What is an expense report, and how do you fill one out?

Whether it’s a client lunch, a train to a conference or a last-minute office supply run, business expenses add up. They need to be properly recorded, and that’s where expense reports come in.

Expense reports offer a clear, organised way for employees to claim back business-related expenses and give finance teams the visibility they need to track company spending. They’re essential for keeping the company finances in check – and making sure employees aren’t left out of pocket.

In this article, we’ll cover what an expense report is, why it matters, how to fill one out step by step – and how you can automate the process with Pleo.

What is an expense report?

An expense report is a document – either digital or paper-based – that an employee submits to their company to claim reimbursement for business-related expenses they’ve paid out of pocket. Expense reports can also be used internally by finance teams to track company expenses.

Typically, expenses are organised by categories, and the expense report is itemised to ensure transparency and detail about each individual expense.

Common expense categories include:

• Flights and hotels for business trips
• Client meals or entertainment
• Office supplies bought out of pocket
• Mileage for business travel using a personal vehicle
• Conference or training fees

Expense reports ensure that your employees are reimbursed fairly whenever they make business-related purchases. They help your finance team track and control spending, detect errors and policy violations and streamline accounting and tax reporting.

In other words, they’re pretty essential – so it’s just as important to know how to fill one out.

The process: How to fill out an expense report

Now that we’ve established why it’s important, let’s break down how to manually fill out an expense report:

1. Get the expense report form

This could be a paper form or a digital spreadsheet provided by the finance or HR team. Make sure you have the latest version and are aware of your company’s expense policy – e.g. limits, allowed expenses, required documents and so on.

2. Fill in your personal and report details

At the top of the form, include:

• Name
• Employee ID or department
• Date of submission
• Report period (dates covering when the expenses occurred)
• Business purpose (reason for the expenses – e.g. ‘Client meeting in Manchester’)

3. List each expense in order

For each expense, fill out:

• Date of expense
• Expense category (e.g. travel, meals, accommodation)
• Description (what it was for – e.g. ‘Lunch with client at Café Nero’)
• Amount paid
• Currency (if it was abroad)
• Payment method (personal card, cash etc.)

List expenses chronologically to keep the expense report tidy and easy to review.

4. Attach receipts

Gather all receipts, number them if required and match the receipts to the corresponding expenses on the form. If a receipt is missing, check your company’s policy – you might need to fill out a missing receipt declaration.

5. Calculate the totals

Add up all your expenses. If you’ve advanced money or company credit cards were used, subtract those amounts to show how much you’re personally claiming.

6. Review and sign

Double-check that all entries are correct, receipts are attached and amounts add up. Sign and date the report to confirm it’s accurate.

7. Submit for approval

Submit the expense report to your line manager or finance team, as per your company’s process. Keep a copy (physical or digital) for your records – just in case.

Here’s an example of what an entry might look like:

And there you have it – your expense report’s good to go.

Automate the expense reporting process with Pleo

Filling out an expense report may not be overly difficult, but doing it manually is a time-consuming process. Not only that: once an employee has submitted an expense claim, they have to wait for their reimbursement for who knows how long.

An inconvenience, to say the least – but luckily, there’s a faster, easier way to handle company expenses.

With Pleo’s expense report automation, the days of manual expense reporting are over – and your employees won’t have to wait for a reimbursement either!

Instead of paying out of pocket and later submitting a report, your employees can use their Pleo card (physical or virtual) for business expenses like travel, meals, subscriptions etc. As soon as a purchase is made, the employee gets a notification on their phone via the Pleo app. They snap a photo of the receipt and add a quick note (e.g. ‘Team lunch with client), and Pleo automatically matches the receipt and purchase data to the transaction in real time.

No more collecting paper receipts or filling out spreadsheets later – Pleo has you covered.

With Pleo, you can automatically categorise expenses, assign them to the correct employees, projects or departments and convert currencies if it’s an international transaction. Sync with your accounting software and give your finance team a real-time overview of company spending.

In short:

• No more manual expense reports
• No lost receipts
• Real-time spend control
• Seamless accounting integration

And the best part: with no more waiting for reimbursements, your employees are happier, too.

Automate your expense reporting. Try Pleo today!