What is the current Per Diem Rate?

Travel Rates reset each fiscal year, effective October 1 each year.

What is Per Diem?

The Federal Government uses the term per diem to keep track of the daily travel allowances for lodging, meals, and incidentals for government and military travelers on official duty travel.

Per Diem Rates are a daily allowance for lodging and meals set by the GSA (Government Services Administration). The GSA is a policy-related agency of the federal government that oversees many travel-related functions. The U.S. Department of State sets foreign travel rates. Currently, all government-wide per diem rates for military personnel on TDY orders outside of the continental United States, including Hawaii, Alaska, and all official U.S. Territories, are set by the DTMO (Defense Travel Management Office) under the auspices of the Department of Defense.

Federal Per Diem Rate Increases and Decreases

The federal per diem rates reset every fiscal year on October 1, and rates either increase, decrease or stay the same each year. The Department of Defense sets rates for Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. Territories, and Possessions (OCONUS rates). The State Department sets Foreign Rates. Calculation of travel per diem rates within the Federal government is a shared responsibility of three organizations: The General Services Administration (GSA), The Department of State (DoS), and The Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO).

The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States Government that helps manage and support all federal agencies' functioning. The GSA prescribes travel per diem rates for the Continental U.S. (CONUS). When do government per diem rates change? The GSA updates travel per diem rates annually, and rates are effective October 1, at the start of each fiscal year. Typically, the rates are updated at the beginning of each new fiscal year. If a uniformed military member or a Department of Defense (DoD) federal civilian has questions regarding the adequacy of per diem rates, they can contact GSA.

The Department of State (DoS) prescribes per diem rates for all foreign overseas locations Outside the Continental United States (CONUS). The State Department updates these travel rates at the beginning of every month. If any uniformed military members or DoD federal civilians have questions regarding the adequacy of foreign per diem rates, they should contact the Department of State Office of Allowances.

The Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO) prescribes per diem rates for Overseas Non-Foreign areas (including Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, etc.). DTMO updates Overseas Non-Foreign Per Diem Travel Rates at least once a year. The Per Diem Committee adds DoD unique footnotes, DoD Installations, and proportional meal rates to rates published by DoS, GSA, and DTMO.

Per Diem for Meals & Incidental Expenses

The Per Diem Meals rate for government travelers is paid at a flat reimbursement rate regardless of how much is spent on meals, so unlike lodging, a traveler can pocket the difference if spending less than the authorized meals rate.

Per Diem Rate = Max Lodging + Meals (Local Meals, Proportional, or Government) + Incidental Rate (Local or on Base)

Meals & Incidentals (M&IE) Breakdown See the descriptions below regarding federal employee travel:

M&IE Total – the full daily amount received for a single calendar day of travel when that day is neither the first nor last day of travel.

Breakfast, lunch, dinner, incidentals – Separate amounts for meals and incidentals. M&IE Total = Breakfast + Lunch + Dinner + Incidentals. Sometimes, a traveler must deduct meal amounts from the trip voucher.

First & last day of travel – the amount received on the first and last day of travel equals 75% of the total M&IE.