Travelling in your Horizon Europe project

Your project might require you to travel. Most Horizon Europe (HE) projects have travel costs foreseen in their budget – check out the details in your DoA.

How to make travel costs eligible

Before jumping to “what can I charge to my project”, several conditions must be met for the costs to be eligible:

• Actual incurred cost: make sure the cost is real and has been spent by you, the beneficiary;
• Incurred during the action: make sure the travel is during your project duration;
• Connected and necessary to project: make sure the travels are needed for the project such as to present your work at a conference, to meet potential clients, or promote the project during a tradeshow;
• Identifiable and verifiable in your accounting: all proof of the travel must be kept and registered in your accounts. In addition, we recommend you prepare a summary of each travel in case of audit;
• In compliance with applicable laws: make sure you respect your national legislation;
• In compliance with the principle of sound financial management: during an audit you should prove that you respected this principle. If you travel a lot this could represent a lot of work, which is why we advise you to have a travel policy.

What can be charged to the project?

The travel costs are to be declared under the ‘Purchase cost’ category during your reporting. The travel expenses for your Horizon Europe project cover:

• travel itself (car, bus, rail, sea and air travel),
• accommodation,
• subsistence (usually understood as meals).

What about …

• charging travel costs for persons other than the company’s personnel?
• charging combined travel meaning combining professional and personal travel?
• travelling in business class for my project?
• travels that are unforeseen (and thus not in the DoA)?
• travels that were booked before the project start?
• tips in restaurant bills?

For answers to tough questions on travel-related costs, we’ll gladly help you at hello@getpolite.eu