Checklist: Create Corporate Credit Card Usage Guidelines

Fast-growing companies often face challenges in controlling corporate card spend. The key is to provide employees with clear credit card usage guidelines about using company cards for business expenses. You’ll also want to use a business spend management platform with tools that make it easy to automatically enforce spend policies.

This payment card checklist can help you develop and document credit card usage guidelines, including business expense examples. You can then integrate your custom spend policies into the expense management platform included with your SVB business credit card program  

1. Define spend policies.

Create a written document of corporate credit card guidelines for usage that define what are business expenses. It should include the following areas:

• Day-to-day spending. Provide specific business expense examples of what employees can charge to their company card, along with non-allowable personal expenses (such as ride-shares for personal use). For instance, you might set general policies on dollar limits for client meals or approved use of express delivery services.

When you issue virtual cards through the spend management platform, you can customize budget and other limits to precisely control spending for any user or use case. And you can automate approval routing to allow supervisors to sign off on exceptions.

• Travel expenses. Establish guidelines on spending for hotels, flights and other travel expenses that everyone, from company founder on down, should follow. Pay attention to gray areas — for example, let employees know if hotel dry cleaning will or won’t be reimbursed. Or if you expect employees to make an effort to take public transportation rather than Uber or a taxi, say so.

2. Clearly explain expense reporting requirements.

Your credit card usage guidelines document should make it easy for employees to understand what’s expected in terms of business expense reporting. Doing so can make it easier for your finance staff to manage card reconciliation and tax reporting. Be sure to describe the following:

• Categorization rules. You’ve likely set up reporting to organize charges into common categories, so list the ones employees should use, along with business expense examples. Employees often make errors in assigning expense types if definitions aren’t crystal clear.
• Supporting material. List the documentation employees must provide, such as receipts, invoices, or proof of delivery, and how they should provide them. Your accounting team can tell you what’s necessary to satisfy tax requirements.

With the SVB spend management platform, you can save time and hassle by automating expense reporting. Employees can use an easy mobile app to submit expenses and receipts as spend occurs. Transactions are automatically categorized and reported in the system, making the process faster and easier for both employees and your finance team.

• Filing deadlines. Set a deadline for submitting monthly card expenses that allows your finance staff to reconcile card statements with expense reports. Many companies find it works well to require expense reports at month-end and travel reports within two weeks of a trip.

If your company uses an SVB commercial card with mobile expense reporting, along setting with firm deadlines, your policies document might also recommend that employees report expenses as spending occurs when they’re prompted by the mobile app.

3. Draft a cardholder agreement for employees.

This document should be signed by all employees when they are given corporate cards (including virtual cards). It provides an official record that they have read and accept the rules. The agreement should include these points:

• Spending policies. State that employees can use the card only for allowed business expenses, as defined by your spending and travel guidelines.
• Method for handling unauthorized business expenditures. When employees misuse a corporate card, they often do so in error, so establish a clear way for them to correct the mistake and repay those expenses. Consult with your legal team to make sure your plan is legal within your state, especially if you plan to deduct reimbursements from an employee’s pay. For example, you might need to break payments into multiple, smaller deductions so the employee’s compensation doesn’t fall below minimum wage for a pay period. 
• Who gets card rewards and other perks. Clarify whether all corporate card rewards are allotted to the company or whether your program allows for individuals to redeem rewards. If employees can participate in rewards programs, spell out how they would receive those perks.

As you use this payment card checklist to craft your corporate credit card guidelines, balance your need for information with a program that does not overly burden busy employees. Have your legal team review your employee cardholder agreement before you distribute it to ensure that it’s comprehensive and complies with applicable laws.

Defining and enforcing credit card usage guidelines is an essential part of an effective corporate card program. It’s makes life easier for everyone in your organization, and helps your business more efficiently control costs as you grow.

Learn more about our commercial cards, or talk with your SVB Relationship Manager to get started.