gov travel card 101

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Card/Account Holders and Approving Officials Travel Training

Introduction: Welcome to the Course

Welcome to the gsa smartpay® travel training for card/account holders and approving officials.

As a federal government employee going on official government travel, you are expected to be familiar with the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) and other government travel policies.

This training course is intended to teach you the basics about your roles and responsibilities as a card/account holder or approving official and can be used as refresher training as required by your agency. We encourage you to also learn about your agency’s specific travel program requirements and policies. After reviewing each lesson, click on the button to go to the next lesson. The quiz is only available on the website and can be accessed after you complete the final lesson.

Note: The GSA SmartPay training website is an independent training system and does not connect/communicate with any other agency training systems.

training.smartpay.gsa.gov

An official website of the General Services Administration

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

• Explore sell to government
• Ways you can sell to government
• How to access contract opportunities
• Conduct market research
• Register your business
• Certify as a small business
• Become a schedule holder
• Market your business
• Research active solicitations
• Respond to a solicitation
• What to expect during the award process
• Comply with contractual requirements
• Handle contract modifications
• Monitor past performance evaluations
• Explore real estate
• 3D-4D building information modeling
• Art in architecture | Fine arts
• Computer-aided design standards
• Commissioning
• Design excellence
• Engineering
• Project management information system
• Spatial data management
• Facilities operations
• Smart buildings
• Tenant services
• Utility services
• Water quality management
• Explore historic buildings
• Heritage tourism
• Historic preservation policy, tools and resources
• Historic building stewardship
• Videos, pictures, posters and more
• NEPA implementation
• Courthouse program
• Land ports of entry
• Prospectus library
• Regional buildings
• Renting property
• Visiting public buildings
• Real property disposal
• Reimbursable services (RWA)
• Rental policy and procedures
• Site selection and relocation
• For businesses seeking opportunities
• For federal customers
• For workers in federal buildings
• Explore policy and regulations
• Acquisition management policy
• Aviation management policy
• Information technology policy
• Real property management policy
• Relocation management policy
• Travel management policy
• Vehicle management policy
• Federal acquisition regulations
• Federal management regulations
• Federal travel regulations
• GSA acquisition manual
• Managing the federal rulemaking process
• Explore small business
• Explore business models
• Research the federal market
• Forecast of contracting opportunities
• Events and contacts
• Explore travel
• Per diem rates
• Transportation (airfare rates, POV rates, etc.)
• State tax exemption

Travel charge card

• Conferences and meetings
• E-gov travel service (ETS)
• Travel category schedule
• Federal travel regulation
• Travel policy
• Explore technology
• Cloud computing services
• Cybersecurity products and services
• Data center services
• Hardware products and services
• Professional IT services
• Software products and services
• Telecommunications and network services
• Work with small businesses
• Governmentwide acquisition contracts
• MAS information technology
• Software purchase agreements
• Cybersecurity
• Digital strategy
• Emerging citizen technology
• Federal identity, credentials, and access management
• Mobile government
• Technology modernization fund
• Explore about us
• Annual reports
• Mission and strategic goals
• Role in presidential transitions
• Get an internship
• Launch your career
• Elevate your professional career
• Discover special hiring paths
• Events and training
• Agency blog
• Congressional testimony
• GSA does that podcast
• News releases
• Leadership directory
• Staff directory
• Office of the administrator
• Federal Acquisition Service
• Public Buildings Service
• Staff offices
• Board of Contract Appeals
• Office of Inspector General
• Region 1 | New England
• Region 2 | Northeast and Caribbean
• Region 3 | Mid-Atlantic
• Region 4 | Southeast Sunbelt
• Region 5 | Great Lakes
• Region 6 | Heartland
• Region 7 | Greater Southwest
• Region 8 | Rocky Mountain
• Region 9 | Pacific Rim
• Region 10 | Northwest/Arctic
• Region 11 | National Capital Region
• Per Diem Lookup

What is the travel charge card? The GSA SmartPay® 3 program provides charge cards to U.S. government agencies, as well as tribal governments, through master contracts that are negotiated with major banks. 

There are currently more than 560 Federal agencies, organizations and Native American tribal governments participating in the program, spending $30 Billion annually, through 100 million transactions on more than three million cards.

There are three types of travel accounts:

• Individually billed accounts are issued to employees to pay for official travel and travel-related expenses. The government reimburses employees for authorized expenses. The employee is responsible for making payment to the bank.
• Centrally billed accounts are established by some agencies to pay for official travel expenses. Centrally billed accounts are paid directly by the government to the bank.
• GSA SmartPay Tax Advantage Travel accounts  are new product offerings that combine an Individually Billed Account (IBA) and Centrally Billed Account (CBA), providing a means to obtain tax exemption automatically at the point of sale for rental cars and lodging charges. The combined features of CBAs and IBAs are a key characteristic of this product. When using the Tax Advantage Travel Account, charges for rental cars and lodging will be automatically billed to a CBA for payment. Charges for other travel-related purchases, such as meals and incidentals, are billed to the IBA portion of the account.

What is the benefit for federal agencies? Each agency or organization using the travel charge card receives a rebate based on sales volume. The sale refund is remitted to the organization. In addition, a separate refund is provided to agencies and organizations based on improving speed of payment.

How can travel managers make it happen? In 1988, Congress mandated that federal employees use the government travel charge card for all payments of expenses related to official government travel, with some exceptions. 

Travel managers should ensure that all of their travelers use their government-issued travel charge card for all purchases of travel-related services or products such as rental cars, hotel rooms, and telephone or Internet service.

Looking for more information on SmartPay?

The GSA SmartPay program provides charge cards to U.S. government agencies/departments, as well as tribal governments, through master contracts that are negotiated with major national banks. Additionally, to contact Travel Program call 888-472-5585 or email [email protected]

• Download the complete Federal Travel Regulation
• Joint Travel Regulations
• Foreign Affairs Manual

PER DIEM LOOK-UP

1 choose a location.

Error, The Per Diem API is not responding. Please try again later.

No results could be found for the location you've entered.

Rates for Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. Territories and Possessions are set by the Department of Defense .

Rates for foreign countries are set by the State Department .

2 Choose a date

Rates are available between 10/1/2021 and 09/30/2024.

The End Date of your trip can not occur before the Start Date.

Traveler reimbursement is based on the location of the work activities and not the accommodations, unless lodging is not available at the work activity, then the agency may authorize the rate where lodging is obtained.

Unless otherwise specified, the per diem locality is defined as "all locations within, or entirely surrounded by, the corporate limits of the key city, including independent entities located within those boundaries."

Per diem localities with county definitions shall include "all locations within, or entirely surrounded by, the corporate limits of the key city as well as the boundaries of the listed counties, including independent entities located within the boundaries of the key city and the listed counties (unless otherwise listed separately)."

When a military installation or Government - related facility(whether or not specifically named) is located partially within more than one city or county boundary, the applicable per diem rate for the entire installation or facility is the higher of the rates which apply to the cities and / or counties, even though part(s) of such activities may be located outside the defined per diem locality.

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

TTS Travel 101

First time setup current

Book travel not completed

Travel not completed

Get reimbursed not completed

Step 1 First time setup

Initial setup for travel.

Start the First-time travel guide to setup >

In order to travel officially in TTS, you need to, at minimum, get set up in Concur *, GSA's travel system. Flights or Amtrak booked in Concur are paid for directly by GSA-- no travel card required.

You'll also want to apply for a GSA travel card , and once you receive it, update your Concur profile . This process takes about two weeks. In the meantime, you won't be able to make hotel reservations in Concur. It is recommended that you make all of your reservations via AdTrav at (877) 472-6716 until your card arrives. You will need to use your personal funds for all travel expenses other than flights/rail, but can be reimbursed for all official expenses when you complete a voucher upon your return .

* Note: there are special procedures for staff who need to get into Concur to travel during their first week and may not yet have access to OLU to complete the required IT security trainings.

Brief overview of how to travel

Start booking travel >

Once you are set up in Concur and your travel card is on its way, there are three main parts of the travel process to be aware of.

1. Book your travel and submit a plan for approval

• You can book flights, rail trips, hotels, and rental cars in Concur or by calling AdTrav at (877) 472-6716.
• Complete your trip information , and continue stamping to submit to the travel team for approval.
• Get approval via email from your authorizing official or through the event request process .

The approval timeline will vary, but the whole process typically takes between a few days to a week.

2. Actually travel

Keep travel card policies and reimbursement rules as you travel, so you'll know the right times to use your GSA travel card and which receipts you need to keep with you.

3. File your voucher and get reimbursed

Now it's time to get reimbursed for your travel by filing your voucher. You can also get reimbursed for other things via this method, such as local travel or, for supervisors, professional liability insurance .

For unusual travel situations, there are a few additional guides to be aware of:

• Re-booking and changing official travel plans
• After hours and emergency travel
• Combining official and personal travel, including extensions at personal expense , and travel to and from cities other than one's home location and worksite .
• Traveling for multiple projects
• Issues with reimbursement

Getting help

You are responsible for securing your authorizing official's approval to travel , properly submitting your applications for Concur and the GSA travel card , booking your travel through Concur or AdTrav at (877) 472-6716, and ensuring your travel request is properly stamped and submitted in Concur.

The TTS Travel Team is responsible for approving properly submitted travel in Concur, and answering most* of the questions you might have along the way. You can reach them either via email at [email protected], in Slack in the #travel channel, or by booking , external, travel/purchase office hours . Note that the travel team won't be available to immediately assist with your inquiry, though the team endeavors to answer all questions that come through by their next office hours which are twice daily. Properly submitted authorizations for upcoming travel are reviewed by the team daily, and vouchers are reviewed within 5 business days. Close of business for the travel team is at 4:30 PM ET . Should you need support after-hours, read the guide here .

The TTS travel team is comprised of the following individuals. Please send your questions to them through the above-mentioned channels and not through individual emails or Slack DMs.

• Djemila McCray (primary, People Operations)
• Lathann Newland (primary, People Operations)
• Steven Williams (backup, People Operations)

* Please direct technical questions about Concur to the Business Applications Service Desk at (866) 450-6588 (press 2) or [email protected]. Questions about the travel card application should be routed to [email protected].

Handbook.tts.gsa.gov

An official website of the U.S. General Services Administration