Understanding the importance of SAP Standard PL Schema while creating travel expense reports

[eeshwari]

Introduction 

This knowledge artifact talks about the use of the standard PL trip schema and its importance in SAP travel expense report creation. It also mentions why there may be deviations in the PR05 display of certain tabs when a user enters all trip details as against when he just temporarily saves a trip expense report without any details for later use.

Let us analyze the SAP provided standard trip schema "PL"

While implementing SAP Travel Management module, we create a number of trip schemas that suit client requirements. These could be configured with regards to domestic travel, international travel etc. as may be the case. It is also observed that in addition to our customer specific trip schemas created by the SAP Travel Management consultant, there also exists a standard SAP provided trip schema called "Trip Schema : PL Travel Planning"

[Side Note: In case your client system does not contain this standard SAP provided trip schema - which could be the case for upgrade customers - then it is best to copy this trip schema from your golden client or run the report RPRMORDE to copy. Please read the documentation before using the PRCO transaction code to copy]

What is the use of this standard schema?

This standard trip schema "PL" is very important during the creation of travel expense reports - particularly when a user just wants to create a report without entering the details/amounts of the travel. The user is not specifying in the report if it is a domestic or an international travel and hence neither of the customer configured schemas are to be picked up.

In that case, the system uses the standard SAP provided PL schema to temporarily hold the travel expense report created by the user in PR05.

When the user finally decides to enter the actual travel details into the expense report he created previously in PR05, the trip schema he selects to enter the details is the final one that is picked up and the system intelligently discards the previously used placeholder trip schema PL.

What changes when SAP uses the standard PL schema to save a travel expense report temporarily before the user enters the actual trip details?

When the user creates a travel expense report with no details and zero amounts, the system uses the PL schema to save it. This is the SAP default behavior. However, the default schema PL will not contain the same tabs that you activated / used in your customer configured schema for say, domestic travel.

For e.g. The customer has configured his system in such a way that if a user selects the domestic travel schema and inputs all details with amounts etc. then the user is able to see tabs in PR05 that correspond to cost assignment for entire trip, entry screens for advances, comments and approver details. However, when the user decides to save the expense report with no details/ amount the SAP standard behavior is to pick up the PL schema as a placeholder until the user enters the actual trip details. Since the standard PL schema is not using the same customer configuration settings used to configure the domestic or business trip expense report, the tabs and options visible in PR05 are different.

As per the SAP note 1228709, it is mentioned that this schema is delivered as part of the standard system from release 4.6C. In case a customer insists that the temporary draft of the user who saves the expense report needs to align with the settings for the customer specific trip schemas, these options for entry screens. deductions, cost assignment and others need to be updated.

Conclusion

Knowing the nitty gritty of how SAP handles a template placeholder trip schema assignment when an user saves a draft version of their travel expense report goes so far in terms of being capable enough to answer client queries during UAT, Go Live and post Go Live support.