Employee Expense Claim Form: What to Include

On this page

Field-by-field walkthrough
Categories worth defining up front
Receipt rules: what counts as evidence
Approval limits by role
How the approved claim reaches payroll or petty cash
Retention: how long to keep claims and receipts
A plain claim form layout
Frequently asked questions
Is there a government-mandated expense claim form in Sri Lanka?
Do I need a receipt for every single expense?
Who should approve expense claims?
How long should I keep old expense claims?
How does a personal expense get claimed by mistake?

An expense claim form should record the claimant, the date, the business purpose, the category, the amount, a receipt, and who approved it. Sri Lanka has no statutory expense claim form. No law sets the fields. Only the record-keeping period below comes from an Act. For whether expense reimbursements are taxable in Sri Lanka, see that separate question.

This page is for the employer or the person who designs the claim form and approves claims.

Field-by-field walkthrough

Claimant: name and employee number.
Date of expense and date the claim is submitted.
Business purpose: what the expense was for, in one line.
Category: travel, meals, accommodation, and so on.
Amount, with currency if it was paid abroad.
Receipt or invoice, attached to the claim.
Project or cost centre, if you track costs that way.
Approver name and signature, with the date approved.
Payment method: petty cash, next payroll run, or a separate transfer.
A short declaration that the expense was for business, signed by the claimant.

Categories worth defining up front

Set the list before staff start claiming. A workable set: travel and transport, meals and entertainment, accommodation, communication, office supplies, client-related costs, and a miscellaneous category with a lower approval limit. A short, clearly defined list gets used. A long one does not. For rates on travel and fuel claims specifically, see travel, fuel and per-diem policy for Sri Lankan employers.

Receipt rules: what counts as evidence

The original receipt or invoice should show the vendor, the date and the amount. A card payment slip on its own is usually not enough. Ask for the itemised receipt behind it. Where no receipt exists, such as a small cash tip, write that exception into your policy.

Approval limits by role

This is a matter of company policy, not law. A common pattern is two tiers: the line manager approves routine claims, and finance approves anything over a set amount or in the miscellaneous category. Put the limits in writing so an approver knows when to escalate rather than sign off everything themselves.

How the approved claim reaches payroll or petty cash

Small claims are usually paid straight from petty cash once approved. Larger claims, or several claims from the same month, are normally added to the next payroll run or paid by a separate bank transfer. Either way, the approved claim should carry through to the accounting records as its own line, not folded into salary. See allowance or reimbursement, and which attracts EPF for why that distinction matters.

Retention: how long to keep claims and receipts

Keep expense claims and their receipts for 5 years from the date of the transaction, the same period the Inland Revenue Act sets for business transaction records generally. Keep them longer if a tax assessment covering that period is still open.

A plain claim form layout

Field	What goes here
Claimant	Name, employee number
Date of expense	dd/mm/yyyy
Date submitted	dd/mm/yyyy
Purpose	One line, plain language
Category	From your fixed list
Amount	LKR, or foreign currency and LKR equivalent
Receipt attached	Yes / No
Approver	Name, signature, date
Payment method	Petty cash / payroll / bank transfer

Copy this layout into your own form and adjust the categories. See HR templates for other ready-made HR documents.

Do this automatically in Humanised. Claims submitted in expense management software arrive with the receipt, the category and the approver already attached. Approved claims flow into the next payroll run without being retyped.

This is general payroll guidance. Every case is different. For your own case, speak to a payroll practitioner or a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a government-mandated expense claim form in Sri Lanka?

No. There is no statutory form on the sources checked. Employers set their own layout and fields.

Do I need a receipt for every single expense?

In practice, yes, for anything meaningful. For very small cash items where no receipt exists, write that exception into your policy instead of leaving the form silent on it.

Who should approve expense claims?

Company policy decides this, not the law. A line manager for routine amounts and finance for larger or unusual claims is a common, workable split.

How long should I keep old expense claims?

5 years from the date of the transaction, matching the general Inland Revenue Act period. Keep them longer if a tax assessment on that period is still open.

How does a personal expense get claimed by mistake?

Usually because the form has no clear “business purpose” field, or nobody checks it. That is why the form asks for the purpose in plain language, not just a category code.

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