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Travel Update 24-07

To: Agency Travel Coordinators

From: Raven DeVaughn Chairman

Date: May 3, 2024

Subject: Per Diem Reimbursement Rates

In accordance with Travel Bulletin 24-05, reimbursement rates are calculated pursuant to the applicable federal government rates. Federal regulations detail applicable per diem rates for traveling employees.

Employees may receive Meals and Incidentals (M&IE) reimbursement in the following instances:

Travel that requires lodging: M&IE rate is the rate applicable to the work site or stopover location.

  • The M&IE rate is where the employee sleeps.
  • Example: The employee travels from Cook County to Sangamon County to work with an overnight stay. The M&IE rate is the rate for Sangamon County. In this scenario, the traveler would utilize the rate for ‘First and last day of travel’.

Travel for more than 12 hours, but less than 24 hours: Per diem is the rate appliable to the work site, or the highest work site rate if traveling for official duties to multiple locations.

  • The M&IE rate is where the employee works while on travel status.
  • Example: The employee travels from Cook County to Sangamon County to work and back in one day. The M&IE rate is the rate for Sangamon County.
  • Example: The employee travels from Sangamon County to Champaign County to work. The employee continues to travel to Cook County to work and travels back to Sangamon County in the same day. The M&IE rate is the rate for Cook County (highest M&IE rate of the multiple locations).
  • In both examples above, the traveler would utilize the rate for ‘First and last day of travel’.

Travel for 24 hours or more and traveling to a new work site or stopover at midnight. Per diem rate is the rate applicable to the new work site or stopover location.

  • The M&IE rate is the last place the employee worked for the day while on travel status.
  • Example: The employee travels from Cook County to Sangamon County to work, then travels to St. Clair to work and sleep. The M&IE rate is the ‘First and last day of travel’ rate for St. Clair County.

Travel is 24 hours or more, and you are returning to normal work site. Per diem rate is the applicable rate to the previous travel day.

The M&IE rate for the day of return travel is the per diem rate where the employee slept the previous night.

  • Example: The employee travels from Cook County to Sangamon County to work and sleep. The employee travels back the next day to Cook County. The M&IE rate is the ‘First and last day of travel’ rate for Sangamon County.
  • Example: The employee takes a multiple day trip. The employee travels from Cook County to Sangamon County to work and sleep. The M&IE rate is the ‘First and last day of travel’ rate for Sangamon County. The employee travels on the next day to St. Clair to work and sleep. The M&IE rate is the ‘M&IE Total’ for St. Clair County. The next day the employee travels back to Cook County. The M&IE rate is the ‘First and last day of travel’ rate for St. Clair County.

If an employee requires lodging, the M&IE rate is the final stop where the employee sleeps. When an employee is traveling back (assuming the employee has no other official duties in other locations), the employee is entitled to the M&IE rate in the county where they slept. The rates to be used for reimbursement are the ‘M&IE Total’ and ‘First and last day of travel’.

The applicable rates for travel reimbursement may be found at the General Services Administration’s website at the following link: https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/per-diem-rates. Travelers should enter the zip code for the city where they are staying in order to locate the applicable rates. Separate amounts for M&IE are listed within the GSA rates for situations that require meal amounts to be deducted from the total amount of reimbursement.

As the appointed Travel Coordinator for your agency, it is your responsibility to disseminate this information to all appropriate personnel within your agency. If you have questions, please contact the State Travel Coordinator by email at CMS.Travel@illinois.gov.