How to Fill Out and Submit a Per Diem Request Form

To fill out a per diem request form, look up the federal rate for your work location, enter lodging and meals-and-incidentals amounts for each day of the trip, apply the 75 percent rule to your first and last travel days, subtract the value of any meals that were provided to you, and submit the completed form through your employer’s expense system. For fiscal year 2026, the standard rate across most of the continental United States is $178 per day: $110 for lodging and $68 for meals and incidental expenses, with higher amounts in costlier cities.1U.S. General Services Administration. Per Diem Rates

Look Up the Right Rate Before You Enter Anything

The rate depends on where you worked, not where you slept. Open the GSA per diem lookup tool, select fiscal year 2026, and search by city, state, or ZIP code of your work location.1U.S. General Services Administration. Per Diem Rates The results page shows two columns: lodging and M&IE. If your destination isn’t listed, the standard CONUS rate applies ($110 lodging, $68 M&IE).

Many private employers use the IRS high-low substantiation method instead of looking up each GSA locality. Under Notice 2025-54, high-cost localities allow up to $319 per day ($233 lodging, $86 M&IE) and all other CONUS locations cap at $225 ($151 lodging, $74 M&IE). Confirm which method your company uses before you fill in a single number. Entering the wrong rate is the fastest way to get the form sent back.

For international trips, rates come from the Department of State’s Office of Allowances, not the GSA.2U.S. Department of State. Office of Allowances Search by country or post name on the State Department’s per diem page.3U.S. Department of State. Office of Allowances – Per Diem

Fill In Each Day of the Trip

Most forms give you one row per calendar day with separate lodging and M&IE columns. Work through chronologically. Full days of travel get 100 percent of the M&IE rate. The first and last days of a trip lasting 24 hours or more get 75 percent.4eCFR. 41 CFR Part 301-11 – Subsistence Expenses Trips shorter than 24 hours but longer than 12 use the 75 percent rate for every day. The GSA publishes the pre-calculated 75 percent figure for each tier; at the $68 standard rate, the first- and last-day amount is $51.5U.S. General Services Administration. M&IE Breakdowns

In the lodging column, enter the room rate only up to the GSA maximum for your location. Lodging taxes are reimbursed separately as a miscellaneous travel expense, but only on the portion of the room rate that falls within your authorized maximum. If your agency authorizes $110 per night and you booked a $160 room, you can claim taxes on the $110 only.4eCFR. 41 CFR Part 301-11 – Subsistence Expenses Some employers use the per diem method for meals but require actual receipts for lodging, so check your policy before you skip the attachment step.

Every date on the form has to match your approved travel itinerary. A mismatch between form dates and travel authorization is one of the most common reasons accounting departments flag a submission for manual review.

Subtract Any Meals That Were Provided

When a conference registration, government host, or employer-arranged event covers a meal, you have to reduce your M&IE claim for that day by the value of the provided meal. The GSA’s Appendix B table splits each M&IE tier into breakfast, lunch, and dinner amounts for exactly this purpose.4eCFR. 41 CFR Part 301-11 – Subsistence Expenses At the $68 standard tier, the deductions are $16 for breakfast, $19 for lunch, and $28 for dinner. The deductions scale upward through the $74, $80, $86, and $92 tiers.

The $5 incidental portion of M&IE is never deducted, even when all three meals are provided.5U.S. General Services Administration. M&IE Breakdowns So at a conference in an $86-tier city that provides lunch and dinner, your M&IE for that day drops from $86 to $27 ($86 minus $23 lunch minus $36 dinner). Note the deduction on the form for each affected day. Skipping this step is a rejection trigger in most accounting offices.

Keep the Reimbursement Tax-Free

Whether your per diem shows up on your W-2 depends on whether your employer runs what the IRS calls an accountable plan. Under an accountable plan, per diem at or below the federal rate is tax-free: it doesn’t count as wages, and no withholding applies.6Internal Revenue Service. Per Diem Payments Frequently Asked Questions The plan has to meet three conditions:

  • The travel must have a business connection to company operations.
  • You must substantiate the trip with an expense report showing dates, location, and business purpose within 60 days of incurring the expense.7Internal Revenue Service. Revenue Ruling 2003-106
  • Any advance that exceeds your actual allowable per diem must be returned to the employer within 120 days.

If the employer pays per diem above the federal rate, the excess is taxable wages, subject to income tax withholding and Social Security and Medicare taxes, and must be reported on your W-2.6Internal Revenue Service. Per Diem Payments Frequently Asked Questions A plan that fails any of the three conditions is a nonaccountable plan, and the entire per diem amount becomes taxable income.7Internal Revenue Service. Revenue Ruling 2003-106

Who Can’t Use the Per Diem Method

Two situations rule out per diem entirely. If you own more than 10 percent of the company’s stock (directly or indirectly), you cannot use the per diem method and must substantiate every expense with actual receipts.8Internal Revenue Service. Publication 463 – Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses And per diem is only available for temporary assignments. If an assignment at a single location is expected to last, or actually lasts, longer than one year, the IRS no longer treats the location as temporary and the travel expenses become nondeductible.9Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Business Travel Deductions

Submit the Form and Track the Payment

Most organizations want the completed form uploaded as a PDF through an internal expense management system or travel portal. It typically enters an approval queue with your direct supervisor, who confirms the business purpose, before moving to finance for rate verification.

Reimbursement timelines vary. Many employers process approved per diem payments on the next regular payroll cycle, which for biweekly payroll means roughly 10 to 14 days after the form clears all approvals. If accounting finds an error (a wrong rate, a missing meal deduction, or dates that don’t line up with the travel authorization), the form comes back for correction and the clock resets. Save a copy of what you submitted and any confirmation emails so you have something to point to when you follow up.

How Long to Keep Your Records

Hold on to copies of submitted per diem request forms, travel authorizations, and any supporting documentation for at least three years from the date you file the tax return covering the travel period. The IRS generally recommends a three-year retention window for expense records, though employment tax records should be kept for at least four.10Internal Revenue Service. Taking Care of Business – Recordkeeping for Small Businesses If your employer is audited later, the original form with matching travel dates and rate documentation is what keeps a routine review from turning into a problem.