April 03--Most employees have, at some point, tried to sneak a fancy meal or an upgraded airline seat onto a work expense report.
But would you ever try to get your employer to pay for plastic surgery, a dog, taxidermy or a side of beef?
Those are a few of the examples of the most unusual expense report requests, based on a survey of 2,200 chief financial officers at U.S. companies conducted by the Robert Half Management Resources, a Menlo Park, Calif., consulting firm.
And the crazy requests are on the rise. The survey found that 88% of the chief financial officers said the number of "inappropriate" expense report requests is either the same or increasing.
The list includes a ski trip, lottery tickets, rental homes, a spa day and a cruise.
The survey does not say if any of the unusual requests were approved, but Robert Half offers a few guidelines for determining if an expense is legitimate.
"If you paid for something that you couldn't talk to a parent, grandparent or spouse about because you would be embarrassed, don't try to expense it," the report said.
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