What is an engagement order and what does it have to say? (+ free template to download)

Whether it's for a meeting nearby or a business trip abroad, the mission order is essential for employers and employees alike. It protects both parties by specifying the conditions of travel and the reimbursement of business expenses related to the assignment.

It enables better management of expense claims and is legally admissible proof in the event of unforeseen circumstances. It can be adapted to all types of company, but its legal obligation is always at the heart of discussions.

What are travel orders? What exactly is it used for? What does it say legally? How can it be optimised to improve your expense claim management? Find the answers in this article.

See all software Expense Management

What is an engagement order?

Definition

An "ordre de mission" (mission order) is a professional document, generally in Word or PDF format, which allows an employee to travel during working hours to carry out a professional mission. It has several advantages for employees:

• They benefit from the advantages and protection of their status even when they are away from the company.
• They are also covered in the event of an accident at work.
• They can claim reimbursement of business expenses, also known as mission expenses. These expenses mainly include travel (transport), meals and accommodation.

As for the employer, he or she benefits from more efficient, clearer and better organised management of expense claims. All journeys are detailed and signed, which also protects the employer in the event of unforeseen circumstances.

Are travel orders compulsory?

The travel order is a compulsory document for all employees who want to or have to travel on business, whether international or not. It must comply with a very specific format in order to be legally valid. It can therefore take several forms:

• form
• letter,
• Word document converted to PDF.

⚠️ An email cannot replace this official document. It will not be accepted.

According to Article L411-2 of the French Social Security Code, a business trip can be considered as a private journey. It is therefore in the employee's interest to request a travel order before leaving on business.

Why do I need a travel order?

Requesting authorisation to travel

When an employee needs to make a business trip as part of their duties, they must ask their manager for authorisation. To do this, they must provide a number of more or less specific details about the trip.

👉 The compulsory details are detailed a little further down the article!

Requesting a travel reservation

If an employee has to make a business trip, he or she must request approval from :

• their manager by means of a mission order,
• reservation services, giving the main details of the trip without going into too much detail. It is up to the specialised departments to organise the trip in line with the fares, availability and budget allocated by the company.

Ask for approval to purchase equipment

When an employee needs to purchase professional equipment as part of their duties, they must request approval from their manager and/or the person concerned.

👉 They can therefore request an assignment order, attaching a quotation as supporting evidence, together with the reason for purchasing the equipment.

What information must be included?

For an engagement order to be valid and admissible in the eyes of the law, it must contain the following information:

• the purpose of the assignment ;
• the dates of travel and/or outward and return journeys;
• the times of the outward and return journeys;
• the full address of the place where the trip will take place;
• the means of transport that the employee will be using (airports and stations must also be indicated);
• the employee's home address;
• the employer's signature

👉 The travel order must then be converted into PDF format.

Download our mission order template free of charge!

Would you prefer a quicker, more efficient way of drawing up your mission statement? You can download our sample job order in Word format.

This will give you access to a complete job order structure. All you have to do is add your own information, have it signed by yourself and the employee in question, and download it in PDF format.

See all software Expense Management

Travel orders and expense reports: how can you optimise the reimbursement process?

Expense claim management software offers features that allow you to set up your dematerialised travel requests according to the specific criteria of your company policy.

When you are faced with an expense claim expenditure, your employees fill in fields with varying degrees of detail, which automatically links your travel order to this expense.

👉 This gives your accounts department better overall visibility.

There are many advantages:

• Adaptation to your company and expense management policy, making your reimbursement system easier;
• considerable time savings, eliminating time-consuming tasks and the various approval and verification stages;
• increased efficiency, with all the information you need on a single form.