Expense Reimbursement

Expense reimbursement is an integral part of an employee’s rights. Your employer must reimburse you for expenses that the employer requires as part of your job duties. Knowing your rights can help you seek reimbursement and fight back against an employer baselessly denying your claims.

California Labor Code section 2802 requires your employer to reimburse you for expenses incurred as an employee so long as the expenses meet the following criteria:

• The employee incurred the expense in order to perform their job duties
• The expenses were reasonable and necessary

Reasonable and necessary are the two most critical aspects of this law, and while potentially subjective, these requirements will entirely determine the validity of a request reimbursement claim. For example, suppose you purchased a high-end gaming laptop rather than a more basic one that would reasonably allow you to fulfill your duties. In that case, the expense will likely be considered an unnecessary expense.

Similarly, if your employer provided you with a laptop that meets the requirements necessary to perform your job duties, but you didn’t like it. Instead, if you chose to purchase a new one, your employer would not be required to cover the expense of the new laptop.

A few of the most common work expenses are:

• Phone/internet charges
• Mileage
• Airfare
• Tolls
• Postage
• Computer equipment
• Transport fees
• Hotel accommodations
• Conference-related fees
• Required training or education

Employers do not have a responsibility to pay all the expenses incurred by an employee to show up for work. For example, the expense will likely qualify for reimbursement if a specific uniform is required. However, generic clothing worn while at work will not be eligible for reimbursement.

There are also times when the employer will cover only part of an expense. For example, if you booked a luxury taxi service instead of standard, the employer may find this unnecessary and reimburse only the standard fee.

It is important to note that employers are NOT permitted to use employment contracts that get employees to waive their right to reimbursement. Therefore, any clause that attempts this would be considered null and void.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive impact on the way many people work. With offices being closed for an extended period of time, workers have found themselves incurring significant additional expenses just to do their jobs effectively from home.

Because this structural shift has been necessary, and these costs would not have been incurred if the employees could still work in the office, many of these additional expenses would qualify for reimbursement.

Some potential work-from-home expenses include:

• Office equipment such as furniture, lighting, printing/scanning equipment
• Utilities such as internet, phone service, heating, and air conditioning could qualify under certain circumstances.
• Technology such as laptops and extra monitors
• Audio equipment, such as noise-canceling headphones, necessary to take work-related calls

The law governing expense reimbursement has a clear statute of limitations. Only expenses incurred in the last four years are eligible. If you have not submitted a claim and now have expenses dating further back than this, you likely have no legal recourse to recover these expenses.

If you have more recent expenses, you should act quickly to ensure that you’re adequately reimbursed.