Policy Concepts
Understanding how travel policies work in Rahal Corporate
Policy Concepts
This section explains the fundamental concepts behind Rahal's policy management system.
What is a Travel Policy?
A travel policy is a set of rules that define:
- What employees can book (routes, cabin classes, hotels)
- How much they can spend (price limits per flight/hotel)
- What happens when they're out of policy (allow, warn, require approval, or block)
Policies help companies control costs while giving employees flexibility to book travel.
Key Concepts
Policy Hierarchy
How policies are assigned and resolved (User > Role > Default)
Policy Actions
What happens when bookings violate policy rules (Allow, Warn, Require Approval, Block)
Booking Modes
Direct booking vs. request-only vs. hybrid modes
Flight Rules
Route matching, budgets, cabin classes, and constraints
Hotel Rules
Location matching, price limits, and star ratings
Duration Tiers
Different budgets and cabin classes based on flight duration
Rule Matching
How rules are prioritized and matched to bookings
Policy Evaluation
The complete evaluation flow during booking
How Policies Work Together
User searches for travel
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System resolves user's effective policy
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Matches booking against policy rules
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Determines action (Allow/Warn/Require Approval/Block)
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User sees result and proceeds accordinglyReal-World Example
Scenario: A company wants to:
- Allow economy flights up to $500 for domestic travel
- Allow business class for international flights over 7 hours
- Require approval for any booking over $1,000
- Block first-class bookings entirely
Solution: Create a policy with:
- Flight rule for domestic routes: Max $500, Economy only
- Flight rule for international: Max $1,000, with duration tiers allowing Business class for 7+ hour flights
- Default action:
REQUIRE_APPROVAL - First-class rule with action override:
BLOCK
This flexibility allows companies to match their travel policies exactly.