that includes Airfare, Car Rental or Hotel (domestic and international) requires submission of a Travel Request in Concur, prior to the start of travel.

  1. From the Concur homepage, navigate to the top of the page and click Start a Request.

Fields identified with a red bar are required. Complete all required fields.

Request Header

The Request Header is the default tab that displays when creating a new Request. Certain information from the Request Header will automatically feed to the Expense Report.

  1. Request Policy. This field will default as appropriate.

  2. Trip Name. Enter a brief and accurate description of the nature of the business trip.

  3. Does trip include a Level 3 or 4 Country/Region? Level 3 or 4 Country/Region field is required. Refer to the Company Notes section in Concur for additional assistance with the Level 3 or 4 Country/Region dropdown.

Many fields have a Quick Help Guide, identified by a question mark in a gray circle. Hover over any Quick Help Guide for helpful information as you complete each field.

  1. Business Travel Start Date and End Date. Enter the first day of your travel and the last day of your travel.

  2. Trip Purpose. Make a selection from the dropdown, as appropriate.

A conference Travel Request requires an attachment of a conference brochure or the information noted in the Business Justification field of conference name, topic, date and location.

  1. Destination City. Start to type the primary location where business is occurring. A live search result will display. Select a valid option from the dropdown.

  2. Traveler Type. This field defaults from your profile.

If this is a Travel Request for a Guest or Student you will select appropriate traveler type from the drop-down menu.

  1. Trip Type. Make a selection from the dropdown, as appropriate.

  2. Will this trip include personal travel? If you are including additional time outside of business travel, select yes. If yes, a business comparison for flights must be attached when submitting the expense report. Comparisons need to be done at the time of booking not when the trip is completed.

  3. Personal Travel Dates. Complete this field, if personal travel = Yes.

At time of booking, the traveler should obtain a cost comparison in Concur. Cost comparisons must be attached to the Expense Report at the time of submission. Business Purpose/Justification. Enter a brief description stating the business purpose of travel.

  1. Account Number. This field should pre-populate to your default/home department account - based on profile settings. If the account does not auto populate, type your KFS number in the Account Number field. Then select the account from the menu options that display.

  2. Sub-Account Number. If the KFS account you are using has an associated sub-account number, type your sub-account number in the Sub-Account Number field, then select the account from the menu options that display.

  3. Click Create Request at the bottom right.

Alerts

Click the Alerts drop-down arrow to the top right of the request to review any alerts that may display and take action as needed.

Attachments

Click the Attachments dropdown and then click Attach Documents, to attach a document to a request.

Request Details

  1. Click the Request Details drop-down menu to review the available options.

  2. Edit Request Header. Select this option to return to the Request Header to make changes to the information that was completed in the previous steps.

  3. Request Timeline. Select this option to review the Approval workflow of the Request after successfully submitting the request.

  4. Audit Trail. Select this option to review the history of the Request after successfully submitting the request.

  5. Add Cash Advance. Select this option on a need only basis after adding estimated trip expenses.

(1) Travel cash advances will be limited to 75% of estimated costs, excluding those costs that are eligible to be paid directly on a University Travel Card or by the University (such as air tickets, conference registration fees, meals, hotel, or rental car). Travel advances may only be Requested for $500 or greater and will not be issued more than 10 days prior to the departure date. (2) Guests are not eligible for a Cash Advance.

Expected Expenses

If the Trip includes Air, Hotel and Car Rental expected to be paid for or reimbursed by the University the estimated expenses are required to be added to the Request.

  1. Click the blue Add button under Expected Expenses.

Air Ticket

  1. Click Air Ticket.

(1) A multiple destination trip will require multiple one-way air tickets. Select One Way, as needed. (2) Contact UConn’s TMC for assistance with complex travel, as needed.

  1. Begin typing a departure airport (full name or airport code) in the From field. A live search activates, a list of options become available for selection.

  2. Click to select a valid option from the list.

  3. Begin typing a destination airport (full name or airport code) in the To field.

  4. Click to select a valid option from the list.

  5. Complete the Outbound Date.

  6. Complete the Return Date.

  7. Complete the Estimated Amount field.

The Bradley Parking Pass program has been temporarily suspended by the State of Connecticut due to Covid19 related parking lot closures. While this suspension is in place you may use pay for parking at the lowest cost parking lot available and seek reimbursement upon return from the trip along with your other travel expenses.

  1. Click Save.

Car Rental

  1. From the Expected Expenses menu, click the Add then click Car Rental.

  2. Begin typing a city name in the Pick-up Location field. A live search activates, a list of options become available for selection.

  3. Click to select a valid option from the list.

  4. Type a city name in the Drop-off Location field.

  5. Click to select a valid option from the list.

  6. Complete the Estimated Amount field.

  7. Click Save.

Hotel Reservation

From the Expected Expenses menu, click Hotel Reservation.

The Check-in and Check-out dates will pre-fill from the Request header. Modify as needed.

Begin typing a city name in the City field. A live search activates, a list of options become available for selection.

Click to select a valid option from the list.

Complete the Estimated Amount field.

Click Save.

Other Expenses

Additional travel related expenses can also be added in the Expected Expenses menu (e.g., mileage, meals, etc.).

  1. Click Add in the Expected Expenses menu to get additional expense types.

  2. Click the appropriate expense type from the list of expenses that appear or type the expense type in.

  3. Complete required expense type fields.

  4. Click Save.

  5. Continue to add additional expenses, as applicable.

Allocations

The Allocations menu can be used to split an expense between multiple KFS account numbers or to charge individial expenses to different KFS account numbers.

  1. To allocate an expense click the checkbox beside the expense type and click Allocate.

Submitting a Request

  1. Once expenses are added to the Request, click Submit Request.

  2. Scroll to read through the attestation, and then click Accept & Submit.

  3. Requests will route for approval to the direct supervisor of the employee and fiscal officer of KFS account. Additional approvals may apply (e.g., Export Controls or Global Affairs, etc.).

(1) If a request is not yet fully approved you can open the request and ‘Recall’ the request to make changes. (2) If an approved Request is cancelled or closed inadvertently, a new Travel Request must be created, and submitted for approval.

Reviewing the Request Approval Timeline

After submitting a Request, you may want to check whose approval your Request is currently pending, or which request timeline step has already been approved.

  1. From the Concur homepage, click Requests from the Home dropdown in the upper left hand corner.

  2. Click the drop-down arrow beside ‘View’ at the top of the page and select ‘Pending Requests’ from the drop-down menu.

  3. Click on the Request name that you would like to review.

  4. With the Request open, click the Request Details drop-down arrow then select Request Timeline from the drop-down menu.

  5. You will now see each approval timeline step with the name of the corresponding approver. If a step has been previously approved, the approval flow step will show a green circle and checkmark. The approval date will also show to the right under the word Approved.

Copying a Previous Request

If you travel to the same destination more than once, there is a copy feature that will copy the Request and you will need to make changes details, as necessary.

  1. From the Concur homepage, click Requests from the Home dropdown in the upper left hand corner.

  2. Click the name of the Request you want to copy to open that request.

  3. Click the More Actions drop-down arrow and select Copy Request. The Copy Request dialog displays.

  4. Modify the name of the Request to reflect the new travel.

  5. Update the date as necessary and then click Create New Request. A new Request displays with the header tab active.

  6. Review the Request Header and Expected Expenses for accuracy.

  7. Attach documentation, as needed and then Submit the Request, as usual.

Closing a Request

If you have a fully approved Request for travel that has been completed and you do not need to create an expense report, the Request will need to be closed.

  1. From the Concur homepage, click Requests from the Home dropdown in the upper left hand corner.

  2. Click the name of the Request you want to close.

  3. Click the More Actions dropdown arrow and select Close Request then click OK.

Additional Support

For help with Concur, contact travel@uconn.edu.

For additional reference material, refer to https://travel.uconn.edu/training-and-resources/

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