Give every work receipt one home.

A paper receipt in a coat pocket, a hotel PDF in email and a photo buried in your camera roll are three records you will have to find again. The useful change is to put them in the same place as the expense while you still know what each purchase was for.

Choose one working record for work expenses. If you use BillBack, photograph the receipt or import the file, review the details and save the expense. A receipt arriving by email still needs to be imported; this is not a claim that BillBack automatically reads your inbox.

Keep work and personal purchases distinguishable from the start. For a mixed purchase, keep the complete receipt and write down which part belongs to work. Ask your reviewer how to handle the split before including an amount in a claim.

Capture the whole receipt before you leave.

Put the receipt on a flat surface in good light. Include the edges, merchant, date, items and total. Check the image after taking it: glare, folds and a cut-off total are much easier to fix while the paper is in front of you.

A card-terminal slip and an itemized receipt can contain different information. Keep the itemized document when your reviewer needs to see what you bought. Photograph a long receipt so every part remains readable, rather than shrinking it until the text becomes a blur.

For a digital receipt, save the actual file rather than a screenshot of an email preview that cuts off the bottom. BillBack supports importing PDF receipts as well as receipt images. Keep originals according to your organization’s policy; Cornell, for example, asks its travelers to retain originals until processing is complete.

Write the note you will need later.

A merchant and an amount do not always explain the expense. Add a short note while you remember the purchase. “Parking for Tuesday’s client visit” is more useful than “Travel.” You do not need a long account of the day; you need enough to identify the work purpose.

Use tags consistently. A client name, a job or a type of expense can help distinguish similar receipts. Choose a convention you can keep using, then apply it when saving each expense. Changing names every few days makes the record harder to review.

Before sharing a report, check what your notes reveal. Include the business context the reviewer needs without adding unrelated personal details or confidential information.

Check the day while you remember it.

On a work trip, take a few minutes at the end of the day to compare saved expenses with what you paid for. Think through transport, meals, parking and supplies. A forgotten receipt is easier to ask for at the same hotel or restaurant than after you have left town.

Treat a bank transaction as a prompt to check your records, rather than assuming it answers every documentation requirement. A transaction may lack an item breakdown or business purpose. If you have both an email receipt and a paper copy, check that you have not entered the same expense twice.

BillBack can flag a possible duplicate while adding an expense. Review the warning against the receipt; it is a check to help you, not a promise that every duplicate will be caught.

Use the period you actually report.

If you submit every two weeks, organizing only by calendar month can leave you checking two places for one claim. BillBack lets you review work expenses by pay period or month. Match the period to the way you submit your expenses.

For one trip or client job, a date range may include unrelated spending. Hand-pick the expenses for the report instead of assuming every purchase that week belongs to the same job. Check the selection, the business-purpose notes and the receipts before exporting.

Do not treat a currency setting as proof that the reviewer will accept a conversion. When working across currencies, keep the original receipt and follow the conversion method and evidence your organization requires.

If a receipt is missing, deal with it now.

Ask the merchant for a copy, check the booking portal or look for the original purchase email. Record what is missing and ask your reviewer what alternative evidence they accept. Their answer may differ by expense type, so avoid assuming a card statement or handwritten note is always enough.

Do not recreate a receipt or replace missing details with guesses. Keep the known amount and context distinct from the document you still need. In BillBack, check that the receipt image has actually saved and is readable before relying on it for your report.

Finish with one reviewable record.

When the reporting period ends, review the expense list first. Correct any scanned details, check for personal or already reimbursed expenses and confirm the receipts match the selected items. Then create the PDF and inspect its summary and supporting pages.

Keep a copy of what you sent and record the submission through your usual process. Preparing a report and receiving reimbursement are separate events. BillBack helps you prepare the record; your employer or client handles approval and payment.