Policy: 201.J-Travel: International Travel
Date: 09/16/03 (Updated 04/22/2009)

Statement of Policy:

Just like domestic travel, reimbursement for travel by common carrier shall be limited to the lowest cost means of travel unless it is impractical or not available. The additional cost for premium class (classes above coach/economy) travel is not reimbursable/payable. If extenuating circumstances arise where premium class travel is the only alternative available, such travel must have a written justification and approval from the UW Madison Travel Manager prior to booking the flight.

In accordance with the Fly America Act of 1974, commercial air travel on certain grants must comply with the requirement that U.S. flag air carriers be used to when travel is between the U.S. and a foreign country or between foreign countries. Exceptions to the Fly America Act requirements are as follows:

  1. If a U.S. flag air carrier offers nonstop or direct service (no aircraft change) from your origin to your destination, you must use the U.S. flag air carrier service unless such use would extend your travel time, including delay at origin, by 24 hours or more.
  2. If a U.S. flag air carrier does not offer nonstop or direct service (no aircraft change) between your origin and your destination, you must use a U.S. flag air carrier on every portion of the route where it provides service unless, when compared to using a foreign air carrier, such use would: (a) Increase the number of aircraft changes you must make outside of the U.S. by 2 or more; or (b) Extend your travel time by at least 6 hours or more; or
  3. Require a connecting time of 4 hours or more at an overseas interchange point.

Some flights purchased through a U.S. flag carrier may actually be a code-shared flight between a U.S. flag carrier and a foreign air carrier.  In such cases, despite the fact that the airplane may be owned by a foreign air carrier, as long as the flight was purchased through a U.S. flag carrier, it would meet the requirements of the Fly America Act. 

In addition to the above, there are three agreements that the U.S. government has signed that allow additional exceptions to the Fly America Act of 1974:

  1. The EU-US Open Skies Agreement (effective March 30, 2008)
  2. A new air transport agreement between the U.S. and Australia (effective October 1, 2008)
  3. A new air transport agreement between the U.S. and Switzerland (effective October 1, 2008)

Based on the above agreements, federal grant or contract funds can be used to purchase air travel with non-U.S. flag air carriers under the following circumstances:

  1. For travel between the U.S. and European Union countries, airlines of the Member States of the European Union may be used. 
  2. For travel between the U.S. and Australia, Australian airlines may be used. 
  3. For travel between the U.S. and Switzerland, airlines of Switzerland may be used. 

However, there are two important qualifications to these agreements:

  1. If transportation is between points for which there is a City-Pair contract fare in effect, then federal grantees and contractors are still required to use U.S. flag air carriers. 
  2. If transportation is obtained or funded by the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of a military department, then federal grantees and contractors are still required to use U.S. flag air carriers. 

Regarding the first qualification above, the City-Pair Program is a GSA (U.S. General Services Administration) Program that is available only to federal employees and not to federal grantees and contractors.  Despite that, federal grantees and contractors are still not allowed to use non-U.S. flag air carriers if a City-Pair contract fare is in effect for a particular segment of travel. 

For example, an employee using federal grant or federal contract funds needs to travel from Madison, Wisconsin, to Geneva, Switzerland.  This could be accomplished using the following itinerary:

Madison to Detroit
Detroit to Paris
Paris to Geneva

However, of the above flight segments, there is a City-Pair contract fare in effect on the Detroit to Paris flight segment.  As a result, a U.S. flag carrier must be used for that flight segment. 

In order to find if a City-Pair contract fare exists for a particular flight segment, please use the following website:  http://apps.fas.gsa.gov/citypairs/search/. 

Please include a print out of your City-Pair search indicating that no City-Pair contract fare exists on any of your flight segments if you do decide to fly on a foreign air carrier to the European Union, Australia, or Switzerland.     

For your convenience, the following website includes a comprehensive list of all City-Pair contract fares:

Note: If you aren't sure if your fund 144 grant is governed by the Fly America Act, please consult with your Post-Award Accountant at Research & Sponsored Programs (http://www.rsp.wisc.edu/directory.html) before booking your airfare.

Major U.S. Flag Air Carriers
AirTran Airways
Alaska Airlines
American Airlines
Continental Airlines
Delta Airlines
Frontier Airlines
jetBlue
Hawaiian Airlines		 Midwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines
US Airways
Major Airlines of the European Union

Adria Airways
Aer Lingus
Air France
Air Malta
Air One
Alitalia
Austrian
bmi

 British Airways
Brussels Airlines
Cyprus Airways
Czech Airlines
Deutsche Lufthansa
Finnair
Iberia
KLM


 LOT Polish Airlines
Luxair
Malev Hungarian Airlines
Olympic Airlines
SAS
TAP Portugal
TAROM – Romanian Air Transport
TNT Airways
Virgin Atlantic
Major Airline of Switzerland
Swiss International Air Lines
Major Airline of Australia
Qantas

For the complete details of the Fly America Act, please see http://www.tvlon.com/resources/FlyAct.html .

For the complete details of the EU-US Open Skies Agreement and the air transport agreements with Australia and Switzerland, please see http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=24833&noc=T .

For foreign travel, including U.S. possessions, separate dollar maximums for meals and lodging apply. Please see the Foreign Meal and Lodging Maximums for your destination. Just as with domestic travel, the amount claimed for meal reimbursement must be the actual amount spent up to the maximums.

Documentation supporting the exchange rate used must be attached to the expense report or other payment mechanism. Receipts are required for expenses exceeding $25.00 (U.S. Dollar). Receipts for payment made in foreign currency and written in a foreign language must be translated to English and converted to U.S. Dollars. The method of payment should also be listed on the receipt.

Meals must be shown on a per meal basis on the expense report and the daily maximum shall be prorated as follows:

Breakfast - 20% Lunch - 30% Dinner - 50%

For foreign travel, employees may be reimbursed for the purchase of bottled water. The maximum reimbursement is limited to $7.50 per day.

Related Procedure(s)

Who should know this policy?

Deans, Directors, employees who travel and staff who prepare travel reimbursements

Related Documents:

Contacts:

Dean/Director’s Business Office may e-mail uwtravel@bussvc.wisc.edu with questions.

Travelers and departmental staff should contact their respective Dean/Director’s Business Office for policy or procedural questions

Policy and Procedure Index


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