Travel billing depends on client terms, taxable service rules, and clear time records. Everhour keeps approved hours tied to projects.
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Billing for travel time answers a narrow question: how much of the time spent getting to, from, or between client work locations should appear on the invoice. The answer comes from the contract, engagement letter, purchase order, or client billing policy. Some clients approve travel at the full working rate, some use a reduced travel rate, and some exclude commute-like time entirely.
The calculation should separate three figures: approved service hours, approved travel hours, and non-billable travel. That separation matters because a client may accept the work time but reject travel that was not preapproved. For U.S. invoices, totals are normally shown in U.S. dollars. There is no federal VAT/GST; any tax input belongs to the applicable state or local rule when the service is taxable.
Start with the billing rule before you multiply hours. A clear rule says whether travel is billed at the standard hourly rate, a reduced rate, a flat trip fee, or excluded unless the client approved it in advance. For lawyers in new U.S. client-lawyer relationships, ABA Model Rule 1.5 requires the scope of representation and the basis or rate of fees and expenses to be communicated in writing, subject to its limited low-cost exception.
A common mistake is mixing travel expenses with travel time. Six hours in transit and a $340 airfare are different invoice lines unless the client contract combines them. Travel time is a labor charge. Airfare, lodging, mileage, parking, or meals are expense reimbursements or pass-through items based on the agreement. Keep them separate so write-downs, taxes, and approvals do not distort the labor total.
Use this formula: billable travel amount = approved travel hours × travel billing rate. Then add approved work amount = approved work hours × work billing rate. If travel is billed at a percentage of the standard rate, convert the percentage into the travel rate before multiplying. A $160 standard rate billed at 50% creates an $80 travel rate.
For example, a consultant has 14 approved on-site service hours at $160 per hour and 6 approved travel hours billed at 50% of the service rate. The service charge is $2,240. The travel rate is $80 per hour, so travel adds $480. The pre-tax labor total is $2,720. Add state or local tax only when the specific service and jurisdiction require it.
The United States does not have one national sales-tax rate for professional time. State and local treatment controls whether billed services are taxable. For example, New Mexico gross receipts tax includes performing services in New Mexico, with combined rates that vary by business location from 5.125% to 8.6875%. Texas taxes taxable services at a 6.25% state rate, with local additions up to an 8.25% combined rate.
Payment timing also depends on the payer and contract. For federal-agency vendor invoices, Prompt Payment rules generally make payment due on the contract date, accepted discount terms, an accelerated-payment rule, or 30 calendar days after receipt of a proper invoice. For ordinary private-client invoices, use the payment term in the signed agreement or invoice terms, not the federal-agency rule.
A one-off calculation is enough when you have one trip, one client-approved travel rule, one hourly rate, and no approval dispute. Put the service hours, travel hours, travel rate, expenses, tax treatment, and payment terms on the invoice. Save the source records, because travel billing is easy to challenge when the route, purpose, or approval trail is unclear.
A managed workflow is better when travel happens across multiple projects, employees, task types, or client contracts. Everhour can place tracking controls inside supported project tools, sync project and task metadata, expose timers and timesheets in those workflows, and keep budget context visible. That gives the billing person a cleaner handoff than reconstructing travel from calendar notes after the trip.
This content is for general information only, may not be fully up to date, and is provided without any warranty or liability.
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Yes. The contract, engagement letter, purchase order, or client billing policy can set a separate travel rate. A common structure is full rate for client work and a reduced percentage for travel. Write the rate basis clearly, then calculate travel as approved travel hours multiplied by that travel rate.
No. Travel time is a labor charge based on hours and a rate. Travel expenses are costs such as airfare, lodging, mileage, parking, or meals. Combining them makes it harder to review approvals, apply write-downs, and determine whether state or local tax rules affect the service portion.
There is no federal VAT/GST or national sales-tax rate for billed professional time in the United States. State and local rules decide whether a service is taxable and what rate applies. Add a jurisdiction-specific tax input only when the billed service is taxable under the applicable rule.
Approve the travel purpose, destination, expected time, billing rate, expense categories, and any cap before the trip starts. After the trip, approve the actual travel hours separately from work hours. That prevents a client from accepting the project work while disputing the travel portion of the invoice.
Payment timing matters when the client contract or payer type sets a due date. For federal-agency vendor invoices, Prompt Payment rules generally use the contract date, accepted discount terms, an accelerated-payment rule, or 30 calendar days after receipt of a proper invoice. Private-client timing follows the agreed invoice terms.
Everhour integrates with major project management and accounting tools, adding tracking controls inside supported workflows and syncing project and task metadata. Teams can log travel-related time against the right project context instead of moving entries between disconnected spreadsheets and invoice drafts.
Yes. Everhour supports billable and non-billable time through project billing status and task-level non-billable controls. Within a billable project, a travel task can be marked non-billable so its time stays visible in reports without increasing the client's billable total.
Track travel time where project work already happens. Everhour connects embedded time tracking, project context, timesheets, and accounting handoffs so approved travel hours move cleanly into billing.
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