Legal Definitions - travel expense

A travel expense refers to the costs incurred by an individual when they are required to travel away from their usual place of business, residence, or jurisdiction for a specific purpose. These expenses are typically necessary for fulfilling professional duties, legal obligations, or business objectives. Common categories of travel expenses include transportation (such as airfare, train tickets, car rental, or mileage), accommodation (hotel stays), meals, and other incidental costs directly related to the travel.

• Example 1: Business Conference Attendance

  A software engineer based in Seattle is sent by her company to present a new product at a technology conference in Boston. Her company pays for her round-trip flight, a three-night hotel stay, and provides a daily allowance for meals and ground transportation between the airport, hotel, and conference venue.

  Explanation: All the costs for the flight, hotel, meals, and local transportation are considered travel expenses because they were incurred due to the engineer's required travel away from her usual workplace to fulfill a business objective for her employer.

• Example 2: Expert Witness Testimony

  An environmental scientist, who lives and works in California, is called to testify as an expert witness in a complex legal case in New York. The law firm that retained him covers his airfare, hotel accommodation for two nights, and a reasonable per diem for his meals during his time away from home.

  Explanation: The airfare, hotel, and meal allowance are all travel expenses because they are direct costs associated with the scientist's necessary journey to fulfill his legal obligation to provide testimony in a different state.

• Example 3: Remote Project Site Visit

  A construction project manager, whose main office is in Dallas, needs to visit a new building site located in a rural part of Oklahoma for a week to oversee initial groundwork. He drives his personal vehicle, stays in a local motel, and eats at nearby restaurants.

  Explanation: The mileage reimbursement for using his personal car, the cost of the motel, and his meal expenses for the week are all travel expenses. These costs are directly attributable to his required travel to a remote location to perform his job duties away from his primary office.