Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture Introduces Expense Management System 'Rakuraku Seisan' for Over 1,300 Employees, Aiming to Reduce Annual Review Workload by Approximately 150 Hours

Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture (headquarters: Imabari City, Ehime; mayor: Shigeki Tokunaga; hereinafter: Imabari City) has introduced and commenced operations of the cloud-based expense settlement system 'Rakuraku Seisan' provided by Rakus Inc. (headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Takanori Nakamura; hereinafter: 'Rakus'). This implementation aims to prevent increased administrative burdens resulting from recent amendments to the laws governing travel expenses for national public servants. Additionally, the city expects to reduce annual review workload by approximately 150 hours, advancing back-office digital transformation (DX) toward becoming a smart municipality.

Analog Pre-Approval Processes and Anticipated Burdens from Legal Reforms

The Personnel Division of Imabari City's General Affairs Department previously managed employee travel expenses using an existing travel management system. However, the pre-travel expense approval process involved numerous manual steps such as cost calculations, verifications, and corrections, consuming approximately 100 hours per month.

Moreover, with the amendment to the laws governing travel expenses for national public servants scheduled for April 2025, the existing system could not accommodate the new requirements. This raised serious concerns about exceeding operational capacity due to increased workloads. To address both the reduction of existing burdens and the anticipated increase in workload post-reform, three departments—the Personnel Division, Future Digital Division, and Accounting Office—collaborated to launch a project to evaluate and introduce a new system.

Overcoming Budget Approval and Ordinance Amendment Challenges

The project faced two major obstacles that needed to be overcome.

Demonstrating Cost-Effectiveness

Since operations were manageable under the previous system, justifying the investment in a new system required clear demonstration of cost-effectiveness. The city presented the rationale for adoption by highlighting efficiency gains—such as reduced labor hours and personnel costs—and enhanced internal controls through improved document verification, ultimately securing the necessary budget.

Phased Approach to 'Ordinance Amendments'

Amendments to the 'Imabari City Employee Travel Expense Ordinance' were implemented in two phases—before and after the new system's introduction. First, to comply with the upcoming national travel expense law amendments, certain provisions aligned with national standards were revised in April 2025, as the current system could not support actual-cost reimbursement. Subsequently, in March 2026, upon the new system's operational launch, further amendments were made to fully enable actual-cost settlement, allowing for gradual institutional improvements.

Smooth Implementation Achieves Annual 150-Hour Reduction and Eliminates Need for Rulebooks

The selection and adoption of 'Rakuraku Seisan' were decided based on its intuitive usability, enabling even infrequent users to operate it easily, and the vendor's consultative approach—demonstrating deep understanding of municipal-specific workflows and customs.

1. Seamless Adoption Through 'Setup Support Service' and Lessons from Past Trials

From the decision to adopt until actual deployment—spanning approximately six months—Rakus's 'Setup Support Service' team provided weekly guidance, accompanying the city throughout the implementation. This minimized additional burdens on municipal staff already managing regular duties, while co-creating an optimal operational framework tailored to Imabari City's unique practices.

To ensure smooth adoption across all employees, administrative staff were invited to explanatory sessions with support personnel. Learning from a past incident where a system update led to a surge in inquiries due to reliance solely on pre-launch operational briefings, the city implemented a one-month trial period before full operation. By enriching FAQs based on feedback during the trial, a gradual acclimatization process was established, enabling a smooth and confusion-free launch.

2. Anticipated Annual Reduction of 150 Hours in Review Workload

By integrating with third-party services such as route planners and AI Travel, automating allowance calculations, and implementing application rule-checking functions, the system proactively prevents erroneous submissions. Manual review tasks have been significantly shortened, with an estimated annual reduction of approximately 150 hours across the organization.

3. Reduced Inquiries and a 'Rulebook-Free' Application Environment

Previously, numerous direct inquiries disrupted core operations. After introducing 'Rakuraku Seisan,' employees can now resolve issues independently within the system, leading to a significant decrease in inquiries. Applicants no longer need to consult rulebooks; by simply following on-screen instructions, they can submit compliant applications.

Comment from Imabari City Representative

'Through this project, we have personally experienced the benefits of system utilization. Many employees have been relieved of administrative burdens and can now dedicate more time to their core duties. Moving forward, we plan to extend digital transformation and streamlining efforts to other back-office operations, contributing to the realization of a smart municipality and further enhancing citizen services and urban functions. We hope our experience serves as a useful reference for other municipalities facing similar challenges.'

About 'Rakuraku Seisan'

'Rakuraku Seisan' is a cloud-based expense settlement system equipped with AI technology, holding the top market share in Japan in terms of cumulative adoptions※. It enables centralized management of the entire expense process—from application and approval to settlement—for transportation, travel, and business trip expenses.

Leveraging AI technologies such as AI-OCR, image recognition, machine learning, and AI agents, the system automates receipt scanning, input assistance, and error detection. This reduces manual data entry and verification tasks, improving operational efficiency and minimizing human errors.

As of September 2025, 'Rakuraku Seisan' has been adopted by over 20,000 companies.

※ Source: Deloitte Tohmatsu Micke Institute, 'Current Status and Outlook of the Cloud-Based Expense Settlement System Market' (Micke IT Report, January 2025)

'Rakuraku Seisan' Product Website

Company Overview

Rakus Inc.

Headquarters: Link Square Shinjuku, 5-27-5 Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Founded: November 1, 2000

Capital: 378.37 million yen

Representative: CEO Takaharu Nakamura

Business: Cloud services

Company Website: https://www.rakus.co.jp/