Meals and incidentals will be reimbursed at a per
diem rate, or on an individual receipt basis. On any trip, either method may be used, but only one method
can be used for the entire trip.
Per Diem:
Per Diem is a standard fixed amount per day for which a traveler will be
reimbursed during the conduct of business travel regardless of the actual
expenses incurred. The per diem
allowance is intended to cover travel expenses for meals, sales tax, and tips
to food servers.
Using the per diem method, the traveler will claim
daily reimbursement according to fixed breakout rates for breakfast, lunch, and
dinner. When a meal is furnished
at a meeting, per diem should not be claimed for that particular meal. Receipts
are not required in order to claim per diem.
Travelers will be notified of the appropriate per
diem rates for the cities they will be traveling to in the meeting and travel
logistics email. The chart illustrates the per diem meal breakdown for domestic
meal rates, based on a daily minimum and maximum total amount, depending on
your travel location.
Per diems on the
first and last day of travel cannot exceed 75% of the total per diem allowed
for a day.
The following
web site may be used to obtain meal per Diem information:
On this web page, click on the hypertext in the
left-hand column for the appropriate time range. The resulting screen gives more specific dates within that
time range, click on the specific time range. The resulting page has the per diem information. In the preface remarks of this page,
look for the hypertext link "Appendix B"which then gives the breakdown for breakfast,
lunch, and dinner.
A receipt from the traveler is required for IODP-MI
to reimburse any single miscellaneous expenditure in excess of $25.00.
All international travel must be booked on
U.S.-flag air carriers* unless the use of a U.S. flag air carrier would not
accomplish the mission of IODP-MI or if a U.S. flag air carrier is considered
unavailable because of any of the reasons listed below. This includes any segment of the
initial booking and any subsequent changes in routing while en-route.
Travelers will be reimbursed the cost of airfare
for coach class accommodations only (or equivalent class, such as economy or
tourist class). Coach class
tickets must be purchased at the lowest available price for the trip. Nonrefundable tickets must be purchased
unless approved by IODP-MI management prior to purchase. Y Class and similar full fare coach
tickets will only be reimbursed up to the amount that the lowest fare ticket
would have cost. Exceptions to
coach class travel may be authorized with prior written consent of IODP-MI
under the following conditions:
- Space in coach class is not available on a
scheduled flight in time to accomplish the purpose of the official travel,
which is so urgent that it cannot be postponed.
- Premium
class accommodations are necessary to accommodate a travelerís disability or
physical impairment. This
condition must be confirmed by a physician in writing. IODP-MI will provide a form (Attachment
4-05) for this purpose at the
traveler's request.
- The
scheduled flight time (including stopovers) exceeds fourteen (14) hours for
direct travel and either the origin or destination point is outside the
continental U.S. ***
- Coach class accommodations on non-U.S. flag air
carriers do not provide adequate sanitation or health standards and the use of
a non-U.S. flag air carrier is approved by IODP-MI in conformance with the
Transportation Section 3-01, Air Carrier Selection, of this policy.
- The use of premium class service results in an
overall ticket savings, as compared to the cost of lowest available coach class
accommodations.
*** When a flight exceeds 14 hours in duration,
IODP-MI may purchase for the traveler, the least expensive economy fare ticket
that ensures the traveler is able to use their personal frequent flyer miles to
upgrade. If the upgradeable airline ticket cost exceeds a 30% increase over
what it would have cost to purchase the least expensive ticket, then this type
of fare purchase will not be authorized.
The only exception to the rule above is as
follows. With the prior
authorization of the President, ìkey personnelî may fly business class no more
than once a year for a flight over 14 hours in duration (including
stopovers). This is also dependent
on the budget status for the year.
The expense of
transportation by personally owned vehicle (POV) will be reimbursed on a
mileage basis at the prevailing IRS rates. The prevailing reimbursement rate will be printed on the
Travel Expense Report. POV mileage
reimbursement is based on travel by the most direct route between the departure
and destination points.
Unallowable expenses include entertainment, social activities, alcohol, personal items, fines and field trips. ..............................................................
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