[Moderate revision–posted 9/18/25 (replaces 12/15/21 edition)]
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Operating Policy and Procedure

OP 79.10: Travel by Prospective Employees

DATE: September 18, 2025

PURPOSE: The purpose of this Operating Policy/Procedure (OP) is to set forth the policies and procedures governing the reimbursement of travel expenses of prospective employees.

REVIEW: This OP will be reviewed every two years after publication by the Section Manager of Travel Services with substantive revisions forwarded through the Assistant Vice President and Chief Procurement Officer to the Senior Vice President for Administration & Finance and Chief Financial Officer.

POLICY/PROCEDURE

1.  Definition and Scope

A prospective employee is an individual being considered for employment by Texas Tech University (TTU), including employees at other state agencies being considered by TTU. This policy governs the reimbursement of travel expenses incurred by the individual visiting any TTU campus to be interviewed and evaluated for employment, whether hired or not.

2.  Reimbursement for Travel Expenses

a.    Prospective employees are to be reimbursed in the same manner as TTU employees, except that they may not receive a travel advance.

b.    Appropriated funds may be used for prospective employee travel; however, the use of appropriated funds requires strict compliance with State of Texas travel policies. Travel is not allowed on HEF funds (funds starting with 13).

c.    The use of TTU and State of Texas contracts is required to the extent feasible and practicable.

d.    Airfare for a prospective employee may be requested with the Business Travel Account (BTA). Please refer to the Travel Guidelines for instructions. To the extent feasible, departments should book airfare on SWABIZ.

e.    Prospective employees are not exempt from hotel occupancy taxes.  All applicable taxes paid are reimbursable and should be entered when completing the final expense report.

f.    Prospective employees will be expected to follow the same travel guidelines as TTU employees, including the travel allowance amounts (subject to the GSA rates) and submission of a final expense report with the required documentation (see OP 79.01, Travel Authority for Texas Tech University Faculty, Staff, and Students). This also includes the guidelines on international travel to TTU by a candidate from a country outside the U.S. and its possessions, Canada, or Mexico (see OP 79.05, International Travel).

g.    Reimbursement for travel expenses will be submitted in Emburse Enterprise, formerly known as Chrome River, after the recruitment visit. All expenses, unless directly billed, will be on a reimbursement basis.

h.    The TTU department inviting the prospective employee will submit a New Vendor Form for Vendor Services to create a record for travel reimbursement.

3.  Travel Expenses for Spouse/Family

Travel expenses for the spouse and/or family of a prospective employee are allowed only on institutional funds (not on state-appropriated funds [funds starting with 11, 12, 13, or 14] and not on sponsored project funds [funds starting with 21, 22, and 23]) and should be submitted through TechBuy. House-hunting trips and other non-business-related expenses are taxable reimbursements. Refer to OP 72.10, Payments for Employee Moving Expenses, for additional information regarding moving expenses.

4.  Lodging

A department may either reimburse the prospective employee (at the completion of their recruitment visit) or process a guest lodging purchase order through TechBuy to reserve and directly pay for individual hotel rooms with certain Lubbock/Amarillo area hotels for prospective employees. For more information, see the guest lodging guidelines.

Only official travel expenses may be direct billed. These expenses include lodging, all applicable taxes, food charges, Wi-Fi (when not complimentary), and local telephone calls for official business purposes. Long-distance telephone calls, charges for cell phone services/calls, and personal and entertainment expenses are not reimbursable for prospective employees. The prospective employee should be informed in advance to pay all non-reimbursable expenses upon checkout.

OP Categories

• 01 Chancellor
• 02 Development
• 04 Audit Services
• 10 President
• 30 Academic and Student Affairs – General
• 32 Academic Policies – Faculty
• 34 Academic Policies – Students
• 36 Academic Programs
• 40 Institutional Compliance
• 48 Communication Services
• 52 Information Technology
• 60 Environmental Health and Safety
• 61 Facilities Management
• 62 Financial and Accounting
• 63 General Services
• 64 Graduate Programs (Faculty and Students)
• 65 Research Accounting
• 66 Libraries
• 67 Mail Services
• 68 Communications and Marketing
• 69 Payroll and Tax Services
• 70 Human Resources
• 72 Purchasing, Contracting, and Payables
• 73 Data Management
• 74 Research
• 75 Research Security
• 76 Security
• 77 Student Services and Registrar
• 78 Traffic and Parking
• 79 Travel
• 80 Vehicles