# Expenses

FlowFuse will reimburse you for any work-related expenses that are considered reasonable. The general principle to follow is to treat work-related expenses as if they were your own money. It is important to seek good value for your purchases and use common sense when making decisions.

There are two methods available for using company funds: utilizing a company credit card or seeking reimbursement. If employees opt to use Brex for purchasing any company-related items or subscriptions, it is essential to upload the receipts and include a memo within three business days. For all reimbursement requests, please ensure to submit the required documentation and proofs through Deel.

If neither of the methods previously described is feasible (e.g., when a vendor doesn't accept card payments or you don't have the means to pay from your own funds and seek reimbursement), please refer to the instructions provided in our vendors section for guidance.

# Company Credit Card

We use Brex to provide cards to the team. They are, by default, virtual Mastercards, although there is an option to get a physical card sent out.

Expenses on Brex require a memo and receipts. Memos explain the purpose of the expense, while receipts are necessary for expenses of $25 or more. Receipts can be attached via the web UI, email, or Slack. Please read their docs.

Brex can also be used to create vendor cards that allow for reoccurring payment for a monthly subscription with a vendor. Contact the CEO/CTO if you require a vendor card.

# Oops! Misused Your Brex Card for Personal Expenses? Here's How to Handle the Situation Like a Pro

Needless to say, Brex cards should not be used for personal expenses. However, sometimes we make a mistake and checkout with the wrong card. If you realize that you have used your Brex card for personal purposes by mistake, here is what you should do next:

In Brex, open the expense entry and click the 'repay' button and follow the instructions. This will create a new expense for the amount owed back and mark the original expense as 'Denied'.
Notify the CEO/CTO, who will advise on how to reimburse the company the cost of the expense. This can be done via bank transfer to the company account. Note that any fees associated with the transfer will need to be met by you.
Once payment has been confirmed, the Brex expense entry can be marked as 'Paid'.

# Reimbursement

If you use your own means to purchase something that ought to be covered by the company, you can claim back the money through Deel.

Create a new expense by clicking Add item on the Payment Items tab on your Deel homepage
Enter the type of adjustment and select the Expense Category
Enter a description, expense name, price and attach an invoice, then click Submit
This expense will now appear in your "Pending" list
Adjustments approved before the payroll cut-off date will be processed in the current month's payroll. Any adjustment approved after the payroll cut-off date will be processed in the next month's payroll
Your manager is authorized to approve expenses that are $250 or less. However, if an expense exceeds $250, both the CEO and your manager will need to review and approve it.

# Equipment

As an all-remote company, FlowFuse provides a budget to cover the cost of equipment for a home office environment.

For new hires, $1500 USD is available to help set up their home office in the first year.

After the first year an annual budget of $500 USD is available to cover any necessary upgrades, replacements or enhancements to their home office setup. This does not roll-over and cannot be claimed as cash.

The budget is available for essential items needed to perform your role at FlowFuse. This includes chair, desk, monitor, headset, external microphone, external webcam, keyboard and mouse. Items such as additional monitors, laptop stands, lighting and laptop bag/case can also be considered.

Any items outside this will fall under an exception to the policy and require management review and approval.

The following items are not reimbursable: Phones, watches, smart speakers and tablets.

# Laptops

Laptops are covered separately and are provided as needed when a new hire joins the team. If you choose to order a laptop by yourself, we generally recommend the following devices:

# Developers

We recognize that developers will have slightly more demanding requirements for their laptops. As such, the following devices are recommended:

Operating System	Recommended Device
MacOS	MacBook Pro 14"/16" - 18 GB RAM (~$3,000)
Windows/Linux	ThinkPad P16s Gen 3 - 32 GB RAM (~$2,300) or Dell XPS 15 - 16 GB RAM (~$2,300)

If you require an alternative device, please discuss with your manager.

# Other Employees

For any other employee within the company, the following devices are recommended:

Operating System	Recommended Device
MacOS	MacBook Air 15" - 16 GB RAM (~$2,300)
Windows/Linux	Dell XPS 14 (~$1,800)

Unless circumstances require otherwise, laptops will only be considered for a refresh after 4 years. Please discuss with your manager if you need to refresh your laptop.

# Microphones and Cameras

We recommend everyone has a quality microphone and web-cam, even if they are only communicating with other FlowFuse team members. Being able to clearly see and hear each other makes video calls more effective, by minimising misunderstandings and the need for us to repeat ourselves.

# Suggested Setup

FiFine USB Microphone (~$30) Microphone Stand (~$25) Logitech C920 Webcam (~$100)

# Asset purchases over $500

Any asset purchase over $500 (laptops, devices etc) needs to be centrally recorded. This is done in this Google Sheet and shared with the Finance team. Send details of the purchase to your manager so it can be recorded.

# Return of equipment

When a team member leaves the company, they will be required to return any company assets such as laptops. This should be discussed with their manager as part of the off-boarding process.

# Buying Equipment

If you want to retain your laptop when departing FlowFuse, we do offer a buy-back scheme.

Laptop deprecation is considered to be 25% per calendar year from purchase. The buy-back price is calculated as the original cost paid by FlowFuse price minus the deprecation. The buy-back price is subject to approval by the CEO.

For example, if you have a laptop that was purchased for $2,000 and you have had it for 1.5 years (1 full calendar year), the buy-back price would be $1,500.

# Education & Conferences

Continual professional development is very important, and FlowFuse will support you in any activities you wish to undertake. Speak to your manager if you have particular material you would like to study, or an event you would like to attend. FlowFuse will help cover reasonable costs associated with the activity - such as travel and ticket fees.

# Software Licenses

Licenses and software assets can be purchased for third-party software will be useful for particular tasks, efforts and processes at FlowFuse.

If you are seeking a license of software that we do not currently use, put together a short summary as to the costs associated with the licenses and describe the value that the software would provide. If it would modify the way in which the company operates, then the best place to present this is as a PR to the Handbook. With approval from the CEO and CTO you can proceed with the acquisition of the licenses.

When seeking an additional license for existing software we pay for, file an issue in the flowforge/admin project to request it to be provisioned with a justification on the expenditure. Assign this issue to the CEO or CTO.

# Zoom

When your role at FlowFuse requires you to have calls with external parties, a Zoom pro license can be requested by opening an issue to provision you one in the flowforge/admin GitHub project. Assign this issue to the CTO or CEO, who will provision it for you.

# Workspace & Location

As an all remote company we don't have offices. It is envisaged that most people will work from their home the majority of the time. Equipment and furniture required for a home workspace should be discussed with your manager as part of the hiring process. The company covering certain costs can have tax implications depending on your local legislation. You should consult an independent advisor in your location for your particular situation.

Employees can work from different countries or cities as long as their tax residency remains the same at the time of hiring. Please inform your manager before making such arrangements.

# Coworking space allowance

If you want to occasionally use a separate workspace to your home, the company will cover up to $150 a month in charges for renting a desk in a co-working space after manager approval.

# Mileage

Use of a personal vehicle for business purposes, other than commuting to a permanent workplace, is covered according to the employees local laws.

For example:

UK - 45p per Mile
Netherlands - €0.19 per Km

A screenshot of the route and the total distance travelled should be included with any expense claim.

# Personal expenses

We expect team members to take ownership of their personal expenses without the expectation of reimbursement. This approach is all about acknowledging personal preferences and recognising the individual benefits that come with these expenses. Here are some examples, but are not limited to:

Coffee at your home office
Passport for travel
Daycare for your children