Approval Requirements
Employee should submit travel request with required documents into Emburse 60 days prior to travel start date.
- Travel start and end dates must be known at time of submission request in Emburse.
- Any travel to countries/regions designated as an “extreme risk, advisory list, and or countries of concern” must have the following required documentation uploaded into their Emburse request for travel at least 60 days (six weeks) prior to travel date:
- Completed Texas A&M University System Office of Risk Management International Travel Questionnaire for Extreme Risk Countries.
- Mission Critical Memo - Addendum to Foreign Travel Request – signed by Department Head and by the Dean/Vice President.
- HSC Compliance & Risk Management (CRM) reviews Emburse request with submitted documentation within 72 hours after submission in Emburse.
- HSC CRM contacts the employee with foreign travel request to discuss travel information.
- Export Controls Review.
- Foreign Travel Training confirmed.
- If personal travel, the Certification of Personal Travel to a Foreign Adversary form is submitted in Workday 60 days prior to travel start date.
- Employee completes the post-travel brief task in Workday.
- Within 72 hours after employee returns, employee completes the post-travel brief task in Workday.
All foreign travel by University employees and HSC students on official university business must be approved in advance according to University Rule 21.01.03.M0.02.
- The authorization for travel must be submitted and processed through Emburse's Travel Request module 60 days prior to the travel start date.
- If travel is requested to a country/region on the Advisory List then the signed Mission Critical Memo by the Dean/Vice President must be uploaded with the travel request so the President, or President’s designee can review and either approve or deny.
- All items/training must be followed as listed in the Oct. 10, 2013, International Travel to High Risk Countries Memo signed by the Chancellor.
Emburse's Travel Request module obtains the appropriate approvals (not including the travel to a country/region on the Advisory List required approval signed form to be uploaded) for foreign travel (assuming the department head is on the routing path, Foreign Travel must be approved by the department head and cannot be delegated any further), including approvals required for countries with Travel Warnings and the employee's Acknowledgement of Risk.
Expense reports for foreign travel will be made in compliance with University Rule 21.01.03.M0.02 and funded with local funds only.
Travel Warnings and Acknowledgement of Risk
In Emburse, the employee will be required to select "Country(s) not under a
warning" or "Country(s) under US State Dept warning" in the "Foreign Risk" field.
The employee can determine if the country is under a warning by checking the US
Dept of State site.
By selecting one of the selections in “Foreign Risk” field in Emburse the employee
is acknowledging the following: I have read and understand the conditions and
potential risks associated with this travel as detailed in the current Travel Warning
posted by the U.S. Department of State.
The employee is also required to record all countries traveled to as part of the
business itinerary in Emburse. Emburse will route the document to the appropriate
approval levels based upon the "Risk Field" selection and the countries recorded.
Approvals required depending on risk could be the Provost, System Risk
Management and the President. Emburse will route the document accordingly to
obtain those approvals.
Travel by an undergraduate student to a country that is under a Travel Warning
will not be approved.
Passport/Visa/Medical Needs
Expenses related to international travel preparation for business purposes is an allowable expense. For example, costs to obtain passports/visas or immunizations required for a particular country are reimbursable expenses. Receipts are required for reimbursement or to document the travel card charge.
Please note that Texas A&M University – Study Abroad Office offers a Passport Service to the general public. Please click on the hyperlink to learn more about getting a passport without leaving campus.
The Assistance Abroad Program does not include accident medical insurance. TAMU faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to visit the BlueCard Worldwide Program website to review the BlueCross BlueShield services available in your travel destination(s) prior to departure. If BCBS services are not available in your destination(s), please contact Insurance Services at insurance@tamu.edu or (979) 845-8104 for information on accident medical insurance options while abroad.
International Travel Safety
International Travel Safety: Safe Passage Presentation – Employees traveling internationally must complete the international travel safety training every three years. The training is available through TrainTraq and if the above hyperlink does not work search for course 2111728 in TrainTraq.
It is recommended that the traveler register with the US Department of State using the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). This allows the traveler to receive information from the embassy about safety conditions in the destination country and helps the embassy contact the traveler in case of an emergency.
Also, even though it is required that the traveler check the US Department of State Travel Warnings and Alerts at the time of the Travel Request submission in Emburse, it is also recommend to check the site just before departure. There are also many other links on this site that provide vital information about the country (e.g. U.S. Embassy contact information, safety and security, travel, health, visa requirements, etc.)
In the event of an emergency while abroad, contact Texas A&M University's Assistance Abroad Program.
TAMU System Assistance Abroad Program
- Emergency medical and security evacuations
- Emergency medical transportation services
- Destination Specific Trip Planning Tools
- Real-time travel/security alerts
- Trip reports with cultural and other general recommendations
- Security reports
- Health and immunization briefs/recommendations
- Security rating
- Currency exchange rates
- Assistance during international travel emergencies, such as:
- Medical referrals
- Prescription drug replacement/shipment
- Replacement of lost or stolen airline ticket
- Credit card/Passport/Important document replacement
- Location of legal services
Additional information on the services available through CISI can be found here.
Please log in using your NetID for additional information and to access the web-based CISI services.
Medical Insurance While Abroad
State Department Rates
State Department Rates are used to determine meal and lodging rates for the area of the country that is being traveled to. Foreign travel is required to be allocated to local funds only, so the rates are only used as a guide and it is not a university policy to limit meals and lodging to these rates on local funds. However, departments may limit the travelers to these rates, so please check with your business office. GSA rates mentioned in the Meals and Lodging Section are for domestic travel only.
Fly America Act
The Fly America Act (41 CFR 301-10.131 through 301-10.143) requires that all federally funded travel be on a U.S. flag carrier or U.S. flag carrier service provided under a code-share agreement*.
* Code sharing occurs when two or more airlines "code" the same flight as if it was their own. In other words, a U.S. airline may sell a seat on the plane of a foreign air carrier; this seat is considered the same as one on a plane operated by a U.S. flag carrier. Compliance with the Fly America Act is satisfied when the U.S. flag air carrier's designator code is present in the area next to the flight numbers on the airline ticket, boarding pass, or on the documentation for an electronic ticket (passenger receipt).
To ease the burden on the traveler or their booking designee, Texas A&M University has contracted with Short’s Travel Management to ensure compliance with the Fly America Act when airfare is booked through Short’s. Short’s will book within compliance or an acceptable exception will be noted that carries to the expense report in Emburse.
While booking through Short’s, either via the Emburse online booking tool or calling them directly, is recommended, a traveler may choose to accept this responsibility and book through other means. By doing so, the traveler assumes 100% responsibility that the airfare is in compliance or a valid exception is documented. Documentation must be attached to the Emburse expense report. Documentation of compliance is the appearance of the US flag air carrier’s designator code and flight number on tickets or associated documentation (e-Ticket itinerary) for all legs of a trip. Should the travel be booked “outside” of Short’s Travel Management, the exception form can be found at http://fmo.tamu.edu/travel/forms/.
Exceptions to the Fly America Act:
The biggest exception to the Fly America Act are the Open Skies Agreements. On October 6, 2010, the United States and European Union (EU) "Open Skies" Air Transport Agreement was published by the U.S. General Services Administration, providing full explanation of the multilateral agreement in place so that qualifying travelers, whose travel is supported by federal funds, may travel on European Union airlines as well as U.S. Flag Air Carriers. These agreements with other nations allow travel on foreign airlines under certain conditions when procuring using federal funds. Information about the four Open Skies Agreements along with a list of participating countries is available here. There are other exceptions to the Fly America Act which may be appropriate as well. A list of exception criteria may be found in the Federal Travel Regulation Guidelines, sections 301‐10.135– 138. Please note that lower cost and personal convenience are not acceptable criteria for justifying the non‐availability of a U.S. –flag air carrier.
To document the exceptions, you must complete and attach the Fly America Act Exceptions Form.
Export Control
When planning an international trip, please visit the Export Control site for contact information for questions and to review the Export Control Manual travel section (Section 12).