For many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK, business travel is essential — it’s how employees build relationships, close deals, and drive growth. But as teams expand, managing travel becomes more complex and costly. Piles of mileage claims and lost receipts mean that reimbursement eats into time and budgets.
A clear company travel policy, supported by structured business travel management to enforce that policy, brings clarity and control. Finance teams get the documentation they need to comply with His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) rules, and employees benefit from knowing what’s covered, how to book, and how to get reimbursed quickly.
Read on to learn how UK businesses can simplify business travel, and how Moss helps make every business trip effortless.
What is business travel management?
Business travel management is how a company organises work trips, from booking flights and reserving hotels to reporting travel expenses. It keeps spending in check and makes travel easier to manage.
A modern business travel management service brings all trip details into one place. It centralises bookings, helps organise travel costs and reimbursements, and automates expense tracking. With real-time visibility into employees’ spending and built-in rules that flag out-of-policy claims, finance teams can enforce company expense policies↗ and process reimbursements faster without admin burden.
HMRC enforces tax and customs laws in the UK. For SMEs in the country, a business travel management platform supports compliance with HMRC rules by maintaining accurate records. Clear paper trails make tax season less stressful.
Pairing a business travel system — the software your team uses to book trips and track spending — with a clear company travel policy, makes every business trip easier to plan and report.
Understanding business travel expenses
Business travel expenses↗ could include flights, accommodation, meals, car rentals, and local transport costs. Since HMRC only allows tax deductions for travel costs that are ‘wholly’ and ‘exclusively’ work-related↗, keeping accurate records is essential for compliance. Plus, expenses can quickly eat up a company’s budget if they aren’t regulated and monitored.
However, manual expense tracking is time-consuming and error-prone. That’s why companies use business travel management software — for trip planning, policy enforcement, and expense tracking and reconciliation.
Linking travel software directly to corporate cards makes the process smoother. The software pulls transactions directly from the card and matches them to preapproved trips. If a transaction doesn’t align with a trip or falls out of policy, the software flags it for review. Immediate expense categorisation and instant report generation not only save time but ensure compliance with both company policy and HMRC standards.
Moss offers a smart corporate card solution with automated expense tracking that makes this workflow seamless.
Key challenges in business travel management
As more people book business trips and submit reimbursements, inefficiencies creep in and corporate travel becomes harder to manage.
Common challenges include:
- Lack of visibility: Without a tool to manage business travel, finance teams can’t see how or where employees spend money.
- Manual processes: Spreadsheets and long email approval chains slow down reimbursements, and manual inputs increase the risk of errors.
- Compliance issues: Missing receipts or misclassified expenses lead to problems with HMRC compliance.
To fix this, many companies now rely on integrated business travel expense management software like Moss. Moss automates expense workflows, giving finance teams better control over the cost of every business trip.
Why your UK business needs a travel management strategy
A smart business travel management strategy brings structure, visibility, and control to business travel. It helps SMEs stay compliant and improves employees’ travel experiences. Let’s break down the key benefits.
Compliance with HMRC regulations
HMRC allows tax deductions for business trips. To simplify compliance, your company travel policy should specify what counts as business travel and how to report it so you remain compliant with deductions.
Travel and expense management software helps reinforce these rules by keeping records tidy, audit-ready, and accurately categorised.
Cost savings
Left unchecked, travel expenses↗ can snowball, with late bookings that tend to be pricier and unclear approvals that lead to unexpected spending. Structured travel management defines limits for accommodation, daily spend, and transport, so teams spend wisely.
Here’s how SMEs can reduce costs:
- Use preferred travel agencies or platforms to access discounted corporate rates that reduce per-trip costs.
- Apply HMRC-approved daily allowances for meals and mileage to ensure tax compliance and avoid excess reimbursements.
- Track spending in real time with Moss corporate cards to prevent unapproved purchases.
Efficiency and productivity
Manual travel management takes hours. Automated platforms save time by centralising bookings, approvals, and payment records in one place. They give finance teams instant visibility into all transactions, so teams spend less time on admin tasks.
A business expense management software↗ like Moss speeds up travel-related reconciliation by syncing corporate travel expenses directly with company accounting software.
Better employee experience
When employees know how to book travel and claim reimbursement, business trips feel less like a chore. Modern travel management platforms integrate travel policies into the booking process to guide employees through every step. This shows employees you value their time and want to make business travel stress-free.
Key components of a business travel policy
An effective business travel policy keeps you in control of costs while supporting employees. Below are key components to include to address common employee concerns.
Travel booking and approval guidelines
Clear booking and approval guidelines avoid confusion. Here’s what you should include:
- Where to book: Instruct employees to book flights, hotels, and car rentals through the company’s approved travel management platform only. This way all bookings stay in one place and employees get access to better rates.
- Who approves what: Outline approval routes, for example, line managers approve short domestic trips, while finance reviews international ones.
- When to book: Encourage early bookings to secure better deals and keep travel costs under control by planning ahead.
Expense policies and spending limits
Support fair and HMRC-complaint reimbursements by defining:
- Daily allowances: Match HMRC rates for common spends like meals and transport.
- What’s reimbursable: Set approvals for some items, like accommodation or mileage, and clearly exclude others, like personal travel and unapproved upgrades.
- Authorised payment tools: Require use of corporate cards and other designated systems for travel payments to support compliance through automated checks.
Duty of care and safety guidelines
Every company is responsible for protecting its business travellers. Your travel policy should make your team feel safe and supported wherever they go by:
- Covering travel insurance for all trips
- Outlining clear emergency procedures and contact points
- Listing approved travel agencies for emergency support
Reimbursement and reporting
Set a simple process for reimbursement. Here’s an example:
- Employees submit digital receipts after each business trip.
- Finance reviews claims within a set time frame.
- Payments go out automatically once approved.
- Reporting tools analyse travel data, helping you spot spending trends and negotiate better rates with suppliers.
Best business travel management solutions for UK SMEs
The best business travel management solutions automate manual work, making life easier for both finance teams and employees on the move.
Moss: Simplified business travel expense management software
Moss↗ helps UK companies manage all business travel expenses in one platform. Teams can issue corporate cards, set spending limits, and track expenses in real time.
With automated per diem and mileage reimbursements, Moss cuts admin work and keeps records accurate. Every payment syncs automatically with accounting tools for fast and error-free expense reporting.
Navan and BCD Travel: Flexible booking and expense tracking
Navan and BCD Travel offer strong travel management solutions for growing SMEs:
- Navan↗ (formerly TripActions) lets employees book flights, hotels, and car rentals in one app while giving finance teams real-time insights into spending.
- BCD Travel↗ combines a global network of travel experts with a solid UK presence. They help businesses book flights, hotels, and car rentals in one place. They also provide support during trips and make sure employees stay safe while travelling.
TravelPerk: Easy business travel booking for SMEs
TravelPerk↗ offers an easy-to-use booking platform designed for modern SMEs. It centralises travel bookings, applies company travel policies automatically, and provides real-time cost visibility for finance teams.
Other business travel management platforms for SMEs
Travel management platforms help SMEs streamline travel booking, track expenses, and keep policies clear and consistent. These UK-based providers offer services tailored to SME needs:
- CT Business Travel↗: Personalised support, 24/7 assistance, and access to negotiated rates on flights and accommodation.
- Fello↗: Focus on traveller well-being and sustainability, with built-in risk management tools.
- Ace Travel Management↗: Simplified business travel for SMEs, with expense reporting tools and dedicated account management.
Simplify business travel payments with Moss corporate cards
Managing business travel payments shouldn’t slow down growing SMEs — but shared cards, missing receipts, and manual reimbursements often do. These elements all make it hard to track spending and stay compliant.
With Moss corporate cards↗, companies can assign cards to every employee or department, with built-in limits and approval rules. Each transaction syncs instantly with your expense management system, attaching receipts and categorising spend automatically.
For UK finance teams, Moss simplifies travel payments with:
- Multicurrency support for international trips
- Real-time expense tracking for full visibility and control
- Automated per diem and mileage reimbursements aligned with HMRC rules
Save time, improve accuracy, and gain better insight into travel expenses — all in one place. Book a demo↗ to see how Moss can streamline your business travel payments, from booking to reimbursements.
