The General Services Administration (GSA) announced this month that federal employees will receive slightly higher daily Per Diem reimbursement rates for official travel in FY2017.
Per Diem rates are the maximum amounts a federal employee can receive as reimbursement for allowable expenses while on official duty travel. GSA sets per diem rates for locations in CONUS.
Per Diem rates in Standard areas in the Continental nited States (CONUS) for lodging will be $91 in FY2017, up from $89 in FY2017. The Standard area rate covers most of the continental CONUS 2,600 counties.
Per Diem rates for lodging at some 350 Non-Standard areas (NSAs) will vary depending on local conditions.
Daily rates for meals and incidental expenses (M&IE) in Standard areas will be unchanged at $51 in FY2017. The MI&E rates for Standard areas are based on the change in the Consumer Price Index for “Food Away from Home.”
The M&IE rate for NSAs (divided into six tiers) will continue to range from $54 to $74. Travelers receive 75 percent of the appropriate MIE rate on the first and the last days of travel. M&IE rates for NSAs are based on surveys of local restaurants.
Federal Travel Regulations still allow federal travelers to be reimbursed for actual expenses if per diem rates do not meet necessary expenses.
According to the GSA Per Diem Bulletin FTR 17-01 there are no new NSAs in FY2017. However, GSA announced that three NSA locations will become Standard areas: Lexington Park/Leonardtown/Lusby, MD; New Bern, NC; and Minot, ND.
The new Per Diem rates go into effect on Oct. 1, 2016.
