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Expense policy template

Set clear rules for company spending from the get-go with this free, customizable template to keep expenses fair and compliant — and to build trust across your team.
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How to get started with the expense policy template

Create your own copy

Make a copy in Google Docs or download as a Word file to start editing.

Customize the details

Adjust categories, limits, and workflows to match your company’s approach, size, and needs.

Share with your team

Distribute your policy with your team so everyone follows the same playbook. Be sure to update and redistribute the policy if things change.

Expense policies, explained.

Prevent confusion and promote responsible spending

Without guidelines, expenses can get messy fast. A written policy saves time, prevents disputes, and ensures consistency across your team. For startups, it also signals professionalism, showing employees, investors, and partners that spending decisions are made responsibly.

What comes after your policy

Once you’ve defined the rules, Mercury helps you enforce them automatically. With Mercury you can issue cards to your team with spending limits and controls, restrict eligible merchants, automate receipt collection, and manage reimbursements directly from your dashboard, turning policy into practice.

FAQs


An expense policy is a written set of rules that guides how employees can spend company money. It defines what counts as a reimbursable business expense, what requires approval, and what’s off-limits. A good policy also explains the process for submitting receipts and how reimbursements are handled, helping employees spend confidently while keeping finance teams in control.

Drafting an expense policy from scratch can take weeks. A template gives you a head start with the most common categories — like travel, meals, office tools, and compliance costs — already built in. It’s fully customizable, so you can adjust limits, categories, and timelines to fit your company’s size, industry, and growth stage. Using a template ensures consistency, reduces the risk of leaving out important details, and saves your team valuable time.

An expense policy typically covers anyone spending on behalf of the company, including employees, contractors, and interns. By applying the same rules to everyone, you create a fair and transparent standard across the organization. This prevents confusion, avoids disputes, and ensures that all company funds are used responsibly, no matter who is spending.

At a minimum, review your policy once a year to make sure it reflects your current business operations. You should also update it whenever your company grows, adds new benefits, changes reimbursement tools, or expands into new markets. Treat it as a living document - keeping it up to date ensures your team always has clear, accurate guidance.

It is not necessary, but highly recommended. Even if you only have a handful of employees, an expense policy helps avoid misunderstandings and sets clear expectations from the start. Small businesses often operate with tight budgets, so unplanned or inconsistent spending can have an outsized impact. A simple written policy ensures fairness, speeds up reimbursements, and creates good financial habits early, so as your team grows, you already have structure in place.

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Disclaimers and footnotes

Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC. Deposit insurance covers the failure of an insured bank.