What fields does an expense report need? A template that won't get sent back
2026-08-17 · Tools & Templates · Blog
Expense reports rarely get sent back because someone was dishonest. Usually the form just wasn't filled in clearly: dates that don't match the receipt, no stated purpose, amounts that don't line up with the attachments. Each round trip costs three days, and two or three of those and you've missed the claim deadline.
A good expense report structure is actually very simple — ten fields are plenty. Here's why you need each one, and what to watch for when filling it in.
The ten essential fields
1. Date of spend: the date printed on the receipt, not the date you submit the form. This is the first thing an approver checks against.
2. Merchant name: use the official name on the receipt, not just "restaurant" or "taxi". If the merchant has branches, add the branch too, so it's easier to look up later.
3. Category: meals, transport, office supplies, communications, travel and so on. Use the set your company already has; don't invent your own names, because accounting posts entries by category.
4. Amount: the total actually paid, including service charge and tax. If part of it was refunded, put the net amount and explain it in the notes.
5. Currency: write it down even for local spending, because one report can end up mixing several currencies.
6. Original foreign amount and rate: for spending in a foreign currency, note the original amount and the conversion you used. If you paid by card, use the amount actually posted on your statement — that's the least disputable.
7. Purpose: one line is enough, but it has to be there. "Lunch with client X to discuss the quotation" is a hundred times more useful than "lunch". For entertainment, also note the number of people and their company.
8. Payment method: company card, personal card or cash. This decides whether the money comes back to you or was already paid directly by the company, and a lot of confusion starts in this column.
9. Attachment number: one number per receipt, written on the form, with the same number in the attachment filename. Then the approver never has to guess which receipt goes with which row.
10. Reimbursed yet: this column is for you. Once you've submitted, you can see at a glance which items were settled with your payroll and which are still outstanding.
Three bonus fields
Project or client code: if your company tracks cost by project, accounting will thank you for this column, and you'll find things faster next time too.
People present: for entertainment and travel, note who was with you, so if anything is questioned later you have someone to confirm it.
Notes: keep this for the exceptions — instalments, refunds, an explanation for a lost receipt, paying on behalf of a colleague and so on. With this column, the main table doesn't get cluttered with blocks of explanation.
A few details on layout
First, use YYYY-MM-DD for dates. This format always sorts correctly and nobody confuses the month with the day. Second, right-align amounts, use two decimal places throughout, and add a total row at the bottom. Third, don't merge cells — once merged, sorting and filtering break, and accounting will struggle to work with it too.
Fourth, name attachments "date-merchant-amount", for example 2026-08-17-TaiHing-138.00. One look at the filename tells you which receipt it is, so you don't have to open them one by one.
The three most common reasons a claim gets bounced
One, the attachments don't match the form: ten rows on the form, only eight receipts attached. Count them once before you submit — it takes five seconds.
Two, the purpose is too vague: words like "transport" or "client" will always draw a follow-up question. As you write, ask yourself: if someone asks me in three months what this money was for, does this line answer it?
Three, the amount is a few dollars off the receipt: usually the service charge was left out, or a digit was typed wrong. Pull the amount straight off the receipt with a tool and this stops happening.
How to skip building the form yourself
Everything in that table can actually be pulled from the receipt itself. Snap one photo and the date, merchant, amount, currency and category are filled in for you; add a line of purpose and the row is done. At month end, one tap exports it — Excel, CSV or PDF, your choice — and the attachments can be bundled in one go.
That's exactly what ThatReceipt does. The exported fields match the set described above, so you can hand it in as is. Rather than rebuilding the same form by hand every month, keep that time for real work.
Export your expense report in one tap
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