# Expense and Reimbursement Policy

This document presents _guidelines_ for spending money on behalf of Homebrew and seeking reimbursement for expenses incurred while doing work to benefit Homebrew, such as paying for goods or services or traveling to conferences or the Annual General Meeting.

In all cases, **assume no expense is reimbursable without pre-approval** from the Project Leader or Lead Maintainers.
_Pre_-approval comes _before_ the expense is incurred, not before the bill is paid.

Pre-approval does not guarantee reimbursement; Homebrew is constrained within [Open Source Collective's Policies](https://docs.oscollective.org/how-it-works/basics) for its primary 501(c)6 business league accounts.

## Read This Section If You Read Nothing Else

* Seek pre-approval from the Lead Maintainers before committing to spend money, with no exceptions.
* Seek consensus on the reasonability of pricing before seeking pre-approval, comparing pricing from multiple vendors if possible and including that comparison in your pre-approval request.
* Seek discounts or free accounts for non-profits, open-source projects, or other traits that enable us to save money because of the nature of our organization.

* Read [Ways to Mess Up](#ways-to-mess-up) if you want some concrete examples of what not to do.

## Purpose

Homebrew is required by our fiscal sponsor to spend money donated to the project for the reasonable benefit and continuance of the project.

We are accountable to our donors to spend our limited funds wisely and impactfully.

## Seeking pre-approval

Assemble a document that includes:

* The purpose of the expense, such as the need for the trip or item
* The timeline for the purchase or dates of travel
* A budget demonstrating a comparison among different options, e.g.
  * Different airlines or hotel chains and locations
  * Different reasonable travel times, departures, and arrivals
  * Different stores
  * Different vendors for a service
* For non-consumable goods, who will store the item(s)
* For depreciable goods, when the good will need to be replaced

Submit this document to any Lead Maintainer, who will discuss it with at least a majority of Lead Maintainers and approve or return it with adjusted expectations.
The more work put into this, the more likely the Lead Maintainers will approve it as written!

## Getting Reimbursed

All reimbursement requests must be filed through Open Collective
within 14 days of incurring the expense, except for airfare, which can be submitted with other travel reimbursement requests if the flight(s) are more than 14 days in advance.

* [501(c)6 business league @ `opencollective.com/homebrew`](https://opencollective.com/homebrew/expenses/new)

In the absence of this Open Collective system, submit an invoice to the Lead Maintainers containing the following:

* Your legal banking name
* Your mailing address
* Payment transfer information suitable for sending via a method supported by [Wise](https://wise.com) or wire transfer
* Line items for each expense include the amount paid and the currency of the payment, the date of expense, who was paid, and the purpose of the payment
* Scans or photographs of receipts for each expense, receipts complying with the [Receipts Policy](#receipts-policy)

## Receipts Policy

A receipt must have the following:

* Date of transaction
* Total amount of transaction
* Taxes itemized, if any taxes were applied— this enables us to request a refund of sales or VAT tax for most purchases
* The payment method, including the last four digits and cardholder if a credit card or debit card was used

Note that OpenCollective cannot reimburse with only credit card statements or transactions.
A receipt from the vendor is required in all but (rare) exceptional circumstances.
One known exception is tap-to-pay public transit where no receipt is issued.

## Travel Policy

Since Homebrew operates as a non-profit and has limited funds available, Homebrew limits travel on its behalf to carefully selected events with clear benefits to the project.

### Lodging

You are expected to choose the lowest logical lodging costs.
This may warrant choosing lodging closer to a venue or travel hub if the cost to travel to and from a farther hotel may exceed the cost of the closer hotel or jeopardize the timeliness of travel during rush hours, etc.

Homebrew follows US Government guidelines on reimbursement rates for lodging.
Although Homebrew provides actual expense reimbursement for lodging and does not pay a per-diem,
we treat US Department of State (DOS) and US General Services Administration (GSA) per-diem rates as the maximum reasonable reimbursement.
See these links for details and the current rates:

* US [international travel rates](https://allowances.state.gov/web920/per_diem.asp?) are governed by DOS
* US [domestic travel rates](https://www.gsa.gov/perdiem) are governed by the GSA

| Accommodation Type     | Reimbursable by default? |
|------------------------|--------------------------|
| Hotel, including taxes | Yes                      |
| Hotel breakfast        | Yes                      |
| AirBnB/VRBO            | No                       |
| Hostel                 | No, do not use           |

### Meals and Entertainment

Homebrew does not cover individual M&E expenses during travel other than hotel breakfast.

Homebrew will reimburse for group meals with participants consisting primarily of Homebrew maintainers.
Some guests are permitted; use discretion for who is appropriate for Homebrew to cover.
The person responsible for paying and seeking reimbursement for this is the first of the PL, the most senior member of the Lead Maintainers, or the most senior member present.
Any person unable to float the expense until reimbursed may pass.

You must list the participants in the group meal and their affiliation with Homebrew or whose guests they are.

| Meal      | Reimbursable by default?          |
|-----------|-----------------------------------|
| Breakfast | Yes, if taken at the hotel        |
| Lunch     | No                                |
| Dinner    | No if individual, Yes if HB group |

### Transportation

Homebrew will cover city-to-city transportation from the city of residence to the city of venue,
between the hotel and the venue, and
any co-located events where Homebrew has a presence, according to this table.

| Transport Type   | Reimbursable by default?                                 |
|------------------|----------------------------------------------------------|
| Airplane         | Yes (cheapest class, reasonable cost/comfort/time ratio) |
| Train            | Yes (cheapest class)                                     |
| Long-haul bus    | Yes (cheapest class)                                     |
| Light rail       | Yes                                                      |
| Metro            | Yes                                                      |
| Bus              | Yes                                                      |
| Taxi             | No                                                       |
| Rideshare        | No                                                       |
| Personal vehicle | Yes, for home to transit hub only                        |
| Rental vehicle   | No                                                       |

#### Airplanes

All air travel must be pre-approved by the Lead Maintainers before purchasing.

Coach or economy class airfare must be bought at least four weeks in advance of travel unless the Lead Maintainers grant an exception.
Purchase non-refundable tickets _and_ single trip travel insurance, which is also reimbursable.
Check if your credit card may provide an adequate level of travel insurance automatically.

You must choose the lowest logical and reasonable airfare.
Reasonability takes into account
departure and arrival times,
time in transit,
and
number of stops.

Higher-level seating is permissible, but you are responsible for the difference between covered expenses and actual expenses.
The Lead Maintainers may grant exceptions to this in extenuating circumstances.

A single checked bag fee will be covered if the airline does not include it.

#### Ground Transportation

##### Mass Transit (Bus, Train, etc.)

Use mass transit when available and reasonable.
Plan travel ahead of time and be early for scheduled departure.

##### Rideshare and taxi services

Avoid using rideshare or taxi services when reasonable mass transit options exist.
Use rideshare only when a large option, such as a van or SUV, will be full or nearly full of Homebrew maintainers.

##### Personally-owned Vehicles

With pre-approval, Homebrew may reimburse maintainers for using a personal vehicle to travel to and from Homebrew events,
primarily for transit between one's home and an airport or mass transit station
when that distance does not exceed 250 miles or 400 kilometers.

Homebrew will only cover mileage at the current United States IRS non-taxable expense rate.
This rate may change, but US Congress sets it statutorily and rarely changes despite changes in fuel prices.
Homebrew is constrained because our fiscal sponsor is a US entity.

<!-- https://www.convertunits.com/from/U.S.+cent/mile/to/U.S.+cents/kilometer -->
The 2024 rate is 14¢/mile or 8.7¢/kilometer, per [IR-2023-239](https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-issues-standard-mileage-rates-for-2024-mileage-rate-increases-to-67-cents-a-mile-up-1-point-5-cents-from-2023).

Airport long-term or extended parking fees will be reimbursed if cheaper than rideshare or taxi to or from the airport.

##### Rental Vehicles

Avoid if at all possible.
Use only as a last resort.

### Travel Extensions

Homebrew permits scheduling Homebrew-related travel before, during, or after other personal or business travel as long as it does not increase the costs for Homebrew.
If any cost is reduced as a result of personal travel, the member must bill for the lower cost.

The pre-approval submission must budget for only the maximum amount necessary for the Homebrew portion of travel.
The pre-approval submission must also indicate that personal or business travel may increase the amount shown on receipts but reflect an explicit acceptance that only the Homebrew-relevant travel portions will be reimbursed.

For example, consider a Homebrew member flying to Brussels for AGM and then staying in Europe for several days afterward.
Homebrew would cover the flight and hotel as if the member was flying in the day before the event and departing the day after.
The member is responsible for all other costs, including additional flight costs.
If the flight is cheaper, the member must bill for the lower cost and not what the cost could have been had they traveled the minimum.

### Visa expenses

Homebrew will reimburse visa application expenses and other related expenses for travel reimbursable under the aforementioned policies.

### Expenses that are never reimbursable

* Partner, spouse, and/or companion travel
* First class, business class, economy-plus travel

* Upgrades to air travel, car rentals, or hotel rooms

* Purchase of clothing, luggage, toiletries and other miscellaneous personal items
* Supplemental car rental insurance
* Fines, penalties, or legal fees
* Personal entertainment or recreational expenses beyond any allotted per diem

The Lead Maintainers will consider exceptions to these if an exception is medically necessary to enable travel.
Such exceptions must be included in the pre-approval request, and the request should be submitted further in advance so the Lead Maintainers can discuss it.

## Maintainer Grant Reimbursement Policy

See [Maintainer Stipends and Grants](Maintainer-Stipends-and-Grants.md) for all policies and procedures related to maintainer grants for hardware, non-AGM-related conference travel, etc.

## Services Policy

The Lead Maintainers must approve all expenses for one-time or ongoing services.
A Homebrew-owned payment instrument (virtual payment card, etc.) must be used, except in an emergency, in which case it should be transferred back to a Homebrew card ASAP.

## Homebrew Assets Policy

All goods purchased and intended to be owned by Homebrew, such as promotional marketing materials, must be tracked in the Physical Inventory list.
This list enables Homebrew to track who has what, esp. things that may need to be shipped to Homebrew maintainers representing the project at conferences, etc.

## Ways to Mess Up

These are examples of expenses or circumstances that will certainly result in rejecting a reimbursement request.

1. Paying for first-class airfare when another reasonable option exists, such as staying an additional night, seeking an alternative route, or using an alternative mode of transportation.

1. Buying any computer for Homebrew development expecting that Homebrew will reimburse you without pre-approval from the Lead Maintainers.

1. Paying a sponsorship fee to exhibit on behalf of Homebrew at a conference without pre-approval from the Lead Maintainers.

Any money transferred from Homebrew to you may come with tax implications.
You, and not OpenCollective or Homebrew, are responsible for any required interactions with your government.
You must retain evidence that all reimbursed expenses are strictly for Homebrew benefit and are not personal in nature and,
therefore, are not considered taxable income.
**Receipts are required for all expenses, no matter the amount.**

<!--
Add more examples as we think of them!
The more realistic or stranger than fiction, the better.
-->

## References

Policies that we read while constructing this policy.
If we encounter ambiguity in this policy, the Lead Maintainers may consult these
source documents for clarity.
