Travel Allowance Budget & Emergency Contacts

= Flight Specialist Program

Preparing for Your Fulbright Specialist Grant

Fulbright Specialist Program (FSP) Grantee Information Login

Web address: http://www.cies.org/specialist-scholars-login

Password: CIES_special!

About Your Travel Budget

The Travel Advance Budget (TAB) form establishes the reimbursable amount for your international travel. You must have CIES approval before purchasing your ticket. First, CIES must pre-approve your travel budget and authorize your grant. Once approved, you will purchase your ticket upfront. CIES will then email your grant authorization document. Please sign and promptly return the Grant Authorization to CIES. Your travel advance will be deposited to your checking account approximately 2-4 weeks after CIES receives the countersigned Grant Authorization from you. Do not buy your ticket until you have received an approved travel budget quote from CIES.

Customizing Your Travel

You are welcome to customize your travel, provided that your extra travel does not interfere with your grant requirements, your proposed itinerary is “Fly-America” compliant (see explanation below), and that you do not seek extra funding for non-grant related travel.

Submit a TAB that reflects the entire duration of your international travel. If you will be adding personal travel onto your grant period, please specify the exact dates you will be working at your host institution. Important: your official grant dates cannot exceed the number of days approved by the U.S. Department of State, and you will only receive a grant payment for that time period. Your approved grant length may be found on your Program Overview (the minimum grant length is 14 days). Fulltime performance of professional duties is required; any extended breaks during the grant visit must be pre-approved by the host institution and the Fulbright Commission or U.S. Embassy.

"Fly America" Regulations and Your International Travel

You are required by the Fly America Act to use U.S. flag air carrier service for all air travel funded by the U.S. Government (exceptions apply). The Fly America Act requires grantees to use U.S. carriers as explained in the Fly America guidelines (FSP Grantee Info login required). This requires that you fly as far as possible to your final destination on a U.S. carrier. If you are traveling from outside of the United States, please contact CIES so that we may advise you accordingly.

Travel on code-share or partner airlines is allowed (e.g., Delta-Korean Air), provided the ticket is purchased from the U.S. carrier and the flight has a U.S. carrier flight number. For example, if you were flying to Seoul on a Korean Air-Delta flight, you would buy the ticket from Delta with a “DL” flight number. However, at the airport you may actually board a Korean Air plane.

Please note that the Fly America Act has recently been expanded to include the use of certain European Union Carriers when that particular flight originates, arrives or stops in a European Union country. The list of approved European Union Carriers (FSP Grantee Info login required) can be found on the grantee login page. You must send a copy of your intended itinerary to before purchasing it in order to confirm compliance.

Preparing To Go - 11 steps

(These steps must be completed for each visit if you have a serial grant)

Step 1. Confirm exact grant period with your host institution and the Fulbright Commission or U.S. Embassy in the host country.

E-mail and phone contact information for the host institution and relevant Fulbright office can be found on the Program Overview that was sent with your Grant Acknowledgement Letter.

Step 2. Verify the validity of your U.S. passport.

Your passport must be valid for six months beyond your grant end date. If your passportwill expire within the sixmonth timeframe, please renew it immediately. Visit the U.S. State Department’s Passport Website for more information on the regulations and renewal process. If your passport does need to be renewed, please note this on your Travel Advance Budget Form (see Step 4). Passport renewal fees are not covered by the grant.

Step 3. Obtain two travel quotes with itineraries (from different travel Web sites, airlines or travel agencies) for the international travel associated with this grant. Travel agent fees and trip insurance are not covered by the grant.

NOTE—The quotes should:

·  Be for a non-refundable, coach/economy class ticket, not business class.

·  Include the penalty amount for change of itinerary.

·  Be in compliance with the Fly America Act (FSP Grantee Info login required) by traveling as far as possible on a U.S. or European Union flagged carrier.

·  Be for the entire period of your international travel.

DO NOT PURCHASE YOUR TICKET UNTIL YOU RECEIVE CONFIRMATION FROM CIES THAT YOUR TRAVEL ADVANCE HAS BEEN APPROVED. Grantees cannot be reimbursed for unauthorized travel arrangements.

Step 4. Complete the Fulbright Specialist Travel Advance Budget (TAB) form (pg. 5).

Complete and submit the form to CIES no earlier than five but no later than two months prior to the proposed project start date. Email the completed TAB form as an attachment to with the travel quotes and itineraries.

Once CIES receives your TAB, travel quotes, and itineraries, we will obtain a comparative quote and will base the travel advance on the best of the three fares. CIES will notify you via email of your approved travel budget and send you the Grant Authorization for your signature. NOTE: The travel advance listed on the Grant Authorization is not final. It is subject to adjustment based on the travel expense paperwork submitted at the end of the grant period.

Step 5. Countersign the Grant Authorization and return it to CIES. The travel advance approval process may take three or more business days. We understand that ticket prices may fluctuate during this time. Should this happen, CIES will adjust the budget accordingly.

Return the signed Grant Authorization as a scanned PDF attachment to or via fax to: 202-686-4029 Attn: Fulbright Specialist Program, CIES.

Step 6. Purchase your ticket.

You CANNOT be reimbursed for tickets purchased using frequent flyer miles. The receipt must show the actual cost of the ticket in order to receive compensation. Frequent flyer miles may ONLY be used for upgrades.

Email or fax your final travel itinerary to the Fulbright Commission or Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy contact listed on the Program Overview.

Step 7. Submit the Grant Payment Deposit Form (page 6)

The Institute of International Education, CIES parent organization, issues payments via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to the checking account you designate on the grant payment deposit form. Please complete and return the form to CIES via email or fax along with a voided check .Your information will be entered into our payment database and the funds will be transferred to your bank account. Payments are made twice a month. CIES will notify you of the payment schedule.

Serial grantees only need to fill out the Grant Payment Deposit form once.

Step 8. Obtain the necessary visa(s) for your trip and review the U.S. Department of State Safety Information.

The grantee is fully responsible for obtaining all necessary visas. Grantees should learn of the visa requirements for their host country as early as possible and make visa arrangements as soon as the travel dates are settled in order to avoid last-minute problems.

Please contact the Fulbright Commission or U.S. Embassy in your host country about visa questions. CIES does not make visa arrangements. You will be reimbursed for the cost of a single entry visa, if required. Other fees associated with the visa such as photos and rush fees are not reimbursable.

Consult the U.S. Department of State’s Travel and Safety Information Website. Please also register with the U.S. Government’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP).

The US Department of State has a Smart Traveler App that provides US travelers with access to travel warnings and alerts, country information, maps, embassy locations and more. Information available through the app comes from content that is also posted on www.state.govand http://www.travel.state.gov.

Step 9. Make necessary arrangements for health insurance and inoculations.

Accident and Sickness coverage: : You are covered under the U.S. Department of State’s Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges (ASPE) and will receive instructions for registering with ASPE via email from CIES. Coverage is limited, please check with your existing health insurance provider about coverage overseas.

Please note that pre-existing conditions are not covered. The information you will use, if needed, when making appointments with health care providers, using urgent care or emergency rooms, and when filling a prescription at a pharmacy during your Fulbright Specialist grant can be found on the ASPE website.

For more information, please consult the ASPE Guide to Health Care Coverage.

Please be aware that medical facilities throughout the world may not be of the same level as major medical centers in the United States. If you have a health condition that may impact your ability to successfully carry out the grant activities or may require special accommodation, you must inform CIES as soon as possible.

Inoculations/Vaccinations: Obtain any required inoculations for your host country . Local public health service officers and foreign embassies and consulates can advise on vaccination requirements. The most up-to-date information is usually available from:

·  Centers for Disease Control Travel Page

·  American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Links and Related Websites

·  Malaria Information (FSP Grantee Info login required)

·  State Dept. HIV/AIDS document (FSP Grantee Info login required)

In regards to medical costs for required travel immunizations, please check with your current health insurance provider regarding coverage, as they are not reimbursable expenses under your Fulbright grant.

Step 10. Consult your host institution in planning the Scope Of Work (FSP Grantee Info login required) agreement and submit the final version to the host institution via email or fax. Please cc the Fulbright Commission or Public Affairs Section contact person and .

Step 11. Familiarize yourself with the host country and host institution and their in-country arrangements for you during the grant period.

Contact the your host institution or the requesting Fulbright Commission or Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy for additional details about your in-country arrangements for lodging, meals and in-country transportation.

Special Guidelines for U.S. Federal Government Employees Only

A grantee who is a U.S. federal government employee must indicate his/her tentative leave status during the grant period when submitting the Travel Advance Budget form and travel quotes. If you opt to take leave with pay, only the travel advance will be provided. This will be noted on the grant authorization along with acknowledgement that the host will provide coverage for in-country expenses. If you take leave without pay, you must provide an official statement, from your immediate supervisor and your agency’s human resources department, verifying that the personal time used for the grant period, will be taken as personal leave without pay. You would then receive the travel advance and the grant payment.

Travel Advance Budget Form

Grantees should submit the travel budget form to CIES no earlier than five but no later than two months prior to the proposed project start date. Please note that the grant length listed on your Program Overview includes all travel days, weekends and holidays.

Please send as an email attachment to (preferred) or fax the completed form and two itineraries to: 202-686-4029, Attn: Fulbright Specialist Program, CIES.

Project I.D. # (found on the Program Overview): Visit #:

Grantee Name (as it appears on your passport):______

Social Security Number: - -

Dates of travel: leave_____return ______

Dates of grant: leave_____return ______

Departure City: Arrival City:

Do you need to renew your U.S. passport?

Airfare Quotes

* Official online travel or travel agent quotes estimates must accompany this form when submitted to CIES.

In-transit Overnight

Is an overnight stay required for international travel to and from host institution? Yes No

If yes, in which city/country and which way is/are the overnight(s) required? ______

Funding for an overnight stay during your international travel must be pre-approved by CIES.

For official use only: Overnight approved? yes no Amount US$______date______by_____

Receipts and Reimbursement

Receipts for your airline ticket and all other reimbursable expenses must be submitted to CIES at the completion of the grant in order to receive final payment. Consult the Travel Expense Report for the list of reimbursable items.

In case of emergency notify:

Signature______Date______

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= Flight Specialist Program

Grant Payment Deposits

Payments of grant funds to U.S. students and scholars must be made to the grantee in U.S. dollars in the United States. To do this effectively, deposits, insofar as possible, will be made by IIE via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to the checking account you designate. To initiate this process, please:

1.  Read and complete the Authorization Agreement.

2.  Determine where you want your payment deposited.

3.  Supply details concerning your existing checking account.

4.  Return completed form to your IIE Program Manager.

5.  Please keep a copy of this form for your records.

Automatic Grantee Award Deposit

AUTHORIZATION AGREEMENT

I authorize IIE to deposit each of my payments directly into the account named below. This authority remain in force until I have given 45 days written notice that I have terminated it or until IIE has notified me that this deposit service has been terminated. If ever an incorrect amount should be entered into my account, I authorize IIE, in conjunction with my bank, to make the appropriate adjustment. Use TAB key to move between fields.