A U.S. Navy memo released this month outlines guidelines for sailors’ mandatory use of government travel charge cards.
The instruction was announced through a NAVADMIN message directed toward service members traveling for a permanent change-of-station. They are required to use the card for travel expenses such as lodging, meals, and transportation, according to the memo.
Pentagon policy stipulates that the card is to be used by eligible Defense Department travelers for “costs to official government travel,” the memo said, meaning “travel under official orders while performing duties pertaining to official government assignments,” such as temporary duty or permanent change of station.
Travel advances will not be handed out for sailors with the travel card, the memo said, except for those dealing with nonconcurrent family travel or personally procured move advances. Sailors with the travel card are eligible for an advance of their dislocation allowance, an entitlement.
Service members who are ineligible for the travel card can be paid a travel advance to cover permanent change-of-station costs.
Before traveling, sailors are required to verify a zero-dollar balance on their travel card with their detaching agency program coordinator, as well as provide contact information and verify their travel card is set up for use.
Agency program coordinators are to ensure the sailor’s government travel charge card account is in permanent change-of-station mission critical status five days before the date of their approved detachment.
The coordinators are also to ensure the account remains in PCS mission-critical status while the sailor is traveling.
Once sailors arrive at their new command, they have five days to meet with their command pay and personnel administrator and submit a travel voucher to ensure government travel charge card payment.
Split disbursement is mandatory for sailors using the government travel charge card for permanent change of station travel, and sailors are fully responsible for repayment of the travel card.
For split disbursement, some travel card expenses are sent directly to the travel card account, while the rest of the reimbursement is deposited in the service member’s account. The service member can then use those funds to pay off the travel card balance.
Active-duty, training and administration of the reserves, and selected reservists executing active duty for operational support and officer recall PCS orders are permitted to use the government travel card.
The memo said mandatory use of the card does not apply to those on accession, separation or retirement orders, or to others such as Defense Department contractors, reservists helping active duty units, individual ready reserve Navy personnel, or those ineligible for government travel charge cards.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
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