Expenses

Prepare a payment from your Collective's budget. Start by choosing the situation that matches your request.

Choose your payment

Your situation	Where to start
You have already paid for something for the Collective	Prepare a reimbursement
A supplier needs to be paid for goods or services	Prepare an invoice
The payment is a donation or grant to another organisation	Ask OSE about an outgoing grant or donation

Before you submit

• Have the invoice or receipt and the payment details ready. A bank statement alone is not enough for a reimbursement.
• Check that the funds you need have been received and are available.
• For supplier invoices, use the name of the Collective or of the person who placed the order. Do not use OSE's legal name or VAT number.
• If you are not sure an expense is eligible, ask OSE before you spend. If OSE must sign a specific contract, agree this with OSE in advance.

When you are ready, go to Submission Process. If you have already submitted, read Approval Workflow, or use the expense comments for routine follow-up. Send sensitive information privately.

The payment target is seven business days once the expense is complete and approved and funds are available. Bank processing time comes on top of this. The target is not a guaranteed date of receipt.

Overview

The expense process at Open Source Europe (OSE) is meant to be transparent and simple. You can use it to reimburse a team member or to pay a service provider. The process keeps spending accountable and in line with fiscal regulations.

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Before spending and requesting reimbursement

OSE does not ask for advance approval of every ordinary expense. If you are not sure an expense is eligible, contact the team before you spend. OSE still reviews each reimbursement. Any arrangement that needs a specific contract signed by OSE must be discussed and accepted in advance.

If someone cannot pay the cost first, OSE can pay the supplier directly on a compliant invoice. OSE does not provide advances to individuals. OSE may pay a supplier deposit before delivery or completion. It must first review and agree to the documents and conditions, and the funds must be available.

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Types of Expenses

You can submit two main types of expenses:

1. Reimbursements

Use this when someone has paid for goods or services for the Collective with their own money.

• Required documents: fiscal receipts that show:
  • Vendor's name, address and tax reference
  • Transaction date
  • Description of items or services
  • Amount paid

Order confirmations, proforma invoices, or bank statements are not valid receipts. Learn more: How to Submit a Reimbursement

2. Invoices

Use this to pay people or organizations for services they provided.

• Required documents:
  • Unique invoice number
  • Service provider's full details (name, address, tax ID)
  • Detailed description of services
  • Applicable tax rate and amount
  • Invoice addressed to the Collective or the person who placed the order

Invoices must be addressed to the Collective or the person who placed the order. OSE acts only as the payer for these purchases. Collectives must not use OSE’s legal name or VAT number to have invoices issued. Learn more: How to Submit an Invoice

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Supporting documents and timing of submission

OSE refuses reimbursement without an invoice or receipt. A bank statement alone is not enough. For durable equipment, the usual supporting documents are required. OSE does not ask for an extra inventory as a rule. Specific funding or agreement requirements still apply.

There is no general fixed deadline to submit a reimbursement. Deadlines in a funding agreement or for a closure must still be respected. Expenses from before OSE accepted the Collective may be reimbursed. OSE first reviews their connection to the project, the documents and the funding conditions, and funds must be available.

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Paying service providers

Collectives can pay service providers against a compliant invoice, including through a workers’ cooperative. Agree the work, price and dates with the Collective and submit the invoice through Open Collective for review. OSE does not provide a standard employment or payroll service. Any arrangement that requires OSE to sign a specific contract must be discussed and accepted beforehand.

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Submission Process

1. Go to your Collective's page and click “Submit Expense”
2. Choose the expense type: Reimbursement or Invoice
3. Fill in the required details and upload documentation
4. Select a payout method, such as PayPal or Wise/bank transfer
5. Submit for approval

We aim to start the payment within seven business days. The expense must be complete and approved, and the funds must have been received and be available. Bank processing time comes on top of this. This is a target, not a guaranteed date of receipt.

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Approval Workflow

The Collective and OSE review expenses. If the only administrator asks for their own reimbursement, OSE can check the supporting documents and pay without a second approver from the Collective.

OSE checks the documents before payment. Incomplete or non-compliant expenses may be rejected. A promised donation or grant is not an available balance: funds must be received and available before payment.

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Payment Methods

Supported payout options:

• PayPal (must be active and verified)
• Bank Transfer via Wise (international bank details required)

Make sure the payout details match the expense documents, or the payment may be delayed.

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Compliance and Best Practices

• The public can see an expense's title, amount and public display name. Keep sensitive information out of the title. Supporting documents and payment details are not shown publicly.
• Double-check amounts, details and receipts before you submit.
• Use expense comments for routine questions and follow-up. Comments are not public. The expense submitter, the Collective's administrators and the fiscal host's administrators can see them. For sensitive information that the Collective's administrators should not see, email home@opensourceeurope.org directly.

For help, email us at home@opensourceeurope.org

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Learn More

• Overview: How to Submit Expenses
• Expenses in the Ledger – Open Collective Docs
• Expenses and getting paid: frequently asked questions
• Outgoing grants and donations