Travel Reimbursement: What you need to know!

1. Daily Allowance (DA)

• The DA covers accommodation, meals, short distance travel and other incidental costs and is paid as a lump-sum amount. This means that no separate invoices for accommodation, meals, and short distance travel are therefore required unless otherwise explicitly requested!
• The DA is based on the country where the event is taking place (see here http://www.cost.eu/daily_allowance). It will be proportionally calculated by the system.
• From November 2025 on, the calculation of the DA has changed:
  > 100% of the DA for each attended days including day of travel TO event
  > 40% of the DA for the day of departure FROM event
  > 50% of the DA if a participant travels to and from the meeting on the same day
• Local participants can claim 50% of the regular Daily Allowance.
• If a participant travels by car on the day before or after the event, an accommodation invoice with the participant’s name and travel dates is required for the calculation of the daily allowance.
• DA with no long-distance travel expenses: (supporting documents required if claiming starting travel the day before or ending the travel after the event)
  > Travel booking itinerary or transport ticket
  > Accomodation invoice
• Co-located or consecutive events: total DA must never exceed 100% of the DA
• The maximum claim is EUR 1500,- (including cancellation insurance). All reimbursable items (travel costs, expenses and any other costs such as visas) must not exceed a total of €1,500. For flight prices over €350, we require a screenshot showing that no other booking offers were available. Before booking a more expensive ticket, please contact the Grant Holder Manager to clarify the prices.

2. Long-Distance Travel

2.1. General Information

• Long Distance Travel are journeys above 101 km (one way!) for the purpose of attending a COST event.
• It is allowed to use planes, trains, busses, ferries, and/or cars.
• The reimbursement will cover journeys from their departure point to the event venue and then to the final destination.
• Deviation from travel for personal or professional reasons is not reimbursed!

2.2. Long-Distance Travel by Plane, Train, Bus and Ferry

• Required supporting documents (all supporting documents who give proof of the journey shall include the following information and have to be uploaded via e-COST):
  > Name of service provider (e.g. the airline)
  > Amount paid for the ticket
  > please submit an invoice, and please ensure that ticket and invoices contain a detailed list of all the individual items that are paid!
  > Plane: passenger’s name/s and e-ticket and/or booking number references which can be linked to the claimed amount required
  > The passenger’s name has to be explicitly named on the invoice as well as on the flight ticket; the flight ticket has to be connected to the person for whom the ticket is booked
  > Travel itinerary: departure and arrival dates and cities
  > Please ensure that ticket and invoices contain a detailed list of all the individual items that are paid!
  > Other types of charge like leg room, seat reservation, extra leg room, exit row seat, fast lane, priority boarding, sms priority, boarding fees, luggage fees, sustainable fuel surcharge, etc. remain the same
• Supporting documents are especially invoices, combined with the detailed booking conformation which includes all necessary information listed above. A boarding pass alone is not enough!

2.3. Long-Distance Travel by Car

• Are limited to 1000 km in total!
• Reimbursed at EUR 0,35 per kilometre
• Car parking ticket or receipt clearly monitoring the dates is the only accepted valid proof for mileage reimbursement!
• the proof of car travel is a parking receipt (upload parking receipts or exceptionally a screenshot of the SMS (confirmation message) in eCOST, clearly showing the parking dates)
• If sharing a car, only 1 participant may be reimbursed
• Accepted parking documents does not need to cover the entire duration of the event
• Free parking: invoice or written declaration from the parking provider conforming the specific parking dates
• With multiple parking receipts for a single travel period, only one valid receipt is sufficient

2.4. Layovers and Stopovers

• Layovers should not exceed more than 24 hours and shall be evidenced with supporting document detailing travel hours.
• Layovers are typically necessary for passengers to change planes/mode of transport, on the way to their final destination or back, when there are no direct flights available or when it is cheaper to have a connecting flight.
• Reminder: Anything longer than 24 hours is considered stopover.
• A stopover is when a traveller intentionally pauses their journey in a connecting city or country for more than 24 hours before continuing to their final destination.
• In this event, if the cost of each portion of the journey cannot be identified, 30% of the total amount of the ticket shall be deducted.
• If the cost of each portion of the journey is identifiable, any travel beyond the 1st return leg is not eligible for reimbursement.

3. Other eligible expenses: Visa Expenses

• Visa processing or exit fees related to attending COST events.
• Upload supporting documents in e-COST which shall include:
• Receipt / stamp from the embassy / consulate issuing the visa
• Amount paid for the visa.

Non-eligible expenses

The following expenses will never (!) be reimbursed!

• Any expenses claimed on top of the daily allowance or long-distance travel such as: taxi or parking expenses, fuel costs, carbon tax, toll charges, car rental expenses linked to car travel, additional accommodation, or meals.
• Conference / registration fees.
• Lecture fees and honoraria.
• SMS costs, photograph cost or photocopies, postage expenses or service fees associated with obtaining visas.
• Stand-alone medical or life insurance.
• Luggage insurance.
• Carbon offset fees. Nonetheless, COST Actions are encouraged to consider the environmental impact of their activities when making their plans and or look for other sources of funding for this expense.
• Fees, charges, and/or penalties linked to a participant changing or having to rebook travel tickets.
• Wi-Fi, telephone, internet, laundry, and mini-bar consumption expenses.
• Printing and postage expenses.
• Regional and / or national taxation fees; stamp duty expenses.
• Bank charges / fees on reimbursement made by the Grant Holder (or COST Association for centralised events)

Additional information / important hints

Please note that the total travel costs should not exceed EUR 350. Should it be more expensive, please contact the Grand Holder Manager for a quick check and provide a screenshot for this check before you finally book tickets!

It is important that the documents are submitted in full. We offer – following a decision by the MC – to check the documents once!

Failure to provide the required supporting documents with the information mentioned above – or consisting discrepancies – may lead to the rejection of the claim.

When you upload your documents to e-COST, please make sure that you enter the costs in the currencies in which the invoices you upload are issued. Do not convert the currencies yourself! The system carries out conversions automatically!