Updated: 03/14/2025 to address cancellation reimbursement. 

The University has a managed travel program that includes the Concur Travel & Expense System (Concur) for online domestic/international bookings and Christopherson Business Travel (CBT) for group travel and for domestic/international bookings. Airfare purchased through the university's managed travel program allows the university to track and reuse eligible airline ticket credits when travel is canceled or changed. This protection may not be available for airfare purchased outside the program. 

Airfare purchased outside the university's managed travel program is subject to the requirements and limitations outlined below. If the trip is canceled, airfare purchased outside the managed travel program using a personal payment method is not eligible for reimbursement. Travelers assume the financial risk associated with purchasing airfare outside the program, including the risk that the trip may be canceled before reimbursement occurs. 

Airfare purchased outside the managed travel program must otherwise meet all applicable exception, approval, comparison, and documentation requirements described in this section. 

Our travel procedures allow an exception to policy for internet airfare purchases under one of these circumstances: 

1. The fare is not available for purchase through the University Travel Program. Limitations could be related to international in-country travel, remote travel, etc. 

Exceptions for fares that are not available for purchase through the travel program (Concur or CBT) must be approved prior to purchase by emailing an exception request to psctravel@cu.edu [2]. If approved, the purchase should be made on the university Travel Card. If the purchase is made using a personal credit card, cancelled flights may not be eligible for reimbursement.   

Note: Your exception request must include all flight information in addition to an email from the CBT agent with whom you worked stating that airfare is not available for purchase through the CU travel program (Concur/CBT). 

2. Significant cost savings are demonstrated to the University. 

For an internet airfare purchase to demonstrate significant cost savings, all of the following requirements must be fulfilled: 

• Obtain a comparison quote from Concur dated on or prior to the date of the internet purchase. If you cannot locate the exact fare in Concur, contact an agent at CBT. The agent can search for and view airfare that may not be visible in Concur. 

• Comparison quote must be for the exact itinerary – same travel dates, times, routes, and airline/s as the planned internet purchase. A copy of the comparison quote must be attached to the expense report. 

• When compared to the quote from Concur or CBT, the cost of the internet airfare purchase must be: 

• $50 less for domestic flights. 

• $200 less for international flights. 

NOTE: Cost comparison and justification applies to airfare only. Ancillary fees, such as seat assignment, pre-check, baggage, etc., are not considered as part of the purchase price. 

The purchase must be made using a personal payment method. Reimbursement may be requested only after the associated university business travel is completed. If the trip is canceled or does not occur, the airfare purchase is not eligible for reimbursement.  

PSC Travel cannot pre-approve exceptions based on estimated cost shown on airfare quotes prior to the final purchase, as internet airfare purchases often include additional fees that only appear at the time of payment. 

Personal travel credits, including miles, rewards, vouchers, and certificates, are not reimbursable [3] and cannot be used to offset airfare costs when determining eligibility for an exception to policy. 

When combining personal travel with business: flight comparisons must be for the exact itinerary you are looking to purchase – including both the personal and business portions of the trip. This quote is in addition to the comparison quote required for the business-only portion of the trip. 

All airfare purchases are audited to ensure they meet reimbursement requirements. If you should submit a report that includes an internet airfare purchase that does not meet reimbursement requirements, you may be granted a one-time exception allowing for reimbursement. Any additional purchases not meeting requirements will not be reimbursed. 

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