Legal basis and policy intent
- Section 79 of Presidential Decree No. 1177 (dated July 30, 1977), as amended by Section 72, Book VI of Executive Order No. 292 (Administrative Code of 1987), authorizes changes in travel allowance rates based on determinations by the Travel Rates Committee.
- Executive Order No. 298 rationalizes existing rules and allowable travel expenses for local and foreign travels to make the grant fair and equitable.
- Executive Order No. 298 revises travel rules and expenses in view of the increasing cost of goods and services.
- Executive Order No. 298 implements recommendations submitted by the Travel Rates Committee to modify rules and authorized travel expenses.
Key terms and allowance structure
- Hotel/lodging covers the authorized hotel/lodging rate including prescribed taxes and service charges under the amended local travel expense rules (Section 1 amending Section 4 of EO No. 248).
- Meals and incidental expenses are separately apportioned under the local travel expense rules (Section 4 of EO No. 248 as amended by Section 4 of EO No. 298).
- Local travel allowance is set at a fixed daily amount of Eight Hundred Pesos (P800.00) per day, apportioned 50% for hotel/lodging, 30% for meals, and 20% for incidental expenses (Section 6 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- Foreign travel allowance uses the Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) concept, apportioned 50% for hotel/lodging, 30% for meals, and 20% for incidental expenses, unless otherwise stated in the applicable index (Section 12 of EO No. 248 as amended by Section 8 and related sections of EO No. 298).
- Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) is deemed equivalent to the per diems authorized under Section 75 of Republic Act No. 7157 (otherwise known as the Foreign Service Act of 1991) (Section 11 amending Section 12 of EO No. 248).
Local travel approval and payment rules
- For local travels of less than thirty (30) days and payment of travel expenses, approval is made by the head of office/bureau or equivalent (Section 3 amending the first paragraph of Section 5 of EO No. 248).
- For local travels lasting thirty (30) days or more and payment of travel expenses, approval is made by the Department Secretary or his equivalent (Section 3 amending Section 5 of EO No. 248).
- The approval of the Department Secretary concerned is construed as equivalent to approval by the Secretary of Budget and Management (Section 3 amending Section 5 of EO No. 248).
Local travel allowable expenses and timing
- Local travel expenses are granted regardless of rank and destination at P800.00 per day, apportioned 50% hotel/lodging, 30% meals, and 20% incidental expenses (Section 4 as renumbered and amended by Section 4 of EO No. 298).
- Reimbursement of actual travel expenses in excess of the authorized local travel expenses may be allowed only upon certification by the head of agency as absolutely necessary in the performance of an assignment and upon presentation of bills and receipts (Section 4 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- Certification or affidavit of loss is not considered an appropriate replacement for required hotel/lodging bills and receipts (Section 4 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- Entitlement to local travel expenses starts only upon arrival at the destination and ceases upon departure, following percentage reductions depending on arrival/departure time (Section 4 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- The entitlement percentages for local travel are:
- 100% entitlement when arrival is not later than 12:00 noon, covering hotel/lodging (50%), meals (30%), and incidental expenses (20%).
- 80% entitlement when arrival is after 12:00 noon, covering hotel/lodging (50%), dinner (10%), and incidental expenses (20%).
- 30% entitlement when departure is before 12:00 noon, covering breakfast (10%) and incidental expenses (20%).
- 40% entitlement when departure is at 12:00 noon and later, covering breakfast (10%), lunch (10%), and incidental expenses (20%).
Local travel within 5-kilometer radius limits
- Claims for local travel within the fifty (5) kilometer radius from the last city or municipality covered by the Metropolitan Manila Area (for those with permanent official station in Metro Manila) or from the city or municipality where the permanent official station is located (for those outside Metro Manila) are allowed only upon proof that the employee stayed for the whole duration of official travel and that proof is supported by bills or invoices with official receipts (Section 5 amending the seventh paragraph of Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- If an employee commutes daily from the place of assignment to the place of residence or permanent official station, the claim is limited to:
- reimbursement of actual fare at the prevailing rates of the authorized mode of transportation for travel from the permanent official station to the destination or place of work and back, and
- a reasonable cost for meals (Section 5 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
- The total actual fare and cost of meals and incidental expenses for such commuting claims cannot exceed Four Hundred Pesos (P400.00) per day (Section 5 amending Section 6 of EO No. 248).
Foreign travel: DSAs, rates, and equivalents
- Government personnel who travel abroad are entitled to Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) under the UNDP Index, obtainable from the Department of Foreign Affairs (Section 8 amending Section 12 of EO No. 248).
- The DSA is apportioned 50% for hotel/lodging, 30% for meals, and 20% for incidental expenses unless otherwise stated in the UNDP Index (Section 8 amending Section 12).
- When the destination country is not listed in the UNDP Index, the DSA for the nearest country is adopted (Section 8 amending Section 12).
- Reimbursement of actual travel expenses in excess of the DSA authorized may be allowed only upon certification by the head of agency that such excess is absolutely necessary and upon presentation of bills and receipts (Section 9 amending and merging paragraphs of Section 12).
- Certification or affidavit of loss is not considered an appropriate replacement for the required hotel room/lodging bills and receipts (Section 9 amending Section 12).
- DSA entitlement starts only upon arrival in the destination country and ceases upon departure, following the same percentage structure as local travel timing:
- 100% for arrival not later than 12:00 noon, covering hotel/lodging (50%), meals (30%), and incidental expenses (20%).
- 80% for arrival after 12:00 noon, covering hotel/lodging (50%), dinner (10%), and incidental expenses (20%).
- 30% for departure before 12:00 noon, covering breakfast (10%) and incidental expenses (20%).
- 40% for departure at 12:00 noon and later, covering breakfast (10%), lunch (10%), and incidental expenses (20%) (Section 10 amending the fourth paragraph of Section 12).
- The DSA is deemed the equivalent of the per diems under Section 75 of Republic Act No. 7157 (Section 11 amending the fifth paragraph of Section 12).
- The last paragraph of Section 12 of EO No. 248 is deleted by Section 12 of EO No. 298.
Foreign travel: transportation and terminal fee
- When officials or employees authorized to travel abroad are not provided with transportation by the host country or sponsoring organization or agency, they are allowed official transportation in the restricted economy class, unless otherwise authorized by the President of the Philippines (Section 7 amending Section 10).
- Reimbursement of payment of the airport terminal fee at the point of embarkation to go back to the Philippines upon completion of the official trip abroad is authorized (Section 6 adding a second paragraph to Section 9 of EO No. 248).
Allowances for posting abroad and lodging portion
- Officials and employees assigned from their home office to a post abroad or cross-posted from one post abroad to another are entitled to the lodging portion of the allowances during the month they arrived at the post, subject to conditions in Section 14 (Section 13 amending Section 14 of EO No. 248).
- The lodging portion claim must be supported by appropriate bills with receipts and must not commence until actual arrival at the post (Section 13 amending Section 14).
- Under Section 65 of Republic Act No. 7157, they cannot collect living quarters allowance until the first day of the month following their arrival at the post (Section 13 amending Section 14).
- The lodging portion of the allowances is granted based on the classification of the post under Executive Order No. 101, series of 1993, and on the 50% entitlement for hotel/lodging provided under the allowances rules (Section 13 amending Section 14).
Cash advance rendition, reporting duties, and compliance
- For official travel abroad, an official or employee must render an account of the cash advance within sixty (60) days after return to the Philippines; for official local travel, the period is thirty (30) days after return to the permanent official station (Section 14 amending Section 16).
- Refund of excess cash advance may be made either:
- in U.S. dollars if allowed by the Department concerned, or
- in Philippine currency computed at the prevailing bank rate on the day of refund, requiring submission of a bank certification or a newspaper clipping on the bank rate (Section 14 amending Section 16).
- If an official or employee fails to comply, the payment of salary is suspended until compliance with the section’s requirements (Section 14 amending Section 16).
- Officials and employees must submit, within thirty (30) days after return to their permanent official station, a report with recommendations on the conference/seminar attended, examination/investigation conducted, or mission undertaken to the head of their office (Section 16 amending the first paragraph of Section 18).
- For international conferences or conventions abroad in which the Philippines is represented by a delegation, the delegation report must be submitted to the President of the Philippines through the department head concerned, with a copy furnished to the Department of Foreign Affairs, and done not later than thirty (30) days after the closing of the conference or convention (Section 16 amending Section 18).
- Any member of the delegation may submit a supplementary report (Section 16 amending Section 18).
- Section 15 deletes Section 17 of EO No. 248.
Repeal and transitory effect
- Section 17 repeals or modifies all executive issuances, orders, rules, regulations, or parts thereof that are inconsistent with Executive Order No. 298.
- Section 18 provides that Executive Order No. 298 takes effect immediately upon issuance (March 23, 2004).